The Cosmic Countdown

This book is a popular, non-academic exposition of many of the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church from the viewpoint of the theory of evolution. It takes its inspiration from the vision of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J. and guidance from the documents of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) on the occasion of its 50th anniversary.

Fifty years ago Pope John XXIII convened the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) of the Roman Catholic Church. One of the most heralded documents issued by the council was the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (Gaudium et Spes). The theme of this book takes its inspiration from the following words of that document: And so mankind substitutes a dynamic and more evolutionary concept of nature for a static one and the result is an immense series of new problems calling for a new endeavor of analysis and synthesis. This book is a popular, non-academic theological “endeavor of analysis and synthesis” of many of the teachings of the Church from the perspective of the scientific theory of evolution. It relies heavily on the achievement of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J.

Walter Niebrzydowski is a priest of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York. Born and raised in the Bronx, New York City, USA, he was ordained to the priesthood at the North American College in Rome, Italy, in 1958. He graduated cum laude with the Licentiate in Sacred Theology from the Gregorian University, Rome, in 1959. He served for two years in St. Stanislaus Parish, NYC, as Parochial Vicar and also worked in the Archdiocesan Tribunal as a canonical consultant. In 1961 he was assigned to the faculty of Cathedral Prep Seminary, NYC, and served there as teacher and administrator until 1984. In 1965 he obtained the M.A. in Greek and Latin Classics at Columbia University, NYC. From 1974 to 1982 he produced, wrote, and narrated Rock Pulpit, a weekly radio show of music and message on WPIX-FM, NYC. In 1982 he became the chaplain of the Polish-language Catholic Discussion Club, a service he performs to this day. In 1984 he was appointed pastor of St. John the Martyr Parish, NYC. During his term he was named a Monsignor and served on the Archdiocesan Priests’ Council. He collaborated in 1985 with Fr. Joseph Baker in founding N.B. Productions to produce TV shows for local cable TV stations. He co-founded the Lenox Hill Artists Forum in 1987 to promote and display the creative output of local artists. In 1996 he was appointed pastor of Epiphany Parish, NYC. He incorporated the various parish activities in his enterprise of producing cable TV shows for his program Waiting for God—Oh!, which began as a weekly series in 1995. He was instrumental in establishing the Epiphany Peace Garden, featuring the sculpture Light Overcomes Darkness by Viktor Szostalo and plaques commemorating the parishioners, neighbors and uniformed personnel who perished in the attack on America on 9/11/01. Upon retirement from administrative duties in 2008, Fr. Walter has devoted himself to full-time media ministry. In 2009 he launched his website www.fatherwaltersparish.org. He has posted 49 videos on his YouTube channel www.youtube.com/frwalter1, and he continues his weekly cable show Waiting for God—Oh! on Manhattan Neighborhood Network. His TV productions center around the concerts he helps organize at St. Stephen’s Parish, NYC, where he resides. The e-Book Versus Verses was his latest contribution to communicating positive values via the digital domain. The Cosmic Countdown is his second e-Book.