Scientific danger between pope and cardinals: Galileo Galilei

The process to Galileo Galilei(1564-1642), suffered a process in years 1633 because he held the Copernican theory of universe, that rightly hypothesized the sun in the center of universe; Galileo in fronted this process and he have to deny all his theory, alone formally because he after the Roman process gone in Pisa and other cities. Why the Church was so worry to theoretical adherence? We must consider the politic contest above all, because it is the first motive to deny validity to Galileo, and the first clue for hypothesize it is in a painting of Andrea Sacchi(1599-1661), a painter that painted a fresco very interesting fro this contest because it is the confutation of process to Galileo, in fact Sacchi, among 1629-1633, has painted the Allegory of Divine sapience(Fig.1), where he represented the word the is distant from sun and it isn’t to center, hence the fresco of Sacchi was an heretical painting or no? Certainly no, because the pope Urban 8^th has commissioned this painting, therefore the pope was heretical represented, or may Urban 8^th (1623-1644), of astronomy and other matters he didn’t care? The second hypothesize is certainly more credible, but repeat the historical context is important; because the Church has left much power in Europe, much nations were become Protestant and the danger that other follow this example was everyday present, hence to reinforce its power have to contrast every think or discovery that could contrast to scientific think of the Church. The witness, at last from depositions and documents of this process, a friar Father Caccini  has evidenced that he has heard Galileo that said other wrong opinions, type: “The miracles that it says made by Saints, aren’t true miracles. He has nominated some other witnesses and whole exam we have deducted that these opinion aren’t assertive neither of Galileo and his pupils, but alone in a disputation; and the confutation no of this evidence, because Galileo was Catholic, but the scientific discovery of Galileo is the fresco of Sacchi, above mentioned, because the verbal of process said: “Seen  in the book of solar spots printed in Rome two propositions, The sun is center of the word and every (planet) is immobile, the word isn’t the center of universe and every(planet) is mobile during the day: these thesis are judged absurd.”, the evidence of worry of Church for heresy is in following steps: “The first(opinion) is heretic both formally and repulsive to Holy written…”, it confirm the opinion, this is the worry for an eventually danger of heretic opinion. It is further confirmed from other words in same verbal: “For this the 25^th February 1616 our Lord(this is the pope Urban 8^th) to the mister cardinal Belarmino that he calls in front of herself Galileo and he gives precept that he not treats about the immobility of sun and the immobility of word”; it is the confirm that the Church was worry and the new discoveries would have lack its power also in scientific context; in fact Bellarmino give alone an order but he didn’t condemn these theories, in fact in fresco of Sacchi this theory is painted, evidently the pope Urban 8^th wanted alone to silence the Saint Uffizio, the institution of Church that judged the case of heresies; furthermore the fresco of Sacchi was painted in 1633, year of process to Galileo; it is evidences that it is alone a political position necessary to the Church and stop; and in fact after the process Galileo suffered the condemn of house arrest in Rome and after in Siena in palace of bishop Piccolomini and finally in his villa, near Florence, called the Jeweler. If he has been a heretic he would have bear sentence certainly more severe , and the bishop Piccolomini didn’t would guest him, thereupon that this accuse if heresy was untrustworthy, because a pope and a bishop has pay homage both directly and indirectly, for the fresco of Sacchi, to Galileo. Furthermore the deposition of Galileo: “He says that in year 1616 he gone to Rome for to hear that was opportune keep of opinion of Copernicus about the mobility of word and immobility of sun, and about this matter he has spoken to cardinals of saint Office and of cardinal Bellarmino”, if his opinions were heretical I doubt that Galileo have asked opinion to these cardinals; evidently the Church ascertained the importance of discoveries of Galileo, but he these thesis contrasted the Holy Bible the Church have to admit the Holy Bible has wrong  and it is would given a unhoped aid to Protestant confession, that would used this thesis to attack the Catholic confession.

Alessandro Lusana   

Fig.1