---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: E. A. Burtt argued that the foundations…"
description: "\"“E. A. Burtt argued that the foundations of science were often theological.”\" — Gary B. Ferngren"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9db/gary-b-ferngren-38961_science_e-a-burtt-argued-that-the-foundations-of_940556.jpg"
---

#  E. A. Burtt argued that the foundations of science were…

![“E. A. Burtt argued that the foundations of science were often theological.” quote by Gary B. Ferngren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9db/gary-b-ferngren-38961_science_e-a-burtt-argued-that-the-foundations-of_940556.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9db/gary-b-ferngren-38961_science_e-a-burtt-argued-that-the-foundations-of_940556.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9db/gary-b-ferngren-38961_science_e-a-burtt-argued-that-the-foundations-of_940556.jpg)

> ““E. A. Burtt argued that the foundations of science were often theological.””

[Gary B. Ferngren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-b-ferngren/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Science often builds on theological ideas, shaping its foundations.

**In simple terms:** Science roots lie in theology.

Key Takeaway

Recognize historical influences on science.

Themes

history science theology

Mood

thoughtful analytical

Type

educational historical

When to use this quote

- academic research
- education
- public policy

Key Concepts

philosophy epistemology

Questions to Reflect On

- How do theological roots affect modern scientific methods?
- Can we separate belief from evidence?

A Different Perspective

Science also relies on empirical testing beyond theological origins.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/)

## Related quotes

> [Sex is an aspect of human existence that has fallen prey in special measure to a very special form of theological science: the theological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uta-ranke-heinemann/sex-is-an-aspect-of-human-existence-that-has-fallen-prey-in-special/)

[Uta Ranke-Heinemann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uta-ranke-heinemann/)

> [Many philosophers in the second half of the 20th century really seemed to think that they were laying the foundations for science by laying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-churchland/many-philosophers-in-the-second-half-of-the-20th-century-really/)

[Patricia Churchland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-churchland/)

> [So much confusion about belief in God, morality, and science arises, not from what people say they believe, but rather from mistaken assumptions about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-j-beckwith/so-much-confusion-about-belief-in-god-morality-and-science-arises-not/)

[Francis J. Beckwith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-j-beckwith/)

> [The prevailing notion is that the state should be neutral as to religion, and furthermore, that the best way to be neutral about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/the-prevailing-notion-is-that-the-state-should-be-neutral-as-to/)

[Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/)

> [In the garden of the soul, the virtues of faith, hope, and love form the centerpiece. Traditionally called theological virtues, they come as free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morneau/in-the-garden-of-the-soul-the-virtues-of-faith-hope-and-love-form-the/)

Robert Morneau

> [“We advocate the atheistic philosophy because it is the only clear, consistent position which seems possible to us. As atheists, we simply deny the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-haldeman-julius/we-advocate-the-atheistic-philosophy-because-it-is-the-only-clear/)

[E. Haldeman-Julius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-haldeman-julius/)

> [and while faith based on theological reasoning is today universally engaged in a bitter struggle with doubt and resistance from the prevailing brand of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-musil/and-while-faith-based-on-theological-reasoning-is-today-universally/)

[Robert Musil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-musil/)

> [The Book of Job and the 19th Psalm, which even the Church admits to be more ancient than the chronological order in which they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/the-book-of-job-and-the-19th-psalm-which-even-the-church-admits-to-be/)

[Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/)

> [The work with which we embark on this first volume of a series of theological studies is a work with which the philosophical person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-urs-von-balthasar/the-work-with-which-we-embark-on-this-first-volume-of-a-series-of/)

[Hans Urs von Balthasar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-urs-von-balthasar/)

> [Many readers fail to realize this, but 'The Color Purple' is a theological text. It is about the reclamation of one's original God: the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/many-readers-fail-to-realize-this-but-the-color-purple-is-a/)

[Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/)

> [... at no point have I yet found artistic truth and theological truth at variance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/at-no-point-have-i-yet-found-artistic-truth-and-theological-truth-at/)

[Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/)

> [All our problems are theological ones, William Temple said. All of them have to do with our relationship to God and his to us,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-elliot/all-our-problems-are-theological-ones-william-temple-said-all-of-them/)

[Elisabeth Elliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-elliot/)

> [Lutheranism restricted itself to an exclusively ecclesiastical and theological character, while Calvinism put its impress in and outside the church upon every aspect of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-kuyper/lutheranism-restricted-itself-to-an-exclusively-ecclesiastical-and/)

[Abraham Kuyper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-kuyper/)

> [All significant concepts of the modern theory of the state are secularized theological concepts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-schmitt/all-significant-concepts-of-the-modern-theory-of-the-state-are/)

[Carl Schmitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-schmitt/)

> [ The young man \[Turgot\] destined for an ecclesiastical career was placed within walls carefully designed to keep out all currents of new thought; his… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-dickson-white/the-young-man-turgot-destined-for-an-ecclesiastical-career-was-placed/)

[Andrew Dickson White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-dickson-white/)

## More by Gary B. Ferngren

> [“In Victorian times, one of the more serious reasons for opposing Darwin was the fear that his theories would lead to the law of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/in-victorian-times-one-of-the-more-serious-reasons-for-opposing/)

[Gary B. Ferngren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-b-ferngren/)

> [“Their goal is to deepen our comprehension of the discussions themselves instead of justifying particular views involved in current debates.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/their-goal-is-to-deepen-our-comprehension-of-the-discussions/)

[Gary B. Ferngren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-b-ferngren/)

> [“If they were right, there was an absence of conflict not only over the specific case of cosmology but, in principle, over anything else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/if-they-were-right-there-was-an-absence-of-conflict-not-only-over-the/)

[Gary B. Ferngren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-b-ferngren/)

> [“In Victorian times, one of the more serious reasons for opposing Darwin was the fear that his theories would lead to the law of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/in-victorian-times-one-of-the-more-serious-reasons-for-opposing-2/)

[Gary B. Ferngren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-b-ferngren/)

> [“If they were right, there was an absence of conflict not only over the specific case of cosmology but, in principle, over anything else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/if-they-were-right-there-was-an-absence-of-conflict-not-only-over-the-2/)

[Gary B. Ferngren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-b-ferngren/)

> [“With hindsight, it is truly remarkable that, as early as the sixteenth century, Copernicus and his disciple Georg Joachim Rheticus (1514–74) resolved the issue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/with-hindsight-it-is-truly-remarkable-that-as-early-as-the-sixteenth/)

[Gary B. Ferngren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-b-ferngren/)

> [“In short, the interaction between science and religion in the Middle Ages was not an abstract encounter between bodies of fixed ideas but part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/in-short-the-interaction-between-science-and-religion-in-the-middle/)

[Gary B. Ferngren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-b-ferngren/)

> [“The Middle Ages have served as a historical arena within which two schools of thought have done battle—one school accusing the medieval church of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/the-middle-ages-have-served-as-a-historical-arena-within-which-two/)

[Gary B. Ferngren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-b-ferngren/)

> [“The Judeo-Christian view, in contrast, historically regarded nature as the nonliving creation of a rational God, not cyclic but with a definite beginning and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/the-judeo-christian-view-in-contrast-historically-regarded-nature-as/)

[Gary B. Ferngren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-b-ferngren/)

> [“Science’s best-known victories were those of Copernicanism and Darwinism.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/science-s-best-known-victories-were-those-of-copernicanism-and/)

[Gary B. Ferngren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-b-ferngren/)

[Explore all 11 Gary B. Ferngren quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-b-ferngren/)

## More Science quotes

> [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/)

Deanna L. Lawlis

> [“Galton’s gospel of eugenics found fertile soil in Britain, in the intellectual salons of Europe, and in the United States. Beginning in the early…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-loconte/galton-s-gospel-of-eugenics-found-fertile-soil-in-britain-in-the/)

Joseph Loconte

> [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/)

[Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/)

> [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/)

[Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/)

> [Humans are, as Sartre put it, 'condemned to be free'. To insist that science, or God, objectively defines moral values is to abandon our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenan-malik/humans-are-as-sartre-put-it-condemned-to-be-free-to-insist-that/)

Kenan Malik

> [“Love. Such a sweet, simple word. A word I've been searching for my entire life - but especially since I met Eio - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-khoury/love-such-a-sweet-simple-word-a-word-i-ve-been-searching-for-my/)

[Jessica Khoury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-khoury/)

> [The thing about science fiction is that it's totally wide open. But it's wide open in a conditional way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-butler/the-thing-about-science-fiction-is-that-it-s-totally-wide-open-but-it/)

[Octavia Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-butler/)

> [Advances in technology will continue to reach far into every sector of our economy. Future job and economic growth in industry, defense, transportation, agriculture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-bond/advances-in-technology-will-continue-to-reach-far-into-every-sector/)

[Christopher Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-bond/)

> [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/)

[Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/)

> [Why are things as they are and not otherwise?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johannes-kepler/why-are-things-as-they-are-and-not-otherwise/)

[Johannes Kepler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johannes-kepler/)

> [A Light exists in Spring Not present on the Year At any other period - When March is scarcely here A Color stands abroad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-dickinson/a-light-exists-in-spring-not-present-on-the-year-at-any-other-period/)

[Emily Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-dickinson/)

> [A vacuum can only exist, I imagine, by the things which enclose it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zelda-fitzgerald/a-vacuum-can-only-exist-i-imagine-by-the-things-which-enclose-it/)

[Zelda Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zelda-fitzgerald/)

> [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/)

[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/)

> [You feed yourself. Make sure you have all the information, whether it's aesthetic, scientific, mathematical, I don't care what it is. Then you walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/you-feed-yourself-make-sure-you-have-all-the-information-whether-it-s/)

[Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/)

> [Don't be afraid of hard work. Nothing worthwhile comes easily. Don't let others discourage you or tell you that you can't do it. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-b-elion/don-t-be-afraid-of-hard-work-nothing-worthwhile-comes-easily-don-t/)

[Gertrude B. Elion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-b-elion/)

[Browse all 27,477 Science quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“E. A. Burtt argued that the foundations of science were often theological.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Gary B. Ferngren"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/e-a-burtt-argued-that-the-foundations-of-science-were-often/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Science"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/e-a-burtt-argued-that-the-foundations-of-science-were-often/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9db/gary-b-ferngren-38961_science_e-a-burtt-argued-that-the-foundations-of_940556.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9db/gary-b-ferngren-38961_science_e-a-burtt-argued-that-the-foundations-of_940556.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9db/gary-b-ferngren-38961_science_e-a-burtt-argued-that-the-foundations-of_940556.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“E. A. Burtt argued that the foundations of science were often theological.” — Gary B. Ferngren",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Gary B. Ferngren",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-b-ferngren/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“E. A. Burtt argued that the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/e-a-burtt-argued-that-the-foundations-of-science-were-often/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-b-ferngren/e-a-burtt-argued-that-the-foundations-of-science-were-often/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
