Pope Francis backs science against creationism in Vatican speech

Pope Francis leading the Angelus prayer from the window of the Apostolic palace in Saint Peter's Square. REUTERS/Max Rossi

God is "not a magician with a magic wand", Pope Francis said in a trenchant speech backing science against creationism and intelligent design theories.

In an address to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, the Pople said that the theories of evolution and the Big Bang were not incompatible with the existence of a creator.

However, he also stressed the distinction between human beings and the rest of creation, saying: "God gives human beings a different sort of autonomy from that of nature, which is freedom.

"No matter how limited, man's activity partakes of the power of God and is able to build a world fit for his dual life of body and spirit, to build a humane world for all human beings." He added: "He created human beings and let them develop according to the internal laws that he gave to each one so they would reach their fulfilment.

"The Big Bang, which today we hold to be the origin of the world, does not contradict the intervention of the divine creator but, rather, requires it. "Evolution in nature is not inconsistent with the notion of creation, because evolution requires the creation of beings that evolve."

The Roman Catholic Church has suffered from a perceived anti-science bias since it forced Galileo to retract his revolutionary theory that the earth went round the sun rather than vice versa. However, creationist interpretations of the beginning of the universe are much more commonly found in Protestant churches. Pope Pius XII told the Academy at its opening meeting in 1951 that the Big Bang theory of origins did not conflict with the Catholic doctrine of creation. In 1996 Pope John Paul II went further and suggested evolution was "more than a hypothesis" and "effectively proven fact".

article,article,article Related

Pope Francis also praised his predecessor Benedict XVI as he unveiled a bronze bust of him at the Academy's headquarters in the Vatican Gardens, describing him as a "great Pope".

"No one could ever say of him that study and science made him and his love for God and his neighbour wither," he said. "On the contrary, knowledge, wisdom and prayer enlarged his heart and his spirit. Let us thank God for the gift that he gave the church and the world with the existence and the pontificate of Pope Benedict."

related articles
How Pope Francis became a \'powerful new ally\' in the war on climate change
How Pope Francis became a 'powerful new ally' in the war on climate change

How Pope Francis became a 'powerful new ally' in the war on climate change

Catholic Synod closes without any major shift on homosexuality or divorcees
Catholic Synod closes without any major shift on homosexuality or divorcees

Catholic Synod closes without any major shift on homosexuality or divorcees

Pope Francis condemns death penalty
Pope Francis condemns death penalty

Pope Francis condemns death penalty

News
Hopes remain that assisted suicide in Scotland will not pass
Hopes remain that assisted suicide in Scotland will not pass

Just seven "waverers" could be enough to kill the bill.

EU online safety law could be dangerous for free speech, say critics
EU online safety law could be dangerous for free speech, say critics

The proposed bill could become a political tool, critics warn.

Faith and religious observance a significant factor in 'human flourishing', Harvard study finds
Faith and religious observance a significant factor in 'human flourishing', Harvard study finds

"As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God." taken from Psalm 42.

Mexican politician branded 'violator against women' for standing up for women's rights
Mexican politician branded 'violator against women' for standing up for women's rights

A former presidential candidate in Mexico has been branded a “political violator against women” because of his view on transgenderism.