Galileo (1564-1642) was an Italian scientist, teacher and philosopher who agreed with his predecessor Copernicus -- he believed the Sun was at the center of the universe, not the Earth. The Scriptures describe a stationary earth and a moving sun, so the Catholic Church ordered Galileo not to teach Copernican theory. When he did not heed that warning, he was brought before the Inquisition in 1633, forced to renounce his beliefs and put under house arrest for the remainder of his life. In 1979, Pope John Paul II admitted that the Church mistreated Galileo.