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I■ - S--** */•valWirt-i t* * »r£ r'£w ^i* •» v -♦•v. -Sto-., H§^V :|is//I'; jv j'* lt;c 'i*- t *- * T, 1VOther'MM ^ « . Jg JL.._ .luen-tikewiwi me natLon in, a g*tj-of; speculation oyer “flyifcgareCreatures ‘Are Possibleh*Says Catholic DoctrineTho author of the following article is dean of the School of Sacred Theology at the Catholic University of America, associate editor of The American Ecclesiastical Review, andwidely known as a radio speakert author and teacher.S VERY REV. FRANCIS J. CONNELL, (Written for N. C. W. C. News Service)/The conjecture by some scientists that the alleged “fly ing saucers are space ships from another olanet noses i pointed theological question.Can Catholic doctrine admit of one or perhaps moral ServiNews Service -iuu sought out opinions bothtire scientific and theologi fields on the subject ~' 4 ;Impetus has been giyen - the “flying' saucer subrf f3bat otJcets rern“saucers are supposed to loo*been shotted oh rtdtar. Air Force, otficJab say that rmdar pick* up any numl of UnJdentlBa»le objects—*uch Emin squalls, ’water spouts, blrde, *wrf spray and even a wave fromradar,IITHE CONSKNSWS of opinion gathered by N.C.W.C; Sews, , eeema to be that flyta*bemgsr similar saucers’* we phenomena. hub— „ ■ ■ -»~t............. - *uth0*5iy In. scientific b*’KHHTM MKT XMK SHRMa#•v-HJKHKX 71WUnmumm*AO* cm.com. toe Wrndgi t4f$m*mwr ^i!epeiid|l$e a*f* MpoxtwUmVJtvbaic cpncltalons; regardingJtnmmm WKwaeocyrjugi mtw MAMajmcf^ssfcsf jpwpnifiAn expertJn_the]JJeldT5f' »dgmainica at the nation'* J _Catholic univeraity. points^mrtthat flying- saiueers** are 'aaasw sad have been reprted lt;u.. seen fo? yeak-Tie coanfl-tlently expect* thatpeteorol:.one day wttt wm* up with tacniweacj, - ---'f'. «One of tb^MUon’t' iaadfujfi imstronoinertghQld* that'there JU«n 'ttw.jtn*feet becduie there -I* nothing; toon. : -•mtihitm*i *anssopt that nothing ihagy would, dttscouat the' jposaSbLbbetter mMr it.* MkST. THOMAS AQUINASLong before space ships” from other planets became s feo ture of the Sunday comics, Oatholjc theologians like ThOmos Aquinas saw the possibility of Worlds other than opr ownearth.tty that* life—event, m tJnan wroldboutid folia Snow ft—:- Urnaw. »z'to men on earth ? Or, mu^t we conclude—from the fact tbat the Bible omits mention of any other world inhabited by rational creatures— up of material souls ?THE ANSWER OF theology is:Neither revelation, the common teaching; of the F*tli* iIIers, tradition, nor the solemn pronouncements of the BopeJ Tule opt the possibility of life, perhaps similar to oiirs*. jjnftlogians have speculate) rson WelLes frightened from Mars*’ or Buck Ranother planet.Then before Orson of “Men fro®hip betasthan 70 years agd questlon v?as discussed by the Rev. Angelo' Secchl. famous Ital*ian Jesuit Mtropomer, and theRev. Jacques4 Monsabre, prpmlh*ent French Domlfllcah' -orat • E h admitted the possibility of rational creatures exlstlng on another planet. ~ . ■ JMODERN theololnan whoted on this probleai lon^America wrRogers and' before’ *^aeetasies in the Snaday- 'touched oft the Question Is thfcRev, George Vsa Nfoort* ascholar who died w!tWfts the last- ... _ .decade. In his Treatise on (Jedllt;Su ma, part 3, questlcm 3, artoftht; vlll over all the seriaes aitla -highly enlightened mind,»IF TI05SE cdrijectured outeb spce'beings sinned* it ls possible that God extended to them the satisfactory value ot the meriUof Christ made known to tbeifi by some revelation. Or God could ha^e ertanged for their Redemp tion In another way, ,According to a principle laid down -by St. Thomas Aqumailthe Creator,” published in 1920,' Father Van Ndort states;I JA person would not vMle lhefaith wh^ would ijelleve thatjthere are certain rational cteaturcs on other heavenly . I page !$).I theologfansr have never dated! to limit the Omnipotence pi God to the creation of the world weknow. . .However, ^!f other worlds aiid other rational animals exist, they need not be under the sanie dis* pensatlon of grace as the dants of Adam and Eve, - they' would not have IncurrM Sin because of the la|I of Adath in Paradise, Consequently, tjie$need not hav4 required the |t|* demptfon which Go$ Own Sohbrought to our mankind His death on the cross.IF GOD CREATED other rational animals the theologian can imagine a number of various states $n which they rpight ;^ast Here are four of tiiopftesi ■ t(1) It is possible ^hat thes4 cohflectured brings like oaf firal enisi recdvedj a supefn^utai tiny from God together with ex* traordinaj^ preternatuml gBts. And it i3 posslbjo ttiat like ourfirst parents they sinned and lostthese gifts.,•he pfejtematuraj Eiits iost.by Adam and Fh?e include Immbfctal7), It Is possible that the Second Person of the Holy JWnlty as-sufflecf the nature ■ rational being# of aiiOther world as Well le•M with. liNbiquJ; n»mberof tba PontlflciaiAcsdemy of Sdeneesj dlscover«tnvenbrotfl blodlnei; inventor ot 'the' K-v* naetec. ami the Spertl *m lamp •trestmcnt process, tnd. t} J1th. theptercto* ot thi ultna-•onle b«nler,,jhet»-seenui % bet;atmbaity tb* . objects . cenvtmvel at; Kay- oE the »ptede reportednee of depepdsbl male's ibextremely liattrfifiutfbc Ob* K^ilit^toren^^^ on this senss • tt^McncnmettOnu Sclentl*tab*veon tie exiitencc/bf, Ilfs Cm. other pSanct* futrceitdifflc _____bsdlef that lifers we know It can eadit tett.Tl» narrow temperature ran*« in which rhsn can exist, atmoe*.'piwrle eonciltlonsi tbe coi i. sltloaoE sir, axygm tcnslon,the emrgw, distrlbattbri of’ the uifs spSc^' tram, t3w.:pt«sen«5 of end trace element*, snd ianumesvai»ie other factors ah .permit o£ only minor .v*r!»t|oins tor the:eic-hdman -nafure on earth. Or-one of the: Other divine Personscould have become Incarnate ea ahothaa? planet, (Ibidem* art, S)i(2) A Becond.posslbllify is that God could have created tliese be-tap in a purely natural, state Without any supernatural or proternatural gif ts and with merelyilfty% Ja natural but eternsd destlfi;words, they Wouia have been destined-after death,, tobut without the jkassl behbldtag God. face to h? condition would have been similar to that now given to infants who ^ e without Baptismwould.be'nwSthdrtdurh,‘f.These creaturesmortal and somewhat aklii' jio men on earth, but means of superoa Their inperfect dr less per (8) Allthese supposed extrt-iorreabeings received boifci the natural and pretenu of' Adam and Sfee -#i?d H ilpeH rose them through sta.v Thus they might situ be ilw in* In the ndltlOn* of i prt;morial paradise: -of m'easur#^mW i14-frmtv-TheyMtht 1*» i' *tstence- of life as, we know St. Science, however, canhot de»Wtfcte po*»ibl)ity of life In anotbM? form on otHee planKt4 under another .set of contlltions,. ■ lt;'■The JEtev, Etaracia-. 3f, Heydea,1 S^r„ sstronomtr at Gobrgetown;'wtto.Wpf sqAlof estrdm-; osaer oE the(Conllnued on Fsge 9)» -i *t -3 Iive P b *liP■ mm;-c2*p-ma• * t *. iV ' »* ” -*J« 1.. * •* 1 r, j, *«». • r • v** * i ***'S._ j ' «' \ , As1 I
Newspaper Details
Rochester Catholic Courier and Journal
Rochester, New York, US
Fri, Aug 08, 1952
Page 1
Full Page
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CA 11 Sep 2022
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