Church's treatment of Galileo

Charles J. Buttigieg (November 16) is only partly right in his interpretation regarding the Catholic Church's position on the Copernican hypotheses. The Church in fact always upheld the Ptolemaic theory for over 1,000 years, i.e. that the earth was static and all the rest of our universe was revolving around it.

However, to state that "the Church was (only) very uncomfortable with the Copernicus theory" is surely playing down the Church's reaction on the subject. Mr Buttigieg's letter regarding the Bondiplus programme may have also unintentionally put Galileo's life-long persecution by the Roman Catholic Church in doubt.

The Catholic Church's reaction to anyone promoting the Copernicus hypotheses, at the time, was as ferocious as it could ever get!

Even before the Papacy of Urbanus VIII (1623-1644), and as early as 1616, Jesuit Cardinal Robert Bellarmine, a great theologian and admirer of Galileo, was already advising him that he must no longer "hold or defend the concept that the earth moves". Cardinal Bellarmine knew all too well that such works were already subjected to heavy censorship by edict.

Galileo remained silent for a few years but in 1632 published his book Dialogue On The Two Chief World Systems. He was immediately summoned to Rome by the Inquisition to stand trial for "grave suspicion of heresy". Galileo was compelled in 1633 to renounce on oath and was excommunicated and sentenced to life imprisonment, which was however later commuted to permanent house arrest.

His book Dialogue was ordered to be burned and the sentence against him was to be read publicly in every university. There were many other unfortunate individuals condemned at the time for the same "crime". If the inquisitors handed a guilty person over to the civil authorities, it was tantamount to a demand for that person's execution.

Galileo's trial documents were published about 237 years later in the 1870s and entire responsibility for Galileo's condemnation was customarily placed on the Roman Catholic Church. An investigation calling for the reversal of the astronomer's condemnation was opened only in 1979 (after 109 years) by Pope John Paul II.

Finally, in October 1992, after 359 years, a Papal commission acknowledged the Vatican's error.

If Galileo Galilei were here today, I can just about hear his comments: "To all ye 'Holy' people - May the Lord show you the mercy that you never granted unto others!"