A primer on the intelligent design debate…

Dear Friends,

Our lead commentary today from Peregrinus explores further the Science -vs- Religion Debate with a focus on the relatively recent new development coming from the focus on Intelligent Design. Today he is looking at the scientific arguments and this is partly to lay the groundwork for the discussion of the more philosophical issues he'll conclude the series with next week. I'm sure most readers of Catholica will get a lot out of this. <Click HERE to read Pere's commentary>

Meanwhile yesterday's news of the response from the Bishops' Conference to the more than 16,700 people who signed the Purcell/Collins petition seems to have driven the conservative sectors of the Church into a frenzy. The CathNews discussion board has been in meltdown this morning. One suspects their undisguised objective, seeminglly orchestrated by the priest who has been banned from the board and a certain gentleman on the State executive of a well-known organisation based in Melbourne that has been the centre of most of the controversies in the Catholic Church in Australia for the past 50 years, is now to have that discussion board closed down entirely. What a triumph for free speech, democracy and Magisterial Catholicism all that might turn out to be? One can only hope that when the bishops eventually act they will resist the temptation to give in to these terrorists.

Best wishes for a great day wherever you happen to be ... in life or in our world!

Brian Coyne
Editor and Publisher