Creationism dismissed as 'a kind of paganism' by Vatican's astronomer

Here's an intriguing article. Apparently, the Vatican's astronomer has dismissed creationism and declares it "a form of paganism":

"BELIEVING that God created the universe in six days is a form of superstitious paganism, the Vatican astronomer Guy Consolmagno claimed yesterday.

Brother Consolmagno, who works in a Vatican observatory in Arizona and as curator of the Vatican meteorite collection in Italy, said a 'destructive myth' had developed in modern society that religion and science were competing ideologies.

He described creationism, whose supporters want it taught in schools alongside evolution, as a 'kind of paganism' because it harked back to the days of 'nature gods' who were responsible for natural events."

And kudos to him for this wise quote:

"Knowledge is dangerous, but so is ignorance"

I didn't even know the Vatican had an astronomer.

This, however, makes me a little suspicious of the whole thing:

Brother Consolmagno, who was due to give a speech at the Glasgow Science Centre last night, entitled "Why the Pope has an Astronomer", said the idea of papal infallibility had been a "PR disaster". What it actually meant was that, on matters of faith, followers should accept "somebody has got to be the boss, the final authority".

"It's not like he has a magic power, that God whispers the truth in his ear," he said.

Actually, I thought that was precisely what we were supposed to believe.

Anyway, if true, it's a nice hint that maybe the Roman Catholic church might make it into the 20th century before the rest of us leave the 21st.