Today’s featured entry from the Vatican Observatory Faith and Science pages: “Emilie Du Châtelet on the existence of God” (click here for it) Gabrielle Émilie Le Tonnelier de Breteuil, Marquise Du Châtelet, wrote, among other things, a translation and commentary on Isaac Newton’s Principia (published posthumously in 1759), and a physics textbook for her son…. The second chapter of this textbook was addressed to the question of God’s existence [click here to continue]. The Faith and Science pages (F&S) are a unique resource on the web.  The material in F&S is stuff that you will find nowhere else (or at least not without a lot of digging).  Featured areas on F&S include “History of Church and Science”; “Church and Science Today”; “Science and Scripture”; “Science, Religion & Society”; “Life in the Universe”; “Cosmology”; and more.  The level of the F&S material ranges from being accessible to all audiences, with even some material oriented toward young readers, up to material for university … Continue reading →

Twice each month Sacred Space Astronomy features mini-posts that highlight of one of the entries from the Vatican Observatory Faith and Science pages.  These mini-posts appear on the 8th and 25th of the month.  The 1st and the 15th would be too boring, too normal, and not astronomical enough, therefore, these mini-posts appear on the 8th, because there are eight major planets orbiting the sun, and on the 25th, because the amount of time that passes from one moonrise to the next is approximately 25 hours! Today’s featured entry from the Vatican Observatory Faith and Science pages: “A conversation imagined: The meeting of science and faith” (click here for it) Dr. Michelle Francl (quantum chemist at Bryn Mawr and Vatican Observatory adjunct scholar) imagines a conversation between herself and Pope Francis about science and religion [click here to continue]. The Faith and Science pages (F&S) are a unique resource on the web.  The material in F&S is stuff that you will … Continue reading →

Today’s featured entry from the Vatican Observatory Faith and Science pages: “Vatican I on Faith and Science – Dei Filius” (click here for it) [T]he Catechism of the Catholic Church on faith and science references the fourth chapter of “Dei Filius” from the First Vatican Council. The PDF here contains both the document in Latin and an English translation [click here to continue]. The Faith and Science pages (F&S) are a unique resource on the web.  The material in F&S is stuff that you will find nowhere else (or at least not without a lot of digging).  Featured areas on F&S include “History of Church and Science”; “Church and Science Today”; “Science and Scripture”; “Science, Religion & Society”; “Life in the Universe”; “Cosmology”; and more.  The level of the F&S material ranges from being accessible to all audiences, with even some material oriented toward young readers, up to material for university specialists. The F&S pages, like this blog, are made … Continue reading →

Today’s featured entry from the Vatican Observatory Faith and Science pages: “The Pope and the Comet” (click here for it) This brief article (published in 1908 in Popular Astronomy) by Fr. William F. Rigge, S. J., an astronomer at Creighton University, debunks the story that Pope Callixtus III invoked his papal authority against Halley’s comet. Rigge writes that “it seems that no article can be written on Halley’s comet without bringing in the oft-told story of the bull… [click here to continue]. The Faith and Science pages (F&S) are a unique resource on the web.  The material in F&S is stuff that you will find nowhere else (or at least not without a lot of digging).  Featured areas on F&S include “History of Church and Science”; “Church and Science Today”; “Science and Scripture”; “Science, Religion & Society”; “Life in the Universe”; “Cosmology”; and more.  The level of the F&S material ranges from being accessible to all audiences, with even some material … Continue reading →

Today we introduce a new feature to Sacred Space Astronomy: regular mini-posts that simply highlight of one of the entries from the Vatican Observatory Faith and Science pages.  These mini-posts will appear twice each month, once on the 8th of the month, and once on the 25th of the month. Why the 8th and the 25th?  Because the 1st and the 15th would be too boring, too normal, and not astronomical enough.  Therefore, the mini-posts will appear on the 8th, because there are eight major planets orbiting the sun, and on the 25th, because twenty-five hours is the approximate amount of time between one moonrise and the next! Today’s featured entry from the Vatican Observatory Faith and Science pages: “Giuseppe Piazzi and the Discovery of the Proper Motion of 61-Cygni” (click here for it) Fr. Giuseppe Piazza discovered the proper motion of the star 61 Cygni at the end of the eighteenth century. A star’s proper motion is its motion … Continue reading →