My own contact with this Jesuit astronomy tradition was through Father Patrick Treanor, who used to come and give talks at Stonyhurst about his work for the Vatican Observatory, of which he was later director.  He was an enthusiastic speaker, and I was attracted by the idea of doing science in service of the Church, but whether this was to be astronomy or another field had yet to be decided.  It turned out that a Bachelors in Physics, a Masters in Astronomy, and, after ordination, a Doctorate in Astronomy from the University of Toronto, all steadily led me to the Vatican Observatory.

There are many aspects to what I am doing.  Prime is to keep as much research and its associated collaborations going as possible, since on this hangs both the credibility of the Vatican Observatory and the source of our finding delight in God’s creation.  As Vice Director I have administrative concerns, which include interacting with the excellent team of engineers from the University of Arizona who keep our “Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope” (VATT) both running and developing.  There is also service to the International Astronomical Union, Interdisciplinary Studies, and general outreach to the public, including the inevitable fundraising to keep the telescope going.  To complete the picture, regular pastoral ministry in various ways has an important, complementary role in my life.

What integrates all this?  One can take the words of Pope Benedict XVI addressed to the 2007 Vatican Observatory Summer School: “Since its (re)establishment in 1891, the Vatican Observatory  has sought to demonstrate the Church’s desire to embrace, encourage and promote scientific study, on the basis of her conviction that “faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth” (Fides et Ratio, Proemium).  Yes, the Observatory is very much a work for the Church, one explicitly entrusted to Jesuits for over a century and recently affirmed by Father General Adolfo Nicolás, S.J., when he graciously visited us at Castel Gandolfo in June 2008.