FOR 2,000 years, the scientific debate was settled. The ancient Greeks had studied the skies, and had determined by the 4th century before Christ that the Earth was the center of the universe.

The heavenly bodies rotated around the Earth in little wheels. Except for a few geocentric deniers, most scientists agreed, and in addition, the Holy Scripture said so.

They had proof. Using their calculations, they could prove where the planet and the Moon and the Sun would be at any one time.

True, these bodies did not exactly circle the Earth in concentric circles, but there was an explanation that was long and too complicated to go into here.

Then along came this troublemaker, Nicolaus Copernicus. He was a mathematician and an astronomer in Poland, and he came up with a whole new set of calculations that had the Earth rotating the Sun.

This was in the 1500s. After he died, his theory got Galileo Galilei in a whole lot of trouble.

Galileo supported Copernicus' theory, which put him at odds with his fellow scientists and the Catholic Church.

Scientists at that time had no power.

The church was another matter. It had a lot of power, and church officials at the time believed that the Earth did not move (it is in Psalms), and that to say otherwise was heresy.

For more than 15 years, Galileo fought the church. But in 1633, Galileo finally recanted and said the Earth was the center of the universe.

In 1992, Pope John Paul II expressed regret and officially recognized that no, the Earth is not the center of the universe.

That was a little late for Galileo, but the audience for that retraction was the living, not those who have long departed this Earth.

Today, the Church of Manmade Global Warming holds that man's sin of materialism is causing the Earth to burn up.

Apparently there was a vote and many scientists agreed that man was causing global warming. As with the $787 billion stimulus, the $410 billion budget, and the cap-and-trade tax, no one read the thing before voting.

The theory is that the global warming is happening because of man's generation of "greenhouse gases." Greenhouses seem to be good for plants.

The adherents to the theory of manmade global warming have computer models and everything that take into account all sorts of factors, except the one that may matter most - solar activity.

FOR 2,000 years, the scientific debate was settled. The ancient Greeks had studied the skies, and had determined by the 4th century before Christ that the Earth was the center of the universe.

The heavenly bodies rotated around the Earth in little wheels. Except for a few geocentric deniers, most scientists agreed, and in addition, the Holy Scripture said so.

They had proof. Using their calculations, they could prove where the planet and the Moon and the Sun would be at any one time.

True, these bodies did not exactly circle the Earth in concentric circles, but there was an explanation that was long and too complicated to go into here.

Then along came this troublemaker, Nicolaus Copernicus. He was a mathematician and an astronomer in Poland, and he came up with a whole new set of calculations that had the Earth rotating the Sun.

This was in the 1500s. After he died, his theory got Galileo Galilei in a whole lot of trouble.

Galileo supported Copernicus' theory, which put him at odds with his fellow scientists and the Catholic Church.

Scientists at that time had no power.

The church was another matter. It had a lot of power, and church officials at the time believed that the Earth did not move (it is in Psalms), and that to say otherwise was heresy.

For more than 15 years, Galileo fought the church. But in 1633, Galileo finally recanted and said the Earth was the center of the universe.

In 1992, Pope John Paul II expressed regret and officially recognized that no, the Earth is not the center of the universe.

That was a little late for Galileo, but the audience for that retraction was the living, not those who have long departed this Earth.

Today, the Church of Manmade Global Warming holds that man's sin of materialism is causing the Earth to burn up.

Apparently there was a vote and many scientists agreed that man was causing global warming. As with the $787 billion stimulus, the $410 billion budget, and the cap-and-trade tax, no one read the thing before voting.

The theory is that the global warming is happening because of man's generation of "greenhouse gases." Greenhouses seem to be good for plants.

The adherents to the theory of manmade global warming have computer models and everything that take into account all sorts of factors, except the one that may matter most - solar activity.

Still, some of us heretics believe the Sun, not the Earth, determines the Earth's temperature.

After all, in any other religion, the notion that man is more powerful than the Sun would be cause for ridicule.

They call us heretics "global warming deniers," which is a sly way of calling us Nazis, who after all are Holocaust deniers.

Fine.

Maybe we are all wet.

But I also have noticed that the phrase "global warming" has been replaced by "climate change."

To me that is an admission that the theory of "global warming" is off the mark.

The climate will change. It always does. Just as solar activity changes. Right now, the Sun is not doing much, and the Earth appears to be a tad cooler.

I do not know which side Galileo would be on in this debate. I suspect, though, he would not go along to get along with the majority.

Well, until the Pope called him out. Ex-communication is frightening, even today. We all want to go to heaven.

Skepticism is the most important tool in the shed of science. Everyone told Copernicus that the Earth was the center of the universe.

He had his doubts.

The world is better for his skepticism.

Surber may be reached at donsur...@dailymail.com. His blog is at http://blogs.dailymail.com/donsurber.