In a time where I believe that religion is coming under fire more frequently for supposedly inhibiting scientific progress I believe Professor Gregory Sloan’s discussion on the trial of Galileo was a refreshing change of pace. For me he brought to light many facts about that trial and the era that are not well publicized and not considered by critics of religion. Foremost among these was perhaps that the Church of the Medieval era was not, as many seem to believe, an institution that held back intellectual progress. To the contrary, as Professor Sloan stated, the Church was essentially the source of all intellectual progress at the time, as it funded almost all educational institutions and libraries. Another important point I thought he made was that the idea that the earth was the center of the universe did not have its origin in the Bible or the Church. In fact, it had been the idea of one of the most respected Ancient Greek philosophers Aristotle, and had only been applied to the Bible by a Christian philosopher centuries later. I also thought that his commentary on the recent scientific debates was particular insightful. Despite direct evidence of the harmfulness of Tobacco, CFC’s, and CO2 emissions, it has taken years for the public to accept them and Professor Sloan pointed out that this was due to not only those corporations that had a vested interest, but also human nature’s natural desire to not want their worldviews disrupted. Overall, I think that this talk brought up ideas that are important to recognize for both the religious and nonreligious when discussing the theme of Science vs. Religion.