Measure science by contribution to common good, Pope suggests

October 28, 2010

The value of science in the 21st century will be measured by “the scientist’s ability to search for truth and apply discoveries in a way that goes hand in hand with the search for what is just and good,” Pope Benedict XVI said on October 28.

Speaking to members of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, the Holy Father remarked that during the 20th century, two extreme attitudes toward science arose. Some people expected science to solve all the problems of mankind, while others grew to fear scientific progress because of frightening developments such as nuclear weaponry. Neither approach is reasonable, the Pope said: “Scientists do not create the world; they learn about it and attempt to imitate it, following the laws and intelligibility that nature manifests to us.”

 

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Further information:

• Science a place of dialogue between man and God (Vatican Radio)
• Scientific Achievement Must Aim at the True Good of Man (VIS)