Enrique Solano: "The Catholic scientist knows the beginning and the end of the film".José Carlos González-HurtadoThe more science, the more God".Stephen BarrThe thesis of the conflict between science and faith is a myth generated by the polemics of the end of the 19th century".U.S. astronomer Fr. Guy Consolmagno, director since 2015 of the Holy See's astronomical observatory, the Specola Vaticanachaired the presentation of an event to be held June 17-21 at Castel Gandolfo, entitled "Black Holes, Gravitational Waves and Space-Time Singularities".
Consolmagno, Ph.D. in Planetology at the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory from the University of Arizona, taught at Harvard College Observatory and MIT. In 1989 he entered the Society of Jesus and in 1991 he took vows as a Coadjutor Brother.
After the presentation in the Press Room of the Holy See, the American astronomer assured Omnes that this event "is very important for the world of science."
Among other reasons, the astronomer pointed out, "because it provides an opportunity to discuss so many points of view, so many questions: the true nature of Space and Time; how to reconcile the laws of Quantum Mechanics with Einstein's General Relativity, which governs the behavior of the gravitational field in the first moments of the Universe; space-time singularities; and the nature of our Universe".
Moreover, he continued, "it is also important for the Vatican because it shows the world that it is very open to the opinions of science, as long as science points to the truth, because in truth there is God."
Our idea of God
"We have too small an idea of God," the scientist assured, although "we can speak at the same time of God as a father," reiterating that our "vision is small because He is the creator of all this and even more than we could imagine."
This is difficult for us," acknowledged the astronomer, "and at the same time, in astronomy, we are faced with this reality: the universe is bigger than we know," although this "incredibly big God is very close to us".
He also assured that "this idea, which seems very modern, is already found in Psalm 8". In fact, the Magisterium of the Church sees in Psalm 8 an invitation to recognize God's work in creation and to praise his name for the dignity granted to man, who is called to care for and responsibly value creation.
"O Lord our God," begins Psalm 8, "how great is your name above all the earth! Thou hast exalted thy majesty above the heavens".
Regarding the apparent contradiction between man made in the image of God and the immensity of the universe, the scientist considers that this explanation "more than a contradiction is a kind of poetry. For things that are too big to be explained and contained in words, we use poetry. Knowing that poetry uses images that rather than explaining reality, it shows where reality is'.
Participants in the event
The 40 participants at the meeting include Nobel laureates Adam Riess and Roger Penrose; cosmologists and theoretical physicists Andrei Linde, Joseph Silk,Wendy Freedman, Licia Verde, Cumrun Vafa and the winner of the Fields MedalEdward Witten.
The conference, which celebrates the scientific legacy of the bishop Georges Lemaîtrethe Belgian physicist who developed what is known today as the theory of the Big Bang, is the second of its kind to take place at the Vatican Observatory; the first was in 2017.
