The Church officials, who felt Galileo had embarrassed them, found that Galileo had erred by advocating in the name of the Church that heliocentrism was scientifically proven. This was not compatible with the Inquisition's 1616 ruling and what Galileo had recently been told. In 1633 Galileo was ordered to stand trial in Rome. Galileo could have left the Church but instead chose to submit voluntarily its authority and decision. According to the terms of his sentence, renounced his [[thesis]] of his [[book]]. At first he was sentenced to life imprisonment, but this was immediately commuted to luxurious house arrest. His book was burned, and the sentence against him was read aloud in public in every university. <ref>[http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/refpages/RefArticle.aspx?refid=761557587&pn=3 ''MSN Encarta'' - Galileo (p3)]</ref> Galileo went back to studying motion and mechanics in his private villa. | The Church officials, who felt Galileo had embarrassed them, found that Galileo had erred by advocating in the name of the Church that heliocentrism was scientifically proven. This was not compatible with the Inquisition's 1616 ruling and what Galileo had recently been told. In 1633 Galileo was ordered to stand trial in Rome. Galileo could have left the Church but instead chose to submit voluntarily its authority and decision. According to the terms of his sentence, renounced his [[thesis]] of his [[book]]. At first he was sentenced to life imprisonment, but this was immediately commuted to luxurious house arrest. His book was burned, and the sentence against him was read aloud in public in every university. <ref>[http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/refpages/RefArticle.aspx?refid=761557587&pn=3 ''MSN Encarta'' - Galileo (p3)]</ref> Galileo went back to studying motion and mechanics in his private villa. |