The Magisterium Rules: The Debate is Over, by David Palm: In 1820 Pope Pius VII decreed that there are “no obstacles” nor “any difficulties” for Catholics to hold to the motion of the earth. Two years later the Holy Office decreed that there would be canonical punishments for a Roman censor who refused to allow publication of books supporting the motion of the earth. With good reason, then, Pope St. John Paul II stated in 1992 that the debate concerning whether Catholics may hold to modern cosmological views which include the motion of the earth “was closed in 1820”.
Geocentrism in the Fathers: A Matter of Natural Philosophy, Not Theology, by David Palm: One of the theological assessors called upon to examine the Galileo case prior to his trial affirms that the Fathers of the Church do not argue positively for the motion of the earth at all (much less present a unanimous consensus as a matter of faith), but rather, “they presupposed, rather than argued, that the earth is at rest, in agreement with the common opinion of the philosophers.”
The Fathers Don’t Support an Immobile Earth, by David Palm: Fr. Melchior Inchofer, S. J. was one of the theological assessors who examined the Galileo case prior to his trial. Regarding the motion of the earth, which geocentrist Robert Sungenis insists is the crucial point in the debate, Fr. Inchofer says of the Church Fathers that, “I have not found a single one of the Holy Fathers who has dealt with the motion of the earth clearly and positively, as the saying goes.”
Here Comes the Sun: How the new geocentrists persist in scientific and logical errors, by Dr. Alec MacAndrew (added 04/13/2014): Physicist Alec MacAndrew has weighed in on the geocentrism controversy with a new article challenging the scientific acumen of geocentrist Robert Sungenis, as well as highlighting what MacAndrew rightly dubs the “Great Inconsistency” in the geocentrists’ appeal to modern science.
The Magisterium Rules: The Debate is Over, by David Palm (added 04/12/2014): The Catholic Church has ruled officially that Catholics are perfectly free to hold the scientific view of the motion of the earth. But that’s not enough for the new geocentrists.
The section Some Background on the New Geocentrists has been updated. When evaluating controversial claims, it’s always valuable to know just who you’re dealing with (04/07/14).
