Dream of a Science Pope

by Kevin Matthews

Image: Kevin Siers / Charlotte Observer

I am dreaming that the assembled cardinals will decide to go with a billion Catholics boldly into the future, choosing to revitalize their church by selecting a visionary Pope for a new millennium.

A Pope for the 21st century. The first of the Science Popes.

Once in office, this new Pope would dramatically reverse several hundred years of futile intellectual warfare against science, and instead, fully embrace it. Liturgy would be understood as rich cultural metaphor with the deepest kind of historical roots and most powerful psychological/historical significance.

Coupling that traditional depth with its global organization and the new proactive embrace of documented and ever-unfolding reality, as shown by science - connecting science and spirit - the Catholic Church would reverse its long-term decline in the first world, and become an unparalleled force for human health, dignity, respect, love, peace, community, and spiritual fulfillment.

The number of Catholics worldwide would easily double or triple or more within a generation, and the new Pope would be known not just as a great leader of the church, but as one of the handful of greatest leaders in recorded human history.

An amazing new force for a global morality of sustainable equal opportunity, based on facts, observation, and understanding would have emerged — possibly just in time to bring crucial scope and help to our generations' urgent work of saving live on Earth as we know it.

Kevin Matthews is Editor in Chief of ArchitectureWeek. More by Kevin Matthews