Ethan Walker
The idea that the Catholic Church promoted the belief that the Earth is flat is a common misconception. This notion was first introduced in the 19th century by a group of anticlerical French scholars and later appeared in a work of fiction by Washington Irving. It was then repeated by Andrew Dickson White in his 1896 book, A History of the Warfare of Science With Theology in Christendom, which has since been discredited by modern historians of science. While there are certain idioms in the Bible that, if taken literally, might suggest a flat Earth, these are merely figures of speech. In reality, belief in a flat Earth among educated Europeans was almost non-existent from the Late Middle Ages (c. 1300–1500 AD) onward.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Belief in a flat Earth | Not a doctrine of the Catholic Church |
| The Bible's description of Earth's shape | Does not describe Earth as flat, idioms like "four corners of the Earth" are not meant to be taken literally |
| Medieval Europeans' belief in a flat Earth | A historical myth, created in the 17th century by Protestants to argue against Catholic teachings |
| Belief in a flat Earth in modern times | Rare, with less than 2% acceptance in all age groups |
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What You'll Learn
The Bible doesn't claim the Earth is flat
The notion that Christians believed in a flat Earth is a myth that was created in the 17th century by Protestants to argue against Catholic teachings. This myth has been taught in school textbooks and short films, and many people believe it even today. However, the Bible does not say that the Earth is flat.
There are some common idioms in the Bible that, if taken literally, might give the impression that it's claiming the Earth is flat. For example, the Bible mentions the ""four corners of the Earth" in Revelation 7:1 and the "ends of the Earth" in Deuteronomy 13:7. However, idioms are not meant to be taken literally. When biblical writers use these phrases, they are simply referring to "every distant location" or "the farthest reaches of the inhabited world." Similarly, when the Bible mentions the Earth's "pillars" in passages like Psalm 75:3 and 1 Samuel 2:8, it is using metaphorical language to convey that the Earth belongs to God and that He guarantees its stability.
The Bible's references to the "earth" are often not references to the planet Earth but to a portion of dry land bound by water, as in Genesis 1:10: "God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas." The Bible also uses the term "firmament" to describe the way the heavens are divided from the Earth and Sheol. The Earth is described as being inside a dome, but this does not indicate that the Earth itself is flat.
While the Bible does not comment on the shape of the planet Earth, it is important to note that the belief in a flat Earth was never a test of Christian orthodoxy or a doctrine of the Catholic Church.
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Medieval Europeans believing in a flat Earth is a historical myth
The belief that medieval Europeans thought the Earth was flat is a historical myth. This misconception was created in the 17th century by Protestants to argue against Catholic teachings. The idea that Christians believed in a flat Earth has been taught in school textbooks and short films, and many people still believe it today. However, it is a myth that has been widely discredited by modern historians of science.
The ancient Greeks were the first to document the idea of a spherical Earth in the 5th century BC. This belief was widespread in the Greek world, and during the Early Middle Ages (c. 600–1000 AD), most European and Middle Eastern scholars espoused Earth's sphericity. Even in biblical times, people travelled with flat maps that had four corners, but this was not an attempt to state a fact about the shape of the Earth. The Bible uses idioms that, if taken literally, might give the impression that it is claiming the Earth is flat, but idioms are not meant to be taken literally.
Belief in a flat Earth among educated Europeans was almost non-existent from the Late Middle Ages (c. 1300–1500 AD) onward, although fanciful depictions do appear in art. For example, the exterior panels of Hieronymus Bosch's famous triptych The Garden of Earthly Delights show a disc-shaped Earth floating inside a transparent sphere. However, this is not meant to be a factual representation of the shape of the Earth.
The idea that Columbus sailed to the "New World" against the wisdom of his day is a complete myth. Greek astronomers were aware that the Earth was round almost 300 years before the time of Christ, although they were unsure of its circumference. There were a handful of early Christian writers, mostly from the areas near Syria, who believed the Earth was flat, but this was never a test of Christian orthodoxy or a doctrine of the Catholic Church. The dispute between Columbus and his detractors was over the size of the Earth, not its shape, and the Catholic Church was not a participant in this dispute.
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The flat Earth theory is not Catholic Church doctrine
The Bible does not say that the Earth is flat. There are some common idioms the Bible uses that, if taken literally, might give the impression that it’s claiming the Earth to be flat, but idioms are not meant to be taken literally. For example, the expression "the four corners of the Earth" is used to express how far something is to travel or to emphasize its vastness. Even in biblical times, people usually traveled with a flat map that had four corners.
The flat Earth model has often been incorrectly supposed to be church doctrine by those who wish to portray the Catholic Church as being anti-progress or hostile to scientific inquiry. This narrative has been repeated even in academic circles. For example, in April 2016, Boston College theology professor and ex-priest Thomas Groome erroneously stated that "the Catholic Church never said the Earth is round, but just stopped saying it was flat." However, this is not true. The Catholic Church never made an authoritative claim that the Earth was flat, and the majority of the fathers of the Catholic Church from early times have accepted the spherical shape of the Earth. All educated people from the Middle Ages forward, including those in the Catholic Church, were aware that the Earth was a sphere, not flat.
The idea that Columbus sailed to the “New World” against the wisdom of his day is a complete myth. It’s a very persistent myth, too. Greek astronomers were aware almost 300 years before the time of Christ that the Earth was round. What they were unsure of was the circumference of the planet. There are only a handful of early Christian writers (mostly from the areas near Syria) that historians can point to as examples, but belief in a flat Earth was never a test of Christian orthodoxy and definitely not a doctrine of the Catholic Church.
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Educated people in the Middle Ages knew Earth was a sphere
The idea that medieval Europeans generally thought the Earth was flat is a historical myth. This misconception arose in the 17th century as part of a campaign by Protestants against Catholic teachings and gained further currency in the 19th century due to inaccurate historical accounts. While it is true that medieval Europeans held many beliefs that modern people would consider unscientific, their understanding of the Earth's shape was not one of them.
In fact, the spherical nature of the Earth was well-established in ancient times, particularly through Greek astronomy. By the time of the Early Middle Ages (c. 600–1000 AD), most European and Middle Eastern scholars espoused Earth's sphericity. The belief in a flat Earth among educated Europeans was almost non-existent from the Late Middle Ages (c. 1300–1500 AD) onward.
Medieval scholars not only accepted the idea of a spherical Earth but also incorporated this knowledge into their scientific and philosophical works. For example, the medieval monk and scholar known as the Venerable Bede explicitly described the Earth as spherical and explained how this affected the length of days in different regions. Thomas Aquinas, Roger Bacon, Albertus Magnus, and Johannes de Sacrobosco were other influential scientists, thinkers, and clergymen who agreed with this premise.
While public education was scarce and illiteracy was widespread during the Middle Ages, it is likely that even uneducated people knew that the Earth was round, as this information would have filtered through society to become common knowledge. For example, a collection of German sermons for parish priests from the 13th century mentions, in passing, that the Earth was "round like an apple," indicating that peasants were expected to understand this concept. Additionally, the orb, a golden sphere held by kings during their coronations, represented the Earth, further suggesting that the Earth's roundness was commonly understood.
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Columbus's journey debunked the flat Earth theory
The idea that Christopher Columbus's journey debunked the flat Earth theory is a myth. While it is often taught in schools and believed by many, it is simply not true. In fact, the belief that the Earth is round has been common knowledge for thousands of years, dating back to ancient Greek scholars like Pythagoras, Aristotle, and Euclid, who wrote about the Earth as a sphere as early as the sixth century B.C.
During Columbus's time, educated people carefully studied the knowledge passed down by the ancient Greeks, so it is highly unlikely that the rich Spaniards who financed his expedition in the late 15th century thought he would fall off the edge of the Earth. Columbus himself owned a copy of "Geography" by Ptolemy, which considered the idea of a round planet as fact. The big question for Columbus was not the shape of the Earth but the size of the ocean he wanted to cross.
The myth that Columbus proved the Earth was round was created in 1828 by Washington Irving in his book "The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus." Irving was a master storyteller already famous for tales like "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." His book about Columbus, while sounding like a biography, is mostly fiction. It was later perpetuated by writers such as Antoinne-Jean Letronne, a French academic with strong anti-religious ideas, who misrepresented the Church Fathers and their medieval successors as believing in a flat Earth.
The idea that Christians believed in a flat Earth has been taught in school textbooks, short films, and other media, influencing popular culture and contributing to the persistence of this myth. However, it is important to note that belief in a flat Earth was never a test of Christian orthodoxy or a doctrine of the Catholic Church. While there may have been some early Christian writers who held this belief, it was not a widespread view.
In conclusion, while Columbus's journey to the "'New World'" was indeed historic, it did not debunk the flat Earth theory. By the time of his voyage in 1492, the educated people of his day, including Columbus himself, were well aware that the Earth was round. The myth that Columbus proved the Earth's round shape was a later invention that has been widely disseminated and believed even to this day.
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Frequently asked questions
No, the Catholic Church has never made an authoritative claim that the Earth is flat. Belief in a flat Earth among educated Europeans was almost non-existent from the Late Middle Ages (c. 1300 – 1500 AD) onwards.
No, the Bible does not say that the Earth is flat. While there are some common idioms in the Bible that, if taken literally, might give the impression that it’s claiming the Earth is flat, idioms are not meant to be taken literally.
The idea that medieval Europeans generally thought the Earth was flat is a historical myth created in the 17th century by Protestants to argue against Catholic teachings.
This is a complete myth. The dispute between Columbus and his detractors was over the size of the Earth, not its shape, which both sides believed to be a globe.
No, the Catholic Church's dispute with Galileo was not over the shape of the Earth, which both sides believed to be a sphere, but over its place in the cosmos and the manner in which Galileo published his findings.
