I came by my understanding as a result of a statement made by William E.
Carroll in a philosophy colloquim over 20 years ago. His statement then
must have been similar to the following one available in
International Catholic University
Galileo: Science and Religion
Eppur si muove: The Legend of Galileo
William E. Carroll
at http://home.comcast.net/~icuweb/c02901.htm
<<But, in the absence of such a demonstration, and in the midst of the
controversies of the Protestant Reformation, the cardinal urged
prudence: treat Copernican astronomy simply as a hypothetical model
which accounts for the observed phenomena.>>