--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If acorns start growing into theologians…" description: "\"If acorns start growing into theologians, or if women begin turning into pillars of salt, then we may wish to hypothesize about a supernatural influenc..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4c/george-h-smith-20207_acorns_if-acorns-start-growing-into-theologians_566982.png" --- # If acorns start growing into theologians, or if women… ![“If acorns start growing into theologians, or if women begin turning into pillars of salt, then we may wish to hypothesize about a supernatural influence. But until such time as nature becomes hopelessly unintelligible and unpredictable, we need look no further than nature itself for explanations.” quote by George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4c/george-h-smith-20207_acorns_if-acorns-start-growing-into-theologians_566982.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4c/george-h-smith-20207_acorns_if-acorns-start-growing-into-theologians_566982.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4c/george-h-smith-20207_acorns_if-acorns-start-growing-into-theologians_566982.png) > “If acorns start growing into theologians, or if women begin turning into pillars of salt, then we may wish to hypothesize about a supernatural influence. But until such time as nature becomes hopelessly unintelligible and unpredictable, we need look no further than nature itself for explanations.” [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It argues that natural explanations suffice for phenomena, rejecting supernatural causes unless nature becomes incomprehensible. **In simple terms:** Nature explains everything unless it becomes unknowable. Key Takeaway Seek natural explanations first. Themes science skepticism philosophy Mood analytical skeptical Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - medical diagnoses - environmental events - technological failures - everyday mysteries Key Concepts naturalism causality Questions to Reflect On - What limits do you place on natural explanations? - When might a supernatural view be reasonable? A Different Perspective May overlook genuine supernatural claims. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acorns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acorns/) [Explanation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/explanation/) [Growing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing/) [Hypothesize Supernatural](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hypothesize-supernatural-4688145/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence/) [Looks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looks/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Nature Explanations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-explanations-4688146/) [Nature Hopelessly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-hopelessly-2306660/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Pillars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pillars/) [Salt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/salt/) [Spring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spring/) [Supernatural](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/supernatural/) [Supernatural Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/supernatural-influence-2423654/) [Theologian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theologian/) [Unpredictable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unpredictable/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/) ## Related quotes > [“It is incumbent upon us to consider this question from a Christian point of view, and to ask whether the supernatural influence, which ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-muir/it-is-incumbent-upon-us-to-consider-this-question-from-a-christian/) [William Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-muir/) > [“Man is out of nature and hopelessly in it; he is dual, up in the stars and yet housed in a heart-pumping, breath-gasping body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/man-is-out-of-nature-and-hopelessly-in-it-he-is-dual-up-in-the-stars/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [I think character never changes; the Acorn becomes an Oak, which is very little like an Acorn to be sure, but it never becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hester-lynch-piozzi/i-think-character-never-changes-the-acorn-becomes-an-oak-which-is/) [Hester Lynch Piozzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hester-lynch-piozzi/) > [October arrives in a swirl of fragrant blue leaf smoke, the sweetness of slightly frosted MacIntosh apples, and little hard acorns falling. We are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-hersey/october-arrives-in-a-swirl-of-fragrant-blue-leaf-smoke-the-sweetness/) [Jean Hersey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-hersey/) > [What but education has advanced us beyond the condition of our indigenous neighbors? And what chains them to their present state of barbarism and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/what-but-education-has-advanced-us-beyond-the-condition-of-our/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [We are, in a certain way, defined as much by our potential as by its expression. There is a great difference between an acorn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-naomi-remen/we-are-in-a-certain-way-defined-as-much-by-our-potential-as-by-its/) [Rachel Naomi Remen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-naomi-remen/) > [“No oak trees without acorns' may be a formally true proposition, but that this acorn did in fact produce this oak tree, there and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-nardin/no-oak-trees-without-acorns-may-be-a-formally-true-proposition-but/) [Terry Nardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-nardin/) > [“Delusional thinking, obviously, the other acorns concluded, but one of them continued to engage him in conversation: “So tell us, how would we become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beatrice-chestnut/delusional-thinking-obviously-the-other-acorns-concluded-but-one-of/) [Beatrice Chestnut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beatrice-chestnut/) > [Apart from the positive woes of perdition, an eternity of wretchedness grows from the want of love to Christ as naturally as the oak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-kennedy-hutchison-boyd/apart-from-the-positive-woes-of-perdition-an-eternity-of-wretchedness/) [Andrew Kennedy Hutchison Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-kennedy-hutchison-boyd/) > [Eventually, even a blind squirell will find an acorn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cornette/eventually-even-a-blind-squirell-will-find-an-acorn/) [Jim Cornette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cornette/) > [The tallest oak tree once was an acorn that any pig could have swallowed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/the-tallest-oak-tree-once-was-an-acorn-that-any-pig-could-have/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [It takes time for an acorn to turn into an oak, but the oak is already implied in the acorn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-watts/it-takes-time-for-an-acorn-to-turn-into-an-oak-but-the-oak-is-already/) [Alan Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-watts/) > [Great oaks grow from little acorns. He has a green thumb. He has green fingers. He's sowing his wild oats. Here Ceres' gifts in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/great-oaks-grow-from-little-acorns-he-has-a-green-thumb-he-has-green/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [An optimist is a man who plants two acorns and buys a hammock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-lattre-de-tassigny/an-optimist-is-a-man-who-plants-two-acorns-and-buys-a-hammock/) [Jean de Lattre de Tassigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-lattre-de-tassigny/) > [“Our ordinary mind always tried to persuade us that we are nothing but acorns and that our greatest happiness will be to become bigger,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/our-ordinary-mind-always-tried-to-persuade-us-that-we-are-nothing-but/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by George H. Smith > [I am continually amazed by the credence given to religious claims in the intellectual community; and, as a human being, i am appaulled by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/i-am-continually-amazed-by-the-credence-given-to-religious-claims-in/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [When the atheist is told that God is unknowable, he may interpret this claim in one of two ways. He may suppose, first, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/when-the-atheist-is-told-that-god-is-unknowable-he-may-interpret-this/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [“It is my firm conviction that man has nothing to gain, emotionally or otherwise, by adhering to a falsehood, regardless of how comfortable or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/it-is-my-firm-conviction-that-man-has-nothing-to-gain-emotionally-or/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [ The negative way \[of describing God\] is a cardboard prop of Christianity to conceal its unknowable God. When this prop collapses, theistic agnosticism emerges,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/the-negative-way-of-describing-god-is-a-cardboard-prop-of/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [The theist must present an intelligible description of god. Until he does so, god makes no more sense than unie; both are cognitively empty,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/the-theist-must-present-an-intelligible-description-of-god-until-he/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [It cannot be emphasized too strongly that Christianity has a vested interest in human misery. Christianity, perhaps more than any religion before or since,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/it-cannot-be-emphasized-too-strongly-that-christianity-has-a-vested/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [As for Christianity's alleged concern with truth, Christian faith is to free inquiry what the Mafia is to free enterprise. Christianity may be represented…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/as-for-christianity-s-alleged-concern-with-truth-christian-faith-is/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [“Religion has had the disastrous effect of placing vitally important concepts, such as morality, happiness and love, in a supernatural realm inaccessible to man’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/religion-has-had-the-disastrous-effect-of-placing-vitally-important/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [I am arguing that faith as such, faith as an alleged method of acquiring knowledge, is totally invalid and as a consequence, all propositions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/i-am-arguing-that-faith-as-such-faith-as-an-alleged-method-of/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [Atheism is the absence of a belief in a god, nothing more. If the theist wishes to draw monumental implications from this lack of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/atheism-is-the-absence-of-a-belief-in-a-god-nothing-more-if-the/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [The leap of faith is a strategic impasse that confronts every Christian in search of converts; and, as he sees the matter, there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/the-leap-of-faith-is-a-strategic-impasse-that-confronts-every/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [One can be committed to conformity or one can be committed to truth, but not both.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/one-can-be-committed-to-conformity-or-one-can-be-committed-to-truth/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [Christianity has nothing to offer a happy man living in a natural, intelligible universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/christianity-has-nothing-to-offer-a-happy-man-living-in-a-natural/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [Christianity cannot erase man's need for pleasure, nor can it eradicate the various sources of pleasure. What it can do, however, and what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/christianity-cannot-erase-man-s-need-for-pleasure-nor-can-it/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) > [It is my firm conviction that man has nothing to gain, emotionally or otherwise, by adhering to a falsehood, regardless of how comfortable or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-smith/it-is-my-firm-conviction-that-man-has-nothing-to-gain-emotionally-or-2/) [George H. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) [Explore all 31 George H. Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-smith/) ## More Acorns quotes > [“Our ordinary mind always tried to persuade us that we are nothing but acorns and that our greatest happiness will be to become bigger,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/our-ordinary-mind-always-tried-to-persuade-us-that-we-are-nothing-but/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [An optimist is a man who plants two acorns and buys a hammock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-lattre-de-tassigny/an-optimist-is-a-man-who-plants-two-acorns-and-buys-a-hammock/) [Jean de Lattre de Tassigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-lattre-de-tassigny/) > [Great oaks grow from little acorns. He has a green thumb. He has green fingers. He's sowing his wild oats. Here Ceres' gifts in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/great-oaks-grow-from-little-acorns-he-has-a-green-thumb-he-has-green/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [It takes time for an acorn to turn into an oak, but the oak is already implied in the acorn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-watts/it-takes-time-for-an-acorn-to-turn-into-an-oak-but-the-oak-is-already/) [Alan Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-watts/) > [The tallest oak tree once was an acorn that any pig could have swallowed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/the-tallest-oak-tree-once-was-an-acorn-that-any-pig-could-have/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [Eventually, even a blind squirell will find an acorn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cornette/eventually-even-a-blind-squirell-will-find-an-acorn/) [Jim Cornette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cornette/) > [Apart from the positive woes of perdition, an eternity of wretchedness grows from the want of love to Christ as naturally as the oak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-kennedy-hutchison-boyd/apart-from-the-positive-woes-of-perdition-an-eternity-of-wretchedness/) [Andrew Kennedy Hutchison Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-kennedy-hutchison-boyd/) > [“Delusional thinking, obviously, the other acorns concluded, but one of them continued to engage him in conversation: “So tell us, how would we become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beatrice-chestnut/delusional-thinking-obviously-the-other-acorns-concluded-but-one-of/) [Beatrice Chestnut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beatrice-chestnut/) > [“No oak trees without acorns' may be a formally true proposition, but that this acorn did in fact produce this oak tree, there and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-nardin/no-oak-trees-without-acorns-may-be-a-formally-true-proposition-but/) [Terry Nardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-nardin/) > [We are, in a certain way, defined as much by our potential as by its expression. There is a great difference between an acorn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-naomi-remen/we-are-in-a-certain-way-defined-as-much-by-our-potential-as-by-its/) [Rachel Naomi Remen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-naomi-remen/) > [What but education has advanced us beyond the condition of our indigenous neighbors? And what chains them to their present state of barbarism and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/what-but-education-has-advanced-us-beyond-the-condition-of-our/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [October arrives in a swirl of fragrant blue leaf smoke, the sweetness of slightly frosted MacIntosh apples, and little hard acorns falling. We are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-hersey/october-arrives-in-a-swirl-of-fragrant-blue-leaf-smoke-the-sweetness/) [Jean Hersey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-hersey/) > [I think character never changes; the Acorn becomes an Oak, which is very little like an Acorn to be sure, but it never becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hester-lynch-piozzi/i-think-character-never-changes-the-acorn-becomes-an-oak-which-is/) [Hester Lynch Piozzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hester-lynch-piozzi/) > [Just as the acorn contains the mighty oak tree, the Self has everything it needs to fulfill its destiny. When the inner conditions are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-rydall/just-as-the-acorn-contains-the-mighty-oak-tree-the-self-has/) [Derek Rydall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-rydall/) > [The acorn of ambition often grows into an oak from which men hang.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-acorn-of-ambition-often-grows-into-an-oak-from-which-men-hang/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 107 Acorns quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acorns/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If acorns start growing into theologians, or if women begin turning into pillars of salt, then we may wish to hypothesize about a supernatural influence. But until such time as nature becomes hopelessly unintelligible and unpredictable, we need look no further than nature itself for explanations.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George H. 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