The case Case Of Galileo
In 1613 the Italian scientist Galileo published a work known as “Letters on Sunspots”. In it, he presented evidence that the earth rotates around the sun, rather than the sun around the earth. By so doing, he set in motion a series of events that finally brought him before the Roman Catholic Inquisition under “vehement suspicion of heresy”. Eventually, he was forced to “recant”.
Why was the idea that the earth moves around the sun viewed by as heresy? Because Galileo's accusers claimed that it was contrary to what the Bible says.
It is widely held today that the Bible is unscientific, and some point to Galileo's experiences to prove it. But is this the case? When answering that question, we have to remember that the Bible is a book of prophecy, history,prayer,law,counsel, and knowledge about God. It does not claim to be a scientific textbook. Nevertheless, when the Bible does touch on scientific matters, what it says is completely accurate.
What does the Bible say?
If the Bible is so accurate in scientific fields, why did the Catholic Church say that Galileo's teaching that the earth moved around the sun was unscriptural?
Because of the way the authorities interpreted certain Bible verses.
Were they correct?
Let us read two of the passages they quoted and see.
One passage says: ”The sun rises, the sun sets; then to it's place it speeds and there it rises”.(Ecclesiastes 1:5, The Jerusalem Bible) According to the Church's argument, expressions such as “the sun rises” and “the sun sets” mean that the sun, not the earth, is moving.But even today we say that the sun rises and sets, and most of us know that it is the earth that moves, not the sun.When we use expressions like these, we are merely describing the apparent motion of the sun as it appears to a human observer. The Bible writer was doing exactly the same.
The other passage says “You fixed the earth on it's foundations, unshakeable for ever and ever”.
(Psalm 104:5, The Jerusalem Bible) This was interpreted to mean that after it's creation the earth could never move. In fact , though, the verse stresses the permanence of the earth, not it's immobility.The earth will never be “shaken” out of existence, or destroyed, as other Bible verses confirm. (Psalm 37:29 Ecclesiastes 1:4) This scripture,too,has nothing to do but with the relative motion of the earth and the sun. In Galileo's time, it was the Church, not the Bible , that hindered free scientific discussion.
Credit The Watch Tower Bible And Tract Society Of Pennsylvania