The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1917-03-10
POPULAR APoLoGETIcs.
Adapted from the German of Rev.
Peter Mikes, S. j., by Rev. James
Watcher.
The Earth-The Center?

objection: That God should have
chosen the small and insignificant
earth for the scene of His action, that
He there became man and redeemed
us, this idea comes from those naive
times when the earth was considered
the real centre OF creation. But now
we know that this is only small
planet, and in this corner OF the uni
verse God should have placed man.
A queer plan indeed!
Answer: u Queer only if we sup
pose that a large celestial globe is
more imposing with God. than a
smaller one. In spiritual matters
physical size makes no difference.
This standard is not used in scien-
tific Investigations.
y Our good old earth is, if not
the largest, after all the incest place.
To me, at least, the $4,000 degrees OF
heat of the sun and other fixed stars
seem rather uncomfortable; the moon
is too cold and too dry; the comets
are TOO restless vagabonds; and the
other planets, even our nearest neigh
bors. Venus and Mars, are not con-
genial in spite OF the flying and jump
ing men with which the anti-religious
sCOffer FlammariOn peoples them. Of
late this phantastic Flammarion, the
director of a private astronomical OBJ
Seryatorv near Paris, and popular
scientific writer of great powers OF
imagination, considers it improbable
that Mars is inhabited; still scientists
hoped to discover sign of life on that
planet: Science has no proofs that
other heavenly bodies are inhabited.
(For a scientific treatise on this ques-
vol. IS, p. 14l ff)
Faith leaves this an open question,
for it is not its purpose to teach such
things Reason does not see any diff
Guilty, either the one way or the other.
Even though the other stars are not
inhabited, the immense universe is
not in vain. How often has not the
starry heaven led the human mind to
its, Creator and taught him His great
ness, power, and wisdom! The
heavens show forth the glory of God,
and the armament declareth the work
OF his hands. Cps. 1919 But if you
prefer that all the stars are inhabited,
read the two volumes, Die Sternen-
welten und hire BeWohner"-the Gel
setial Worlds and Their Inhabitants
by the great Catholic theologian and
astronomer, Prof. Jos. Pohle Goth edi-
ton, 1910.
81 Reason sees no difficulty that
God should place man for short trial
on this small earth and then give him
a central and universal place in
heaven. A now mighty emperor once
sat with others as model scholar on
the benches of a common grammar
school Civilian H..
~ The astronomer Karl Braun,
s. j., G 1900 in his Kosmogonie Cat
the end) finds, instead of an incon-
gruity, a special design in our subor
dfnate position. From this we should
learn humility and modesty. We are
not the centre and not everything
must turn about our little person.
The little earthly dweller must turn
every year, whether he will or not,
with his whole person 366 times about
his axis. Even to please our servant,
the moon, all men must describe
quite circle thirteen times annually*.
To this must be added the motion
around the sun every year and the
motion of the whole solar system
through unknown celestial space
This mighty machinery carries us lit
tie creatures wherever it pleases, and
We can do nothing to change it,
Do you not see in the arrangement
of the solar system a picture of the
moral world? God is the mighty
moral sun around whom all the spir-
it's, like so many planets, must re-
volve. What a grand idea, andanot
queer as it seems to the superficial
observer
Let us not forget that the so-called
geocentric (the earth as the centre)
view Of former times, that the earth
is the immovable centre and the
heavens are a hollow sphere, is just
as little an article of faith as that the
earth is the only inhabited globe. On
all such questions the Church teaches
nothing and leaves it to everyone to
form his own opinion.
This geocentric view was over
thrown by the gifted Catholic priest,
Nicholas Copernicus Ct 1913 in north
ern Germany. After this Catholic
pioneer has taught the world the true
arrangement of the solar system and
of the universe (the Copernican Sys-
temp over three centuries ago, our in
fidels come little late to reproach
us Catholics with the geocentric view.
They will also come too late with
their scoffing if ever science should
prove that other worlds are inhabited
by rational beings; again Catholic
priest, Prof. Pohle, has treated the
question as to it's possibility and prob
ability.