Do you think attitudes in the church towards evolution are moving in the direction suggested by Cardinal Schnborn?
Many academics, especially Americans, have reacted to his article. I don’t know if Cardinal Schnborn fully understood how “hot” the situation is in America on this subject. I know many people within the Catholic Church whose attitudes would be closer to mine than those suggested in the article. I think many Catholics, especially Catholic scientists, would prefer to adhere to the 1996 statement of John Paul II. Do you have any indication what the mind of Pope Benedict might be on this question? No, but Pope Benedict certainly has an appreciation of science. I’d like to recall that Pope Benedict opened up the archives of the Holy Office, a highly appreciated step for the freedom of scientific research. I remember that he announced it at the Italian Accademia dei Lincei (literally, “the Academy of the Lynxes”), a setting that was not specifically Catholic. The Pontifical Academy and the Italian Accademia dei Lincei both descend from the original Accademia dei Lincei, founded in 1603, the
