minds of the common people should become confused, obstinate, and contemptuous in yielding assent to the principal articles that are absolutely matters of faith” (41).If the word of God was altered to cater to the vulgar needs of the populace, then, Galileo argues, it should not be used to determine science and the movement of the heavens.
To add strength to this argument, Galileo uses the words of two saints (St. Jerome and St. Agustine). According to St. Jerome, the times in which the Bible was written has an impact on its current validity. He writes, “...many things were not spoken in the Holy Bible according to the judgement of the times in which they were acted, rather than according to the truth contained” (41). Not even the saints were under the illusion the Bible was completely void of nuanced truth. …show more content…
Augustine also supports Galileo’s claim that scientific observation should trump interpretation of scripture. He writes, “If anyone shall set the authority of Holy Writ against clear and manifest reason, he who does this knows not what he has undertaken; for he who opposes to the truth not the meaning of the Bible, which is beyond his comprehension, but rather his own interpretation; not what is in the Bible, but what he has found in himself and imagines to be there” (35). This holy statement supporting reason over scripture, along with the wise words of St. Jerome, fortify Galileo’s solid argument that although the word of God imbedded in the Bible cannot err, the adjustment of truth and interpretation that occurred during its transcription and reading, negate its infallibility in the face of
To add strength to this argument, Galileo uses the words of two saints (St. Jerome and St. Agustine). According to St. Jerome, the times in which the Bible was written has an impact on its current validity. He writes, “...many things were not spoken in the Holy Bible according to the judgement of the times in which they were acted, rather than according to the truth contained” (41). Not even the saints were under the illusion the Bible was completely void of nuanced truth. …show more content…
Augustine also supports Galileo’s claim that scientific observation should trump interpretation of scripture. He writes, “If anyone shall set the authority of Holy Writ against clear and manifest reason, he who does this knows not what he has undertaken; for he who opposes to the truth not the meaning of the Bible, which is beyond his comprehension, but rather his own interpretation; not what is in the Bible, but what he has found in himself and imagines to be there” (35). This holy statement supporting reason over scripture, along with the wise words of St. Jerome, fortify Galileo’s solid argument that although the word of God imbedded in the Bible cannot err, the adjustment of truth and interpretation that occurred during its transcription and reading, negate its infallibility in the face of