Why are we doing Nerdchurch?
I am not mad, most noble Festus; but speak forth the words of truth and soberness. (Paul, Acts 26:25)
There are sweet possibilities when nerds and Jesus connect. Realistically, things also get weird. People who process reality differently can easily misunderstand and irritate each other.
How well can we get along with people who find us weird? Nerds navigate this issue all the time. So do followers of Jesus. The intersection of Christian and nerd gets super challenging, because in the overlap, weirdness stacks. (If your sanity has been questioned, as Paul’s was, we’d love to hear your story.)
Let’s reflect on how these dynamics played out for Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), a great Christian nerd of the Italian Renaissance.
Who would dare assert that we know all there is to be known? (Galileo, Letter to Castelli, 1613)
Galileo asked questions.
Galileo was a devoted Christian–and nerd–born into a world that didn’t know what a nerd was (or a scientist, for that matter). He was passionate, curious, inventive, unconventional. He hoped his discoveries would glorify God and make the church stronger.
In the process of developing and testing new theories, Galileo questioned and challenged old ones, including the geocentric theory of the universe that was so familiar, it was taken for granted. Geocentrism was intertwined with the teaching of the Catholic Church, which officially did not change. As a loyal Catholic, who was developing observational evidence favoring heliocentrism over geocentrism, Galileo didn’t have it easy.
Galileo was aware that his work touched on sensitive subjects. Unlike Copernicus, who published from his deathbed, Galileo would have to live with the consequences of the questions he raised. He put real effort into opening dialogue about scientific issues and questions of scriptural interpretation. With the help of allies who knew the church well, he researched how to make his case effectively. Eventually though, Galileo was dismayed as the church he loved turned against him.
Galileo has ventured to meddle in things that he ought not and with the most grave and dangerous subjects that can be stirred up these days. (Pope Urban VIII, 1632)
Galileo was himself.
Galileo wasn’t trying to stand out, but he was never likely to blend in, either. He passionately pursued scientific understanding, with intense energy that drove him to see things (like Jupiter’s moons) that had literally never been seen before. In a beautifully and painfully nerdy way, he was sincerely surprised when others were uninterested in the quest for knowledge that drove him.
The illustration above depicts a dialogue between Galileo and church authorities that he hoped for, but never really happened. Galileo pleaded that his evidence should not be rejected “without understanding it, without hearing it, without even having seen it.” But that’s how many of his critics reacted.
My dear Kepler, what would you say of the learned here, who, replete with the pertinacity of the asp, have steadfastly refused to cast a glance through the telescope? What shall we make of this? Shall we laugh, or shall we cry? (Galileo, Letter to Kepler, 1610)
Galileo kept pushing. He never directly defied the authority of the church, but he continued to advocate for divergent views to be considered. Galileo had positive interactions with some individual church leaders. At an institutional level, however, the church decided not to open up topics that seemed better kept closed.
In a simile passed on by Douglas Linder, Galileo’s arguments “sank out of sight as softly as a penny in a snowbank” among the hierarchy in Rome. This was a loss not only for Galileo, but for the church, which might have become a sponsor and beneficiary of Galileo’s science, as it had been for Michelangelo’s art.
Galileo used his powers.
Partially aware of the risks, Galileo pressed on. Alongside his progress as a scientist, he developed his communication skills, reaching wider audiences through lectures, demonstrations, and publishing. He wrote for an educated public (Florence had one) and not just for an audience of specialists. He also inspired and exchanged ideas with a growing community of students of nature, that would in turn open up new kinds of knowledge.
The more effectively Galileo used his abilities, the more the church authorities saw him as an irritant, and eventually as a grave threat. Galileo and his students were about to find out how much trouble a “good Christian” could get into.
Galileo’s trial, when it came, offered no opportunity for defense. His case had already been decided, without him. Under arrest by the Inquisition, and (at least formally) under threat of torture, Galileo agreed to recant, and not discuss controversial topics in the future. His sentence was later commuted to house arrest; but his career as a scientist and public intellectual was over. Historians commonly mark June 22, 1633–the date of Galileo’s recantation–as the end of the Italian Renaissance.
The rest of the story
Galileo’s reputation has certainly outlived the disgrace and deprivation of his later years. In that sense–and yes, he cared how he would be remembered–he won. The community and movement he invested in did not die with him. Galileo stands at the end of the Italian Renaissance, but also at the beginning of experimental physics, a field that profoundly reshaped human understanding of the universe, and command of technology.
Galileo is remembered for his struggle. His story, for better or worse, is a touchstone for conversations about science and religion. Whether you attribute his determination to certainty, stubbornness, naïveté, faith–or all of the above–his character and achievements are impressive.
Galileo is often portrayed as you see him in the bronze, a saint of science, a savant weighed down by superstition. He doesn’t make it look easy to be a Christian nerd. But he does show how a Christian nerd can accomplish great things, even in the face of great opposition. If Galileo’s story inspires you, you feel it.
Maybe you feel for the drama of discovery, the weight of history, the wonder of seeing for the first time, the transgression of seeing what you’re not supposed to see, the courage of conviction, the injustice of prejudice, the integrity of being yourself, the tragedy of refused gifts, the strength of community, the frustration at dogmatists who won’t see for themselves, the ambivalence between laughing and crying, the futility of arguments silenced like a penny in a snowbank, the scandal of institutions that represent Jesus but don’t resemble Jesus, the devastation of being othered by your own church, the vindication that takes longer than a human lifetime.
We trust you to know how church makes you feel, at this point in your journey. If you have a connection with a church that’s working for you, wonderful! Nerdchurch is not about duplicating or competing with your church. We have no desire to pull nerds away from churches, or to discourage churches from ministering to nerds. Nerds and churches have a lot to offer each other.
We also understand that many nerds and nerd-adjacent people are not currently connecting with a church, for a variety of reasons. If that’s you, we want to learn from you! Whether or not you choose to get involved with or support Nerdchurch, anything you want to share–your story, questions, perspective on Jesus and the kingdom of God, church experiences, what you wish church was like, how you’re using your talents, or a favorite pun or meme, is valuable to us. Please drop us a line, or link to something you want to show us.
Digitally enhanced
Among Galileo’s vindications is the fact that the NASA mission named after him went so well. Galileo achieved a number of space exploration firsts on its way to an extended orbital survey and atmospheric probe of Jupiter and its moons–including the four moons Galileo saw for the first time in 1610, using an improved 20x refracting telescope he made himself.
It’s true in both senses when NASA says, “Galileo changed the way we look at our solar system.” Galileo–the orbiter–beamed back amazing images, even more stunning when, as above, multiple images with different scope and perspective are combined and digitally enhanced to produce a richer view. (It’s worth clicking through the caption into edit mode on rawpixel.)
As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. (1 Peter 4:10)
Our hope is to look back and say, “Nerdchurch changed the way we look at Jesus and the kingdom of God.” We believe in the power of what one person can see, and even more in what multiple people can see from their own scope and perspective. Like Eevee, God’s grace is manifold–it evolves into many forms. “The gift” we share appears in unique ways, and we are each a steward–an accountable manager–of the talents given to us.
We believe in the power of building communities, in-person and digitally enhanced online, where nerds and nerd-adjacent people are free and encouraged to ask questions, be yourself, use your powers, and trust Jesus! Those are the values and agenda of Nerdchurch.
Nerdchurch.church is a program of Nerdchurch Partners Corporation.