--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ...where were answers to the truly deep…" description: "\"...where were answers to the truly deep questions? Religion promised those, though always in vague terms, while retreating from one line in the sand to..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/david-brin-3024_answers_where-were-answers-to-the-truly-deep-que_2566314.jpg" --- # ...where were answers to the truly deep questions?… ![“...where were answers to the truly deep questions? Religion promised those, though always in vague terms, while retreating from one line in the sand to the next. Don't look past this boundary, they told Galileo, then Hutton, Darwin, Von Neumann, and Crick, always retreating with great dignity…” quote by David Brin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/david-brin-3024_answers_where-were-answers-to-the-truly-deep-que_2566314.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/david-brin-3024_answers_where-were-answers-to-the-truly-deep-que_2566314.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/david-brin-3024_answers_where-were-answers-to-the-truly-deep-que_2566314.jpg) > “...where were answers to the truly deep questions? Religion promised those, though always in vague terms, while retreating from one line in the sand to the next. Don't look past this boundary, they told Galileo, then Hutton, Darwin, Von Neumann, and Crick, always retreating with great dignity before the latest scientific advance, then drawing the next holy perimeter at the shadowy rim of knowledge.” [David Brin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote critiques how religion and science each set limits on inquiry, retreating when faced with new evidence, and constantly redefining the boundaries of knowledge. **In simple terms:** Religion and science both draw lines that shift as knowledge grows. Key Takeaway Recognize and question the boundaries we set for understanding. Themes knowledge science religion humility progress Mood reflective inquisitive critical Type philosophical analytical inspirational When to use this quote - academic research - personal belief systems - public policy debates - education curricula Key Concepts Epistemology boundary theory paradigm shift Questions to Reflect On - How do we balance respect for tradition with openness to new evidence? - What mechanisms help societies expand rather than retreat knowledge boundaries? A Different Perspective The quote may overgeneralize the attitudes of all scientists and believers, ignoring many who embrace uncertainty. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Boundaries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boundaries/) [Dignity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dignity/) [Holy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holy/) [Lines in the sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lines-in-the-sand/) [One line](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/one-line/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Von neumann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/von-neumann/) ## Related quotes > [“I didn’t know what to do when I realized that a religion that promised me heaven only seemed to bring me a perpetual hell.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-r-silva/i-didn-t-know-what-to-do-when-i-realized-that-a-religion-that/) [D.R. Silva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-r-silva/) > [Religion used to be the opium of the people. To those suffering humiliation, pain, illness, and serfdom, religion promised the reward of an after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/religion-used-to-be-the-opium-of-the-people-to-those-suffering/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ “ Worldwide Long Range Solutions Special Interest Group \[ ¤ SIG AeR.WLRS 253787890.546\]. Space Colonization Subgroup. Open discussion board. Okay, so imagine we get… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brin/worldwide-long-range-solutions-special-interest-group-sig-aer-wlrs/) [David Brin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brin/) > [Many people can't deal with unanswered questions, which religion exploits by providing answers, even if they are just made up by someone. This is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/many-people-can-t-deal-with-unanswered-questions-which-religion/) [Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/) > [As a teenager, I increasingly had questions about religion to which I found no good answers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-baggini/as-a-teenager-i-increasingly-had-questions-about-religion-to-which-i/) [Julian Baggini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-baggini/) > [Where questions of religion are concerned, people are guilty of every possible sort of dishonesty and intellectual misdemeanor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/where-questions-of-religion-are-concerned-people-are-guilty-of-every/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [“The kinds of things that I would say on Nightline, you can’t say in one sentence because they depart from standard religion. 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The romance surrounding the writing profession carries several myths: that one must suffer in order to be creative; that one must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brin/beware-of-self-indulgence-the-romance-surrounding-the-writing/) [David Brin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brin/) > [Anything done in secret is more likely to result in terrible errors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brin/anything-done-in-secret-is-more-likely-to-result-in-terrible-errors/) [David Brin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brin/) > [“Men can be brilliant and strong, they whispered to one another. But men can be mad, as well. 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Especially in humans. For every good idea, ten thousand idiotic ones must first be posed, sifted, tried out, and discarded.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brin/it-s-how-creativity-works-especially-in-humans-for-every-good-idea/) [David Brin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brin/) > [Tragedies such as Nevil Shute's 'On the Beach' and Stanley Kubrick's 'Dr Strangelove' are so powerful because there's an underlying assumption that this did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brin/tragedies-such-as-nevil-shute-s-on-the-beach-and-stanley-kubrick-s-dr/) [David Brin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brin/) > [In contrast, markets - oft mythologized as "natural" are the most unnatural things going. 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