Catholicism and Science

[Anselm33]

There are two areas of natural science.

The second area or discipline is the Science of Human Evolution. The Catholic Church does not agree with this. This is because the basic evolution model describes the human species as a large population evolving from a large indiscriminate random breeding population. The Catholic Church teaching is that the human species descended from an original population of two.

Hi Grannymh–It’s been a long time since I’ve been on Catholic Answers Forum, but there was a link to my blog on one of the posts, and then I read yours. I don’t believe you’re correct. I’ve written about the Church and evolution in my book, “Science and the Church”
Here’s a quote from Pope John Paul II about this:

"there is no conflict between evolution and the doctrine of the faith regarding man and his vocation, provided that we do not lose sight of certain fixed points."
Pope St. John Paul II, “Address to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, 1996

You refer to descent from two people. This has to do with the issue of “monogenesis” and the conflict between the Doctrine/Dogma of monogenesis can be resolved by treating the creation of man as endowing homo sapiens with human souls. See the chapter in my book or my post, “Did Neanderthals have a soul?”

 

[jimkhong]

You refer to descent from two people. This has to do with the issue of “monogenesis” and the conflict between the Doctrine/Dogma of monogenesis can be resolved by treating the creation of man as endowing homo sapiens with human souls. See the chapter in my book or my post, “Did Neanderthals have a soul?”

There are several theories of evolution of course. At one time, there was a theory humans separately evolved more or less simultaneously in several locations in the world. While it was debated among scientists, it got a boost after the Chinese government actively promoted it after the discovery of Peking Man - something about the oldest civilisation in the world being the source of humans really appeals to the Chinese psyche. The Church’s preference for monogenesis stems from objections to this theory.

That theory is now largely disproved and the prevailing theory is that we all originate from Africa. At heart, we are all Africans.

(NB: Please note that I am not using the word theory here in the layman’s usage of the word as in speculations, but in the scientific sense - of the hypothesis that best fits all known facts.

 

[Anselm33]

There are several theories of evolution of course. At one time, there was a theory humans separately evolved more or less simultaneously in several locations in the world. While it was debated among scientists, it got a boost after the Chinese government actively promoted it after the discovery of Peking Man - something about the oldest civilisation in the world being the source of humans really appeals to the Chinese psyche. **The Church’s preference for monogenesis stems from objections to this theory.**emphasis added]

That theory is now largely disproved and** the prevailing theory is that we all originate from Africa.** [emphasis added] At heart, we are all Africans.

(NB: Please note that I am not using the word theory here in the layman’s usage of the word as in speculations, but in the scientific sense - of the hypothesis that best fits all known facts.

I believe the Church’s preference for monogenesis is because monogenesis is an essential requirement for the dogma of Original Sin. If saying we are all “out of Africa”, then that is quite probably true, but does not say that there were not homo sapiens or homo … existing in other places. That is to say, that there were animals in human form without souls.

My point is that amongst a large number of homo sapiens (or possibly precursors to homo sapiens) God chose two to endow with souls. And since the Holy Spirit endows each of us at the moment of conception with a soul, the endowment of souls to only two original humans amongst a population of thousands with similar physical characteristics is not something to strain credibility.

Here’s another link on which I based my post: Science, Theology and Monogenesis by Kenneth Kemp

 

[rcwitness]

I believe the Church’s preference for monogenesis is because monogenesis is an essential requirement for the dogma of Original Sin. If saying we are all “out of Africa”, then that is quite probably true, but does not say that there were not homo sapiens or homo … existing in other places. That is to say, that there were animals in human form without souls.

My point is that amongst a large number of homo sapiens (or possibly precursors to homo sapiens) God chose two to endow with souls. And since the Holy Spirit endows each of us at the moment of conception with a soul, the endowment of souls to only two original humans amongst a population of thousands with similar physical characteristics is not something to strain credibility.

Here’s another link on which I based my post: Science, Theology and Monogenesis by Kenneth Kemp

Yes, that’s an interesting theory, which I’ve contemplated before ever hearing it proposed. Not that I’m saying it’s genius, but maybe the Holy Spirit guided that thought. So I wonder, too, how that theory holds up to much scrutiny.

 

[buffalo]

Hello. I’m currently in university majoring in the sciences. I’ve found that a number of great scientists in history were devoted Roman Catholics, including (off of the top of my head):

Leonardo Da Vinci
Amedeo Avogadro (Avogadro’s number and Avogadro’s law)
Charles Augustin de Coulomb (Coulomb’s law plus the unit is named after him)
Georgius Agricola (probably the most impactful contributer on minerology)
Fibonacci (I think the name itself may ring a few bells!)
Albertus Magnus
Gregor Mendel (genetics)
Roger Bacon (scientific method)
Reńe Descartes
and many many more…

I think it’s amazing that so many Catholics were involved in the sciences, and I really wanted to list a few and their accomplishments on here. NOW, for my question, are there any accounts written by Catholic scientists on their faith? I realize that many of them were already priests and such, but I would like to know if anyone knows of any specific instances in which they mentioned their Roman Catholic faith and related it back to their studies?

As a science student, I enjoy probably every aspect of it, seeing as how all of it was created by my glorious Father. . My favourite past time, however, is looking at nature (insects and smaller animals are my favourite) and using it as a complement to my faith. It really is amazing. So, any answers to my question above, or any scientific interests of your own that you would like to share? I guess you can tell that I love it a lot!

Thanks everyone

The Catholic Church is and was a great patron of science. Science got its start from the Catholic understanding the universe is rational and worthy of study.

Faith and reason cannot be opposed since they flow from the very same source.

 

[Anselm33]

Hello. I’m currently in university majoring in the sciences. I’ve found that a number of great scientists in history were devoted Roman Catholics, including (off of the top of my head):

Leonardo Da Vinci
Amedeo Avogadro (Avogadro’s number and Avogadro’s law)
Charles Augustin de Coulomb (Coulomb’s law plus the unit is named after him)
Georgius Agricola (probably the most impactful contributer on minerology)
Fibonacci (I think the name itself may ring a few bells!)
Albertus Magnus
Gregor Mendel (genetics)
Roger Bacon (scientific method)
Reńe Descartes
and many many more…

I think it’s amazing that so many Catholics were involved in the sciences, and I really wanted to list a few and their accomplishments on here.** NOW, for my question, are there any accounts written by Catholic scientists on their faith?*** [emphasis adde*d] I realize that many of them were already priests and such, but I would like to know if anyone knows of any specific instances in which they mentioned their Roman Catholic faith and related it back to their studies?

As a science student, I enjoy probably every aspect of it, seeing as how all of it was created by my glorious Father. . My favourite past time, however, is looking at nature (insects and smaller animals are my favourite) and using it as a complement to my faith. It really is amazing. So, any answers to my question above, or any scientific interests of your own that you would like to share? I guess you can tell that I love it a lot!

Thanks everyone *

Fr. Stanley Jaki has written many books and essays on the intersection between his Catholic Faith and Science–see for example, “The Limits of a Limitless Science”;
Stacy Trasancos has a fine book on science and her Catholic faith,“Particles of Faith”;
As a retired physicist, I’ve written a number of posts on the interaction between science and my Catholic faith on my blog, Reflections of a Catholic Scientist. (see, for example, does "Quantum Mechanics speak to Catholic Teaching?" Some of these are collected in my three ebooks, Top Down to Jesus, Book 1: A Scientist’s Faith. .
Book 2: “the Quantum Catholic”, Book 3, “Science versus the Church–‘Truth Cannot Contradict Truth’”.
Finally, please forgive the blatant and shameless self-promotion, but you asked!

 

[ImmaCatholic]

Fr. Stanley Jaki has written many books and essays on the intersection between his Catholic Faith and Science–see for example, “The Limits of a Limitless Science”;
Stacy Trasancos has a fine book on science and her Catholic faith,“Particles of Faith”;
As a retired physicist, I’ve written a number of posts on the interaction between science and my Catholic faith on my blog, Reflections of a Catholic Scientist. (see, for example, does "Quantum Mechanics speak to Catholic Teaching?" Some of these are collected in my three ebooks, Top Down to Jesus, Book 1: A Scientist’s Faith. .
Book 2: “the Quantum Catholic”, Book 3, “Science versus the Church–‘Truth Cannot Contradict Truth’”.
Finally, please forgive the blatant and shameless self-promotion, but you asked!

Thank you for the recommendations. I just ordered the book “How the Catholic Church built Western civilization” and am expecting very good things from skimming it! I will look into your suggestions as well!