--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As William Bouwsma pointed out, the late…" description: "\"“As William Bouwsma pointed out, the late medieval and early Renaissance crises of representation did not stall out at their skepticism of the old syst..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd4/lori-branch-82287_god_as-william-bouwsma-pointed-out-the-late_1729615.jpg" --- # As William Bouwsma pointed out, the late medieval and… ![“As William Bouwsma pointed out, the late medieval and early Renaissance crises of representation did not stall out at their skepticism of the old systems but rather progressed to an even more urgent defense of objective boundaries and quantifiable truths. In “The Secularization of Language in the…” quote by Lori Branch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd4/lori-branch-82287_god_as-william-bouwsma-pointed-out-the-late_1729615.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd4/lori-branch-82287_god_as-william-bouwsma-pointed-out-the-late_1729615.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd4/lori-branch-82287_god_as-william-bouwsma-pointed-out-the-late_1729615.jpg) > ““As William Bouwsma pointed out, the late medieval and early Renaissance crises of representation did not stall out at their skepticism of the old systems but rather progressed to an even more urgent defense of objective boundaries and quantifiable truths. In “The Secularization of Language in the Seventeenth Century,” Margreta de Grazia has shown how this pursuit of certainty led to a skepticism about language itself that dissociated words from God and deverbalized God’s message, prompting thinkers from Thomas Sprat of the Royal Society to Hobbes, Robert Hooke, Galileo, and Newton to seek certainty in mathematical knowledge; quantifiable, identifiable substances; and trial, experiment, and experience. As Puritan propagandist Vavasor Powell put it in the middle of the seventeenth century, “Experience is like steel to an edged tool, or like salt to fresh meat, it seasons brain- knowledge, and settles a shaking unsetled soule.” Paralleling more secular quests for certainty, the Puritan quest for grounding religious knowledge in a literalist reading of Scripture focused ever more intensely on manifest, genuine experience confirming salvation and the personal application of scriptural truth. The spontaneous “pouring out of the heart” in prayer was just such an evidentiary experience.”” [Lori Branch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-branch/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quest for certainty moved from religious to scientific realms, separating language from divine authority. **In simple terms:** Science sought certainty, distancing words from God. Key Takeaway Recognize how certainty drives both faith and science. Themes philosophy history science religion Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type academic reflective When to use this quote - academic lectures - theological debates - scientific research - historical analysis Key Concepts epistemology secularization empiricism Questions to Reflect On - How does certainty limit imagination? - Can faith and science coexist peacefully? A Different Perspective Certainty can also breed rigidity and exclusion. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Certainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty/) [Certainty Puritan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty-puritan-1417039/) [God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god/) [Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) [Prayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prayer/) [Puritan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/puritan/) [Reformation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reformation/) [Ritual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ritual/) [Robert Hooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/robert-hooke-226435/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Seek Certainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seek-certainty-1417041/) [Skepticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skepticism/) [Skepticism Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skepticism-language-1417040/) ## Related quotes > [“It is an incurable act of desperation that men seek for certainty! It is like seeking for an unshakable place inside a shaking ship!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/it-is-an-incurable-act-of-desperation-that-men-seek-for-certainty-it/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“Modern scientific culture has evolved from its roots in the ancient world and has become a complex web of many highly specialized disciplines. Gone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-knight-alan-butler/modern-scientific-culture-has-evolved-from-its-roots-in-the-ancient/) [Christopher Knight & Alan Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-knight-alan-butler/) > [“Zeal to expunge every trace of Romish superstition resulted in text scrutinizing and “arguments from silence” that forbade traditions such as the exchange of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-branch/zeal-to-expunge-every-trace-of-romish-superstition-resulted-in-text/) [Lori Branch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-branch/) > [“If the “Cartesian moment” is that moment when as Francis Barker has asserted the self can be conceived of without the body, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-branch/if-the-cartesian-moment-is-that-moment-when-as-francis-barker-has/) [Lori Branch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-branch/) > [A cold and searching wind drives away all contagion, and nothing can withstand it but what has a virtue in it, and accordingly, whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-cold-and-searching-wind-drives-away-all-contagion-and-nothing-can/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [No doctrine is more excellent, or necessary to be preached and studied, than Jesus Christ, and him crucified.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flavel/no-doctrine-is-more-excellent-or-necessary-to-be-preached-and-studied/) [John Flavel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flavel/) > [We are … the un-proud non-possessors of objects whose chief substance is that of the transient symbol. Our Puritan fear of the love of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/we-are-the-un-proud-non-possessors-of-objects-whose-chief-substance/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) > [“A puritan may go to his brown-bread crust with as gross an appetite as ever an alderman to his turtle. Not that food which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-puritan-may-go-to-his-brown-bread-crust-with-as-gross-an-appetite/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The Puritan's idea of hell is a place where everybody has to mind his own business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-phillips/the-puritan-s-idea-of-hell-is-a-place-where-everybody-has-to-mind-his/) [Wendell Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-phillips/) > [It's impossible for a creative artist to be either a Puritan or a Fascist, because both are a negation of the creative urge. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liam-o-flaherty/it-s-impossible-for-a-creative-artist-to-be-either-a-puritan-or-a/) [Liam O'Flaherty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liam-o-flaherty/) > [We think the Puritans always dressed in black and white, which they didn't. They loved very bright colors. And there were other differences in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlisle-floyd/we-think-the-puritans-always-dressed-in-black-and-white-which-they/) [Carlisle Floyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlisle-floyd/) > [The Puritans came to America to worship in their way and to force everybody else to do the same thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-levenson/the-puritans-came-to-america-to-worship-in-their-way-and-to-force/) [Sam Levenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-levenson/) > [The Puritan sours his pleasures by disguising them as duties.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-puritan-sours-his-pleasures-by-disguising-them-as-duties/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [It is the night-black Massachusetts legendry which packs the really macabre "kick". Here is material for a really profound study in group-neuroticism; for certainly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/it-is-the-night-black-massachusetts-legendry-which-packs-the-really/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [Anti-Catholicism has always been the pornography of the Puritan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-hofstadter/anti-catholicism-has-always-been-the-pornography-of-the-puritan/) [Richard Hofstadter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-hofstadter/) ## More by Lori Branch > [“Zeal to expunge every trace of Romish superstition resulted in text scrutinizing and “arguments from silence” that forbade traditions such as the exchange of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-branch/zeal-to-expunge-every-trace-of-romish-superstition-resulted-in-text/) [Lori Branch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-branch/) > [“If the “Cartesian moment” is that moment when as Francis Barker has asserted the self can be conceived of without the body, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-branch/if-the-cartesian-moment-is-that-moment-when-as-francis-barker-has/) [Lori Branch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-branch/) [Explore all 3 Lori Branch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-branch/) ## More Certainty quotes > [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/) [Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/) > [Sometimes we have the absolute certainty there's something inside us that's so hideous and monstrous that if we ever search it out we won't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-selby-jr/sometimes-we-have-the-absolute-certainty-there-s-something-inside-us/) [Hubert Selby, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-selby-jr/) > [The past and the future become unimportant. There is only that moment, and the incredible certainty that everything under the sun has been written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-past-and-the-future-become-unimportant-there-is-only-that-moment/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [In the mental disturbance and effort of writing, what sustains you is the certainty that on every page there is something left unsaid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesare-pavese/in-the-mental-disturbance-and-effort-of-writing-what-sustains-you-is/) [Cesare Pavese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesare-pavese/) > [Of course I doubt. I do not practice a certainty. I practice a faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-breault/of-course-i-doubt-i-do-not-practice-a-certainty-i-practice-a-faith/) [Robert Breault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-breault/) > [The world is a wonderfully weird place, consensual reality is significantly flawed, no institution can be trusted, certainty is a mirage, security a delusion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-world-is-a-wonderfully-weird-place-consensual-reality-is/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [As a businessman, I know that businesses need certainty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-foster/as-a-businessman-i-know-that-businesses-need-certainty/) [Bill Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-foster/) > [It is suggested that in domestic violence at least the presence or absence of a firearm, or of any other type of weapon, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-greenwood/it-is-suggested-that-in-domestic-violence-at-least-the-presence-or/) [Colin Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-greenwood/) > [Every single person who is a member of our party deserves to have certainty. They deserve to know that my attention and focus is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annamie-paul/every-single-person-who-is-a-member-of-our-party-deserves-to-have/) [Annamie Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annamie-paul/) > [The significance and volume of repairs that are needed across the country demand that we give state and local governments the long-term certainty they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-graves/the-significance-and-volume-of-repairs-that-are-needed-across-the/) [Sam Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-graves/) > [“Death is the one great certainty in life. That’s what my dad used to say. Nothing else is certain. Not love. Not happiness. Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mila-gray/death-is-the-one-great-certainty-in-life-that-s-what-my-dad-used-to/) [Mila Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mila-gray/) > [ \[I\]f in other sciences we should arrive at certainty without doubt and truth without error, it behooves us to place the foundations of knowledge… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-bacon/i-f-in-other-sciences-we-should-arrive-at-certainty-without-doubt-and/) [Roger Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-bacon/) > [Do not lose hope; St. Joseph also experienced moments of difficulty, but he never lost faith and was able to overcome them, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/do-not-lose-hope-st-joseph-also-experienced-moments-of-difficulty-but/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [As the future is never known with certainty, the evaluation of the prospective benefits requires the formation of expectations. An acceptable house, partner or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-t-mortensen/as-the-future-is-never-known-with-certainty-the-evaluation-of-the/) [Dale T. Mortensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-t-mortensen/) > [Finding someone that trusted my vision helped me find certainty in who I was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd/finding-someone-that-trusted-my-vision-helped-me-find-certainty-in/) [Syd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd/) [Browse all 1,776 Certainty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“As William Bouwsma pointed out, the late medieval and early Renaissance crises of representation did not stall out at their skepticism of the old systems but rather progressed to an even more urgent defense of objective boundaries and quantifiable truths. 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