What will christians do now that the Vatican has admitted that Darwin was right

What will christians do now that the Vatican has admitted that Darwin was right?
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article5705331.ece The Vatican has admitted that Charles Darwin was on the right track when he claimed that Man descended from apes. A leading official declared yesterday that Darwin’s theory of evolution was compatible with Christian faith, and could even be traced to St Augustine and St Thomas Aquinas. “In fact, what we mean by evolution is the world as created by God,” said Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, head of the Pontifical Council for Culture. The Vatican also dealt the final blow to speculation that Pope Benedict XVI might be prepared to endorse the theory of Intelligent Design, whose advocates credit a “higher power” for the complexities of life. Organisers of a papal-backed conference next month marking the 150th anniversary of Darwin’s On the Origin of Species said that at first it had even been proposed to ban Intelligent Design from the event, as “poor theology and poor science”. Intelligent Design would be discussed at the fringes of the conference at the Pontifical Gregorian University, but merely as a “cultural phenomenon”, rather than a scientific or theological issue, organisers said. The conference is seen as a landmark in relations between faith and science. Three years ago advocates of Intelligent Design seized on the Pope’s reference to an “intelligent project” as proof that he favoured their views. Conceding that the Church had been hostile to Darwin because his theory appeared to conflict with the account of creation in Genesis, Archbishop Ravasi argued yesterday that biological evolution and the Christian view of Creation were complementary. Marc Leclerc, who teaches natural philosophy at the Gregorian University, said that no scholar could “remain indifferent” to the 200th anniversary of Darwin’s birth tomorrow. There was, however, “no question of celebrating” it. The Vatican would “take the measure of an event, which has left its mark for ever on the history of science and has influenced the way we understand our humanity”. The “time has come for a rigorous and objective valuation” of Darwin by the Church, he said. Professor Leclerc said that too many opponents of Darwin – above all Creationists – had mistakenly claimed that his theories were “totally incompatible with a religious vision of reality”, as did proponents of Intelligent Design. Darwin’s theories had never been formally condemned by the Roman Catholic Church, Monsignor Ravasi insisted. His rehabilitation had begun as long ago as 1950, when Pius XII described evolution as a valid scientific approach to the development of humans. In 1996 John Paul II said that it was “more than a hypothesis”. Father Giuseppe Tanzella-Nitti, Professor of Theology at the Pontifical Santa Croce University in Rome, said that Darwin had been anticipated by St Augustine of Hippo. The 4th-century theologian had “never heard the term evolution, but knew that big fish eat smaller fish” and that forms of life had been transformed “slowly over time”. Aquinas had made similar observations in the Middle Ages, he added. He said it was time that theologians as well as scientists grappled with the mysteries of genetic codes and “whether the diversification of life forms is the result of competition or cooperation between species”. As for the origins of Man, although we shared 97 per cent of our “genetic inheritance” with apes, the remaining 3 per cent “is what makes us unique”, including religion. “I maintain that the idea of evolution has a place in Christian theology,” Professor Tanzella-Nitti added. Creationism remains powerful in the US, however, notably among Protestants, and its followers object to evolution being taught in state schools. The Church of England is seeking to bring Darwin back into the fold with a page on its website paying tribute to his “forgotten” work in his local parish, to illustrate how science and Church need not be at odds. Several pages celebrate Darwin’s “significant scientific progress” to mark his bicentenary and also the 150th anniversary of On the Origin of Species. The Church wants to correct the impression that Darwin’s relationship with Anglicanism was contentious. The Anglican Church as a whole did not condemn Darwin or his beliefs. It says that although he lost his faith, he did not become antiChurch or antireligious.
Religion & Spirituality - 21 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
hooray! the vatican made a quantum leap from year 1 ad to the 21st century at last
2 :
What do you mean by 'Christians?' Did you know that a large sum of Christians believe in evolution? Did you know that evolution was first coined by creationists?
3 :
Just because someone believes what one says doesn't mean its right or fact. Truth is not dictated, it is the dictator. If you just stuck to the first sentence you could've saved yourself all this time.
4 :
They will say that god spoke to them and said the pope is a fraud.
5 :
Well, sense this Child of God thinks the vatican has NO say so in what God thinks, does or says, I could care less...... go in peace... God bless
6 :
Well, first, the Catholic church has had this stance, perhaps unofficially, for quite some time. Second, the pope is not the leader of all Christians, only Catholics, so some Christians won't give a rat's a@@ what the pope says is in agreement with the Catholic faith. Third, I just love how the Catholic church is saying that some of their saints were actually the ones who set the precedent for the theory of evolution. If that's not "spin" I don't know what is.
7 :
The Vatican has no say over True followers of Christ,so it is mute either way..
8 :
I'm with Annie on this one. I give "papal authority" about as much credence as if the pope wrote a manual on automotive maintenance. If they wish to "cave" on this issue, that is their call. Doesn't affect me one iota. I am, and shall remain, a creationist. And yes, I've investigated the "evidence" of evolution and find it incredibly lacking.
9 :
Forget the crappy news. Catholics still believe in Intelligent Design. If you believe in God, you have to subscribe to Intelligent Design of one form or another.
10 :
This isn't the first time the catholic church has been wrong. Look at their lying, blood filled history. Just a bunch of pompous old men playing dress up in their flowing robes and fish hats. I could care less what the catholic church has to say, there just men pleasers.
11 :
Fortunately, the Vatican does not represent me or my beliefs, and I am not obliged to do or believe anything that they say. The Vatican is--and has always has been---a glorified political office that will compromise any "Christian" doctrine in order to either get more people to fill their coffers or to keep people from leaving.
12 :
Sounds like some folks at the Vatican need to open their Bibles and actually read it; billions of year of evolution and the Bible are 100% incompatiable. 1.The Bible clearly teaches that God created in six literal, 24-hour days a few thousand years ago. 2.The context of Genesis 1 clearly shows that the days of creation were literal days. 3.The genealogies of Genesis 5 and 11 make it clear that the creation days happened only about 6,000 years ago. 4.Exodus 20:9–11 blocks all attempts to fit millions of years into Genesis 1. 5.Noah’s Flood washes away millions of years. 6.Jesus was a young-earth creationist
13 :
The author of this article is about 60 years too late. Truth cannot contradict Truth. -- Pope Leo XIII Most Jews and Christians do not take the stories of creation in the Bible literally. We believe the stories included in first 11 chapters of Genesis tell religious truth but not necessarily historical fact. One of the religious truths is that God created everything and declared all was good. Catholics can believe in the theories of the big bang or evolution or both or neither. On August 12, 1950 Pope Pius XII said in his encyclical Humani generis: The Teaching Authority of the Church does not forbid that, in conformity with the present state of human sciences and sacred theology, research and discussions, on the part of men experienced in both fields, take place with regard to the doctrine of evolution, in as far as it inquires into the origin of the human body as coming from pre-existent and living matter - for the Catholic faith obliges us to hold that souls are immediately created by God. Here is the complete encyclical: http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_xii/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xii_enc_12081950_humani-generis_en.html And here is the Address of Pope John Paul II to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences on October 22, 1996 speaking of the Theory of Evolution: http://www.newadvent.org/library/docs_jp02tc.htm Here is an interesting article about Pope John Paul II's opinion in the matter: http://www.americamagazine.org/content/article.cfm?article_id=4627 The Church supports science in the discovery of God's creation. At this time, the big bang and evolution are the most logical scientific explanations. As long as we believe that God started the whole thing, both the Bible and responsible modern science can live in harmony. Here is a nice list of Christian thinkers in science: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Christian_thinkers_in_science The Clergy Letter Project an open letter endorsing the Theory of Evolution signed by over 10,000 clergy from many
14 :
The Vatican did not say Darwin was right. It said that Christians are free to choose what they want to believe about evolution, and that any choice they make is totally compatible with true Christian teaching. The catholic Church, because its teachings are guaranteed true by its founder Jesus Christ, has no fear of truths revealed by science. Truth cannot conflict with truth.
15 :
Well - I was never one to follow church doctrines that are different than what is stated in the bible. Let them talk away - I don't believe evolution for a second - I do believe the words written in scripture - Evolution has been taught in US public schools since the Scopes' 'monkey trial' of 7*21*1925. the catholic church has declared all sorts of stuff that can be found nowhere in scripture - being christian is not the same as being catholic
16 :
The Catholic church has been wrong since the begining. They made people pay for their sins to be forgiven so they could take the money for themselves. They also didn't let anyone read the Bible and they read the Bible to them while making up their own rules. I just finished Western Civilization in college, so I know this. I'm not supprised they are wrong again. I love Jesus! and God created the earth, fool
17 :
I have never listened to what the Vatican said........ever.
18 :
Can you read English? How much do you know about the CC? The CC has never said Darwin was right. It has said for years and years that he might be right, and that his theory is not incompatible with Christianity. But I'm glad to discover you're just about caught up.
19 :
You make the claim that the Vatican is Christian. I do not believe they are true Christians, so, to answer your question, I as a true Christian and Jehovah's Witness will still continue to put faith in my creator. What the Vatican decided on Christianity has no bearing on true Christians.
20 :
I don't know where in the article that you got that idea? It never said Darwin was right.
21 :
Christians won't do anything different. The vast majority of christians in the world, including Catholics, have accepted evolution and Darwin's ideas for decades. There will be no change in thinking for them. It is only the fundamentalist, literal bible sects, largely in the USA, that don't accept evolution. They will not be paying any attention to the Vatican -- those sects are not Catholic. Since they don't agree with the Vatican, they won't do anything different either.