Skip to main contentAccessibility feedback
Dear catholic.com visitors: This website from Catholic Answers, with all its many resources, is the world’s largest source of explanations for Catholic beliefs and practices. A fully independent, lay-run, 501(c)(3) ministry that receives no funding from the institutional Church, we rely entirely on the generosity of everyday people like you to keep this website going with trustworthy, fresh, and relevant content. If everyone visiting this month gave just $1, catholic.com would be fully funded for an entire year. If you’ve never made a gift, now is the time. Your donation will be matched dollar for dollar this week only. Thanks and God bless.
Dear catholic.com visitors: This Catholic Answers website, with all its free resources, is the world’s largest source of explanations for Catholic beliefs and practices. We receive no funding from the institutional Church and rely entirely on your generosity to sustain this website with trustworthy, accessible content. If every visitor this month donated $1, catholic.com would be fully funded for an entire year. If you’ve never made a gift, now is the time. Your donation will be matched dollar for dollar this week only. Thanks and God bless.
Background Image

Wasn’t the Catholic Church wrong in condemning Galileo and therefore fallible in what it teaches?

Question:

Wasn’t the Catholic Church wrong in condemning Galileo and therefore fallible in what it teaches?

Answer:

The Church freely admits that Galileo’s tribunal was wrong in certain respects, but that does not in any way “disprove” the Catholic Church’s claim to infallibility.

The Church never has claimed its ordinary tribunals to be infallible. They have disciplinary and juridical authority only; neither they nor their decisions are infallible. Only a pope or an ecumenical council is infallible, and then only in special circumstances.

While the Holy Office’s condemnation was ratified by Urban VIII, there are three conditions which must be present in order for a pope to exercise the charism of infallibility: He must speak in his official capacity as the successor of Peter; he must solemnly define a doctrine relating to faith or morals; he must indicate the doctrine is to be held by all the faithful. In Galileo’s case the second and third conditions were not present, and possibly not even the first.

Did you like this content? Please help keep us ad-free

More from Catholic.com

Enjoying this content?  Please support our mission!Donate