When the Vatican gets it right...

[afleitch]

...it is just a worthy of reporting. Excellent, if expected, news.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/4588289/The-Vatican-claims-Darwins-theory-of-evolution-is-compatible-with-Christianity.html

Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, head of the Pontifical Council for Culture, said while the Church had been hostile to Darwin's theory in the past, the idea of evolution could be traced to St Augustine and St Thomas Aquinas.

Father Giuseppe Tanzella-Nitti, Professor of Theology at the Pontifical Santa Croce University in Rome, added that 4th century theologian St Augustine had "never heard the term evolution, but knew that big fish eat smaller fish" and forms of life had been transformed "slowly over time". Aquinas made similar observations in the Middle Ages.

Ahead of a papal-backed conference next month marking the 150th anniversary of Darwin's On the Origin of Species, the Vatican is also set to play down the idea of Intelligent Design, which argues a "higher power" must be responsible for the complexities of life.

The conference at the Pontifical Gregorian University will discuss Intelligent Design to an extent, but only as a "cultural phenomenon" rather than a scientific or theological issue.

Monsignor Ravasi said Darwin's theories had never been formally condemned by the Roman Catholic Church, pointing to comments more than 50 years ago, when Pope Pius XII described evolution as a valid scientific approach to the development of humans.

Marc Leclerc, who teaches natural philosophy at the Gregorian University, said the "time has come for a rigorous and objective valuation" of Darwin by the Church as the 200th anniversary of Darwin's birth approaches.

Professor Leclerc argues that too many of Darwin's opponents, primarily Creationists, mistakenly claim his theories are "totally incompatible with a religious vision of reality".

Earlier this week, prominent scientists and leading religious figures wrote to The Daily Telegraph to call for an end to the fighting over Darwin's legacy.

They argued that militant atheists are turning people away from evolution by using it to attack religion while they also urge believers in creationism to acknowledge the overwhelming body of evidence that now exists to support Darwin's theory.

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, showing science and religion need not be at odds.

[Keystone Phil]

The Church has accepted evolution for awhile now.

[afleitch]

The Church has accepted evolution for awhile now.

Yes as the article explains (with a big step being taken in 1996). It is nice to see it re-affirmed this year when Darwin and Darwinism especially has taken a bit of a beating.

[Franzl]

wait...you mean the Earth isn't 6000 years old after all?

This surely won't find approval among Evangelicals.

(for the record....I strongly approve of this...although it isn't surprising for me, as Phil already said, the church has accepted evolution before)

[7,052,770]

The Church has accepted evolution for awhile now.

^^^ Correct.  Even in Mississippi I was taught in Catholic Sunday School all my life that the Earth is billions of years old.

This is not news at all, and strikes me as a way for the bizarre crusade against Catholics on this forum to continue.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

4th century theologian St Augustine had "never heard the term evolution, but knew that big fish eat smaller fish"

dang, that's deep!

[Keystone Phil]

The Church has accepted evolution for awhile now.

^^^ Correct.  Even in Mississippi I was taught in Catholic Sunday School all my life that the Earth is billions of years old.

It goes without saying that I did as well. The haters refuse to acknowledge this though.

and strikes me as a way for the bizarre crusade against Catholics on this forum to continue.

Most likely correct.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

I am a little confused, so please enlighten me...

Does the Catholic church believe we are all descended from the Adam of Genesis, or not?

[RI]

I am a little confused, so please enlighten me...

Does the Catholic church believe we are all descended from the Adam of Genesis, or not?

Hopefully not. My respect for Catholicism would go down greatly if they did.

[Person Man]

Hell, you can still believe in Evolution and think that Adam existed. I do. Adam was probably the first cultured anatomically correct human that lived in Northern Africa, when the monsoon reached what is now the Saharah during the ice ages about 75000 years ago.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Hell, you can still believe in Evolution and think that Adam existed.

that wasn't my question. Rather I asked, "Does the Catholic church believe we are all descended from the Adam of Genesis, or not?"

I'll even take the question further than that: "Does the Catholic church believe God took a single person, Adam, and created out of Adam alone, all the peoples of the earth?"

---

Adam was probably the first cultured anatomically correct human that lived in Northern Africa

are you trying to say Adam's parents were uncivilized mutants?

[7,052,770]

I am a little confused, so please enlighten me...

Does the Catholic church believe we are all descended from the Adam of Genesis, or not?

This is from Americancatholic.org:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

I am a little confused, so please enlighten me...

Does the Catholic church believe we are all descended from the Adam of Genesis, or not?

This is from Americancatholic.org:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

that is NOT what catholic.com says:

http://www.catholic.com/library/Adam_Eve_and_Evolution.asp

You must be logged in to read this quote.

[12th Doctor]

...it is just a worthy of reporting. Excellent, if expected, news.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/4588289/The-Vatican-claims-Darwins-theory-of-evolution-is-compatible-with-Christianity.html

Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, head of the Pontifical Council for Culture, said while the Church had been hostile to Darwin's theory in the past, the idea of evolution could be traced to St Augustine and St Thomas Aquinas.

Father Giuseppe Tanzella-Nitti, Professor of Theology at the Pontifical Santa Croce University in Rome, added that 4th century theologian St Augustine had "never heard the term evolution, but knew that big fish eat smaller fish" and forms of life had been transformed "slowly over time". Aquinas made similar observations in the Middle Ages.

Ahead of a papal-backed conference next month marking the 150th anniversary of Darwin's On the Origin of Species, the Vatican is also set to play down the idea of Intelligent Design, which argues a "higher power" must be responsible for the complexities of life.

The conference at the Pontifical Gregorian University will discuss Intelligent Design to an extent, but only as a "cultural phenomenon" rather than a scientific or theological issue.

Monsignor Ravasi said Darwin's theories had never been formally condemned by the Roman Catholic Church, pointing to comments more than 50 years ago, when Pope Pius XII described evolution as a valid scientific approach to the development of humans.

Marc Leclerc, who teaches natural philosophy at the Gregorian University, said the "time has come for a rigorous and objective valuation" of Darwin by the Church as the 200th anniversary of Darwin's birth approaches.

Professor Leclerc argues that too many of Darwin's opponents, primarily Creationists, mistakenly claim his theories are "totally incompatible with a religious vision of reality".

Earlier this week, prominent scientists and leading religious figures wrote to The Daily Telegraph to call for an end to the fighting over Darwin's legacy.

They argued that militant atheists are turning people away from evolution by using it to attack religion while they also urge believers in creationism to acknowledge the overwhelming body of evidence that now exists to support Darwin's theory.

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, showing science and religion need not be at odds.

What is wrong with this story is that it isn't news.  This has been the position of the Vatican for 60 years now.

[12th Doctor]

I am a little confused, so please enlighten me...

Does the Catholic church believe we are all descended from the Adam of Genesis, or not?

This is from Americancatholic.org:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

that is NOT what catholic.com says:

http://www.catholic.com/library/Adam_Eve_and_Evolution.asp

You must be logged in to read this quote.

First off, it is Catholic Answers, not "catholic.com".  Secondly, while Catholic Answers is generally a great scource for information, it is also extremely orthodox in its general outlook.  Do you want to quote a site that still preaches that the Catholic sacraments are the only true path to salvation, when the Church officially abandoned that idea 40 years ago?

[12th Doctor]

Eitherway, belief or lack there of in evolution is not a viewed as a necessary matter of faith.  If a Catholic still chooses to deny evolution entirely, they are more than welcome to that opinion.  However, Pius XII, who Catholic Answers quotes, ended the war on science, for once and for all time.  The war on science only began in the 15th century anyway.  Prior to that, the Catholic Church was the leading scientific body in Europe, for, as the attitude was taken 800 years ago, and now today, if God exists, then what do we have to fear from the truth?

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

http://www.catholic.com/library/Adam_Eve_and_Evolution.asp

You must be logged in to read this quote.

First off, it is Catholic Answers, not "catholic.com".  Secondly, while Catholic Answers is generally a great scource for information, it is also extremely orthodox in its general outlook.  Do you want to quote a site that still preaches that the Catholic sacraments are the only true path to salvation, when the Church officially abandoned that idea 40 years ago?

are you saying catholic.com misquoted Pope Pius XII?  if not, sounds like to me Pius XII stated belief that all of us are descended from Adam and Eve is not a option for Christians.

in any case, do you believe we are all descended from Adam?

[© tweed]

if you don't believe that Adam & Eve existed, doesn't the whole system start to break down?

[Bunwahaha [still dunno why, but well, so be it]]

if you don't believe that Adam & Eve existed, doesn't the whole system start to break down?

And here we are why, in part, Evangelicals spread...

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

if you don't believe that Adam & Eve existed, doesn't the whole system start to break down?

good question, but I think a simpler and more straightforward question is: 

Does denying that current-day-humanity descended from Adam contradict the bible's own interpretation of the story of Adam?

[7,052,770]

if you don't believe that Adam & Eve existed, doesn't the whole system start to break down?

good question, but I think a simpler and more straightforward question is: 

Does denying that current-day-humanity descended from Adam contradict the bible's own interpretation of the story of Adam?

No, because it's just a story (and stupid arbitrary sexist story at that).  The lessons of that story are what's important, not whether or not it actually happened.

[© tweed]

if you don't believe that Adam & Eve existed, doesn't the whole system start to break down?

good question, but I think a simpler and more straightforward question is: 

Does denying that current-day-humanity descended from Adam contradict the bible's own interpretation of the story of Adam?

it would seem so

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+3:23-38

[© tweed]

if you don't believe that Adam & Eve existed, doesn't the whole system start to break down?

good question, but I think a simpler and more straightforward question is: 

Does denying that current-day-humanity descended from Adam contradict the bible's own interpretation of the story of Adam?

No, because it's just a story (and stupid arbitrary sexist story at that).  The lessons of that story are what's important, not whether or not it actually happened.

how could you say it isn't important?  it is the basis of original sin.  without original sin, how did we become sinners?  we were created that way?

and if you accept the theory of evolution, that would seem to make your position all the more difficult.  when did sinning begin?  with one-cell organisms?  with proto-humans?

without Adam & Eve the whole thing stops making much sense.

[7,052,770]

if you don't believe that Adam & Eve existed, doesn't the whole system start to break down?

good question, but I think a simpler and more straightforward question is: 

Does denying that current-day-humanity descended from Adam contradict the bible's own interpretation of the story of Adam?

No, because it's just a story (and stupid arbitrary sexist story at that).  The lessons of that story are what's important, not whether or not it actually happened.

how could you say it isn't important?  it is the basis of original sin.  without original sin, how did we become sinners?  we were created that way?

and if you accept the theory of evolution, that would seem to make your position all the more difficult.  when did sinning begin?  with one-cell organisms?  with proto-humans?

without Adam & Eve the whole thing stops making much sense.

We are all sinners.  The first sinner was the first protohuman who was self-aware and did something wrong.

[© tweed]

that has no scriptural basis at all.