http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25041499-2703,00.html
Vatican view of Darwinism evolves into a compatible theory
Richard Owen, Rome | February 12, 2009
Article from: The Australian
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.
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The Vatican also dealt the final blow to speculation the Pope 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 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 he favoured their views.
Conceding the church had been hostile to Darwin because his theory appeared to
be in 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
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 had come for an objective valuation of Darwin by the
church, he said.
Professor Leclerc said too many opponents of Darwin -- above all creationists
-- had mistakenly claimed 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 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 human
development. In 1996, John Paul II said it was "more than a hypothesis".
Father Giuseppe Tanzella-Nitti, theology professor at the Pontifical Santa
Croce University in Rome, said 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 made similar observations in the Middle Ages.
He said it was time theologians and scientists grappled with the mysteries of
genetic codes and "whether the diversification of life forms is the result of
competition or co-operation 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.
The Times
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