Pope Francis is an inspiring man. I’m not Catholic, in fact I’m a Mormon, but I loved his comments on modesty and was moved by the example of compassion he has shown through many acts of kindness. There are so many people these days famous for, shall we say, not being great examples, so when I see a man like this consistently in the news for doing good, I take note.
And now he’s made a statement that simply reconciles the sometimes tricky relationship between believing in God and accepting scientific discoveries about how the world came to be. Pope Francis said:
“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.”
As a Mormon kid, I remember learning in Sunday school that God created the world in six days (resting on the seventh, naturally). Of course I learned about the Big Bang theory and evolution in school and it wasn’t hard for me to reconcile these ideas, but some more fundamentalist religions reject certain scientific principles that are in conflict with their faith (as it is their prerogative to do!). But I think it’s great that the Pope simply goes about living his religion and stating his beliefs, even when he is breaking from tradition and the topic is somewhat fraught.
The Pope’s stance on creation doesn’t pick sides in the religion vs. science debate. He explains that belief in God and belief in evolution need not be mutually exclusive. He’s basically stating that there’s no need for a Christian to explain away or ignore scientific facts. Like the Pope said, the Big Bang theory works with a divine creator and, from his perspective, even requires it. I think it’s much easier to teach children that God used science as a means to create the world than to teach them from an all-or-nothing approach. They will most likely learn about evolution and the Big Bang theory at school. When they come home, excited about this new knowledge, it is our job as parents to put it into a larger context that jibes with our belief system, just like the Pope has done.
In addition to his simple, clear teaching style that doesn’t ignore the facts on either side, Pope Francis engages opposing views in a positive, non-confrontational manner. Former Pope Benedict was a proponent of intelligent design; Pope Francis goes a different direction yet he still treats his predecessor with respect even though their views differ. He says,“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.”
I don’t know if you’ve been on Facebook lately, but you don’t have to look very hard to find examples of people who disagree about major issues of science and religion much less graciously than the Pope. So while I appreciate the wisdom of the Pope and his views about how belief and science can jibe beautifully, I also appreciate the way he respectfully disagrees and changes course from his predecessor with compliments and civility all around. I hope I can take his teaching style and the way he interacts with others as I work with my family and teach them how to navigate this world and get along with people who might have different beliefs from us.
Photo courtesy of PCN Photos