"Man is called to enter into a relationship of knowledge and love with God himself, a relationship which will find its complete fulfilment beyond time, in eternity. All the depth and grandeur of this vocation are revealed to us in the mystery of the risen Christ (cf. Gaudium et spes, n. 22). It is by virtue of his spiritual soul that the whole person possesses such a dignity even in his body. Pius XII stressed this essential point: if the human body takes its origin from pre-existent living matter, the spiritual soul is immediately created by God", the Holy Father said in a Message to the members of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences who had gathered in the Vatican for their plenary assembly. The focus of the Pope's reflections was the relationship between Revelation and theories of evolution. This translation of his Message from the original French includes a correction (to an erroneously translated phrase) published in the October 23 English edition of L'Osservatore Romano
To the Members of the
Pontifical Academy of Sciences
taking part in the Plenary Assembly
With great pleasure I address cordial greetings to you, Mr President, and to all of you who constitute the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, on the occasion of your plenary assembly. I offer my best wishes in particular to the new academicians, who have come to take part in your work for the first time. I would also like to remember the academicians who died during the past year, whom I commend to the Lord of life.
1. In celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Academy's
refoundation, I would like to recall the intentions of my predecessor
Pius XI, who wished to surround himself with a select group of
scholars, relying on them to inform the Holy See in complete freedom
about developments in scientific research, and thereby to assist him
in his reflections.
He asked those whom he called the Church's Senatus scientificus to
serve the truth. I again extend this same invitation to you today,
certain that we will all be able to profit from the fruitfulness of a
trustful dialogue between the Church and science (cf. Address to
the Academy of Sciences, n. 1, 28 October 1986 L'Osservatore
Romano English edition, 24 November 1986, p. 22).
Science at the dawn of the third millennium
2. I am pleased with the first theme you have chosen, that of
the origins of life and evolution, an essential subject which deeply
interests the Church, since Revelation, for its part, contains
teaching concerning the nature and origins of man. How do the
conclusions reached by the various scientific disciplines coincide
with those contained in the message of Revelation? And if, at first
sight, there are apparent contradictions, in what direction do we
look for their solution? We know, in fact, that truth cannot
contradict truth (cf. Leo XIII, Encyclical Providentissimus
Deus). Moreover, to shed greater light on historical truth, your
research on the Church's relations with science between the 16th and
18th centuries is of great importance.
During this plenary session, you are undertaking a "reflection on
science at the dawn of the third millennium", starting with the
identification of the principal problems created by the sciences and
which affect humanity's future. With this step you point the way to
solutions which will be beneficial to the whole human community. In
the domain of inanimate and animate nature, the evolution of science
and its applications gives rise to new questions. The better the
Church's knowledge is of their essential aspects, the more she will
understand their impact. Consequently in accordance with her specific
mission she will be able to offer criteria for discerning the moral
conduct required of all human beings in view of their integral
salvation.
3. Before offering you several reflections that more
specifically concern the subject of the origin of life and its
evolution, I would like to remind you that the Magisterium of the
Church has already made pronouncements on these matters within the
framework of her own competence. I will cite here two
interventions.
In his Encyclical Humani generis (1950), my predecessor Pius
XII had already stated that there was no opposition between evolution
and the doctrine of the faith about man and his vocation, on
condition that one did not lose sight of several indisputable points
(cf. MS 42 [1950], pp. 575-576).
For my part, when I received those taking part in your Academy's
plenary assembly on 31 October 1992, I had the opportunity, with
regard to Galileo, to draw attention to the need of a rigorous
hermeneutic for the correct interpretation of the inspired word. It
is necessary to determine the proper sense of Scripture, while
avoiding any unwarranted interpretations that make it say what it
does not intend to say. In order to delineate the field of their own
study, the exegete and the theologian must keep informed about the
results achieved by the natural sciences (cf. AAS 85 [1993]
pp. 764-772; Address to the Pontifical Biblical Commission, 23
April 1993, announcing the document on The Interpretation of the
Bible in the Church: AAS 86 [1994] pp. 232-243).
Evolution and the Church's Magisterium
4. Taking into account the state of scientific research at the
time as well as of the requirements of theology, the Encyclical
Humani generis considered the doctrine of "evolutionism" a
serious hypothesis, worthy of investigation and in-depth study equal
to that of the opposing hypothesis. Pius XII added two methodological
conditions: that this opinion should not be adopted as though it were
a certain, proven doctrine and as though one could totally prescind
from Revelation with regard to the questions it raises. He also
spelled out the condition on which this opinion would be compatible
with the Christian faith, a point to which I will return.
Today, almost half a century after the publication of the Encyclical,
new knowledge has led to the recognition of the theory of evolution as more than a hypothesis. It is indeed remarkable that this theory
has been progressively accepted by researchers, following a series of
discoveries in various fields of knowledge. The convergence, neither
sought nor fabricated, of the results of work that was conducted
independently is in itself a significant argument in favour of this
theory.
What is the significance of such a theory? To address this question
is to enter the field of epistemology. A theory is a metascientific
elaboration, distinct from the results of observation but consistent
with them. By means of it a series of independent data and facts can
be related and interpreted in a unified explanation. A theory's
validity depends on whether or not it can be verified; it is
constantly tested against the facts; wherever it can no longer
explain the latter, it shows its limitations and unsuitability. It
must then be rethought.
Furthermore, while the formulation of a theory like that of evolution
complies with the need for consistency with the observed data, it
borrows certain notions from natural philosophy.
And, to tell the truth. rather than the theory of evolution,
we should speak of several theories of evolution. On the one
hand, this plurality has to do with the different explanations
advanced for the mechanism of evolution, and on the other, with the
various philosophies on which it is based. Hence the existence of
materialist, reductionist and spiritualist interpretations. What is
to be decided here is the true role of philosophy and, beyond it, of
theology.
5. The Church's Magisterium is directly concerned with the
question of evolution, for it involves the conception of man:
Revelation teaches us that he was created in the image and likeness
of God (cf. Gn 1:2729). The conciliar Constitution Gaudium et spes
has magnificently explained this doctrine, which is pivotal to
Christian thought. It recalled that man is "the only creature on
earth that God has wanted for its own sake" (n. 24). In other terms,
the human individual cannot be subordinated as a pure means or a pure
instrument, either to the species or to society; he has value per se.
He is a person. With his intellect and his will, he is capable of
forming a relationship of communion, solidarity and self-giving with
his peers. St Thomas observes that man's likeness to God resides
especially in his speculative intellect, for his relationship with
the object of his knowledge resembles God's relationship with what he
has created (Summa Theologica, I-II, q. 3, a. 5, ad 1). But
even more, man is called to enter into a relationship of knowledge
and love with God himself, a relationship which will find its
complete fulfilment beyond time, in eternity. All the depth and
grandeur of this vocation are revealed to us in the mystery of the
risen Christ (cf. Gaudium et spes, n. 22). It is, by virtue of
his spiritual soul that the whole person possesses such a dignity
even in his body. Pius XII stressed this essential point: if the
human body takes its origin from pre-existent living matter, the
spiritual soul is immediately created by God ("animas enim a Deo
immediate creari catholica fides nos retinere iubet" Encyclical
Humani generis, AAS 42 [1950], P. 575)
Consequently, theories of evolution which, in accordance with the
philosophies inspiring them, consider the mind as emerging from the
forces of living matter, or as a mere epiphenomenon of this matter,
are incompatible with the truth about man. Nor are they able to
ground the dignity of the person.
6. With man, then, we find ourselves in the presence of an ontological difference, an ontological leap, one could say. However, does not the posing of such ontological discontinuity run counter to that physical continuity which seems to be the main thread of research into evolution in the field of physics and chemistry? Consideration of the method used in the various branches of knowledge makes it possible to reconcile two points of view which would seem irreconcilable. The sciences of observation describe and measure the multiple manifestations of life with increasing precision and correlate them with the time line. The moment of transition to the spiritual cannot be the object of this kind of observation, which nevertheless can discover at the experimental level a series of very valuable signs indicating what is specific to the human being. But the experience of metaphysical knowledge, of self awareness and self-reflection; of moral conscience, freedom, or again, of aesthetic and religious experience, falls within the competence of philosophical analysis and reflection, while theology brings out its ultimate meaning according to the Creator's plans.
We are called to enter eternal life
7. In conclusion, I would like to call to mind a Gospel truth
which can shed a higher light on the horizon of your research into
the origins and unfolding of living matter. The Bible in fact bears
an extraordinary message of life. It gives us a wise vision of life
inasmuch as it describes the loftiest forms of existence. This vision
guided me in the Encyclical which I dedicated to respect for human
life, and which I called precisely Evangelium vitae.
It is significant that in St John's Gospel life refers to the divine
light which Christ communicates to us. We are called to enter into
eternal life, that is to say, into the eternity of divine
beatitude.
To warn us against the serious temptations threatening us, our Lord
quotes the great saying of Deuteronomy: "Man shall not live by
bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God"
(Dt 8:3; cf. Mt 4:4).
Even more, "life" is one of the most beautiful titles which the Bible
attributes to God. He is the living God.
I cordially invoke an abundance of divine blessings upon you and upon
all who are close to you.
From the Vatican, 22 October 1996.
Ioannes Paulus pp II
L'Osservatore Romano
Weekly Edition in English
30 October 1996
N.44, p3 and 7
The electronic version text has been provided for
public use
by The Newman
Center at Caltech
http://www.cco.caltech.edu/~nmcenter