--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The philosopher will ask himself ... if…" description: "\"The philosopher will ask himself ... if the criticism we are now suggesting is not the philosophy which presses to the limit that criticism of false go..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/maurice-merleau-ponty-2834_asks_the-philosopher-will-ask-himself-if-the_2678902.jpg" --- # The philosopher will ask himself ... if the criticism we… ![“The philosopher will ask himself ... if the criticism we are now suggesting is not the philosophy which presses to the limit that criticism of false gods which Christianity has introduced into our history.” quote by Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/maurice-merleau-ponty-2834_asks_the-philosopher-will-ask-himself-if-the_2678902.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/maurice-merleau-ponty-2834_asks_the-philosopher-will-ask-himself-if-the_2678902.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/maurice-merleau-ponty-2834_asks_the-philosopher-will-ask-himself-if-the_2678902.jpg) > “The philosopher will ask himself ... if the criticism we are now suggesting is not the philosophy which presses to the limit that criticism of false gods which Christianity has introduced into our history.” [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Philosophy questions the limits of criticism, especially of religious concepts, to avoid false conclusions. **In simple terms:** Critique must respect philosophical boundaries. Key Takeaway Question assumptions carefully. Themes philosophy critique religion Mood analytical critical Type philosophical skeptical When to use this quote - academic debate - theological study - ethical analysis - public discourse Key Concepts epistemology metaphysics Questions to Reflect On - What are the limits of philosophical criticism? - When does critique become destructive? A Different Perspective Over‑critique can dismiss valuable insights. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Christianity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) [Criticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism/) [False gods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/false-gods/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Limits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/limits/) [Philosopher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosopher/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) ## Related quotes > [“You can generally count on a philosopher to ask a question about the question.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kunal-k-das/you-can-generally-count-on-a-philosopher-to-ask-a-question-about-the/) Kunal K. Das > [No sceptical philosopher can ask any questions that may not equally be asked by a tired child on a hot afternoon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/no-sceptical-philosopher-can-ask-any-questions-that-may-not-equally/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you wish to understand a philosopher, do not ask what he says, but find out what he wants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/if-you-wish-to-understand-a-philosopher-do-not-ask-what-he-says-but/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“Philosophy is different from science and from mathematics. Unlike science it doesn't rely on experiments or observation, but only on thought. And unlike mathematics…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-nagel/philosophy-is-different-from-science-and-from-mathematics-unlike/) [Thomas Nagel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-nagel/) > [“I have mentioned that no one offers the name of a philosopher when I ask the question, “Who helped you most?” Most often they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/i-have-mentioned-that-no-one-offers-the-name-of-a-philosopher-when-i/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [“My kind of Supreme Being would rather that people worship no gods than false gods and would prefer eternal discourse with Carl Sagan than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-kind-of-supreme-being-would-rather-that-people-worship-no-gods/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I know that the Communists are atheistic and godless, but I don't think that that's what's primarily the matter with them. What's primarily the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/i-know-that-the-communists-are-atheistic-and-godless-but-i-don-t/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [“Once you believe that god is not a private property of anybody, you are on your way to becoming a new messiah. Maybe your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bangambiki-habyarimana/once-you-believe-that-god-is-not-a-private-property-of-anybody-you/) [Bangambiki Habyarimana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bangambiki-habyarimana/) > [What is the result of our investigation of the Moslem idea of God? 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We would not survive for long without money, clothing and shelter. We must eat in order to stay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-benedict-xvi/material-possessions-in-themselves-are-good-we-would-not-survive-for/) [Pope Benedict XVI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-benedict-xvi/) > [I'm not leading them to some false God or something like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/i-m-not-leading-them-to-some-false-god-or-something-like-that/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [“An atheist is someone who is disappointed in his search of god. He is a man who strongly needed god but couldn't find him.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bangambiki-habyarimana/an-atheist-is-someone-who-is-disappointed-in-his-search-of-god-he-is/) [Bangambiki Habyarimana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bangambiki-habyarimana/) ## More by Maurice Merleau-Ponty > [Science manipulates things and gives up living in them. It makes its own limited models of things; operating upon these indices or variables to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/science-manipulates-things-and-gives-up-living-in-them-it-makes-its/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [“The unfinished nature of phenomenology and the inchoate style in which it proceeds are not the signs of failure; they were inevitable because phenomenology’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/the-unfinished-nature-of-phenomenology-and-the-inchoate-style-in/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [We should be sensitive to the thread of silence from which the tissue of speech is woven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/we-should-be-sensitive-to-the-thread-of-silence-from-which-the-tissue/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [“Man is hidden, well hidden, & this time we must make no mistake about it: this does not mean that he is there beneath…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/man-is-hidden-well-hidden-this-time-we-must-make-no-mistake-about-it/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [“There is no universal clock, but local histories take form beneath our eyes, and begin to regulate themselves, and haltingly are linked to one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/there-is-no-universal-clock-but-local-histories-take-form-beneath-our/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [We know not through our intellect but through our experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/we-know-not-through-our-intellect-but-through-our-experience/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [“There are several ways for a body to be a body, and several ways for consciousness to be consciousness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/there-are-several-ways-for-a-body-to-be-a-body-and-several-ways-for/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [“We do not have the right to level out all experience into a single world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/we-do-not-have-the-right-to-level-out-all-experience-into-a-single/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [“The world and reason are not problems; and though we might call them mysterious, this mystery is essential to them, there can be no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/the-world-and-reason-are-not-problems-and-though-we-might-call-them/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [“Memory is the irruption of other things in us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/memory-is-the-irruption-of-other-things-in-us/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [“Expression is like a step taken in the fog--no one can say where, if anywhere, it will lead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/expression-is-like-a-step-taken-in-the-fog-no-one-can-say-where-if/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [“Any commemoration is also a betrayal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/any-commemoration-is-also-a-betrayal/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [The full meaning of a language is never translatable into another. We may speak several languages but one of them always remains the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/the-full-meaning-of-a-language-is-never-translatable-into-another-we/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [ Our view of man will remain superficial so long as we fail to go back to that origin \[of silence\], so long as we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/our-view-of-man-will-remain-superficial-so-long-as-we-fail-to-go-back/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [“This is an encounter between the human and the non-human, it is something like a behavior of the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/this-is-an-encounter-between-the-human-and-the-non-human-it-is/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) [Explore all 145 Maurice Merleau-Ponty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) ## More Asks quotes > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. 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And suddenly forever seems like too short a time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-andreas/there-is-nothing-more-i-ask-of-this-life-than-this-moment-exactly-so/) [Brian Andreas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-andreas/) > [Success will come when the societal attitude changes and not a single woman in America asks herself the question 'What did I do?'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/success-will-come-when-the-societal-attitude-changes-and-not-a-single/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [The most fundamental question we can ever ask ourselves is whether or not the universe we live in is friendly or hostile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/the-most-fundamental-question-we-can-ever-ask-ourselves-is-whether-or/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [The rich people are apparently leaving America. They're giving up their citizenship. 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That's th' appliance only Which your disease requires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/ask-god-for-temp-rance-that-s-th-appliance-only-which-your-disease/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I don't know how to say it exactly. Only...I want to die as myself. Does that make any sense?' he asks. I shake my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/i-don-t-know-how-to-say-it-exactly-only-i-want-to-die-as-myself-does/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [Physicist Isador Isaac Rabi, who won a Nobel Prize for inventing a technique that permitted scientists to probe the structure of atoms and molecules…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-saul-wurman/physicist-isador-isaac-rabi-who-won-a-nobel-prize-for-inventing-a/) [Richard Saul Wurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-saul-wurman/) Browse all 7,138 Asks quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The philosopher will ask himself ... if the criticism we are now suggesting is not the philosophy which presses to the limit that criticism of false gods which Christianity has introduced into our history.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Maurice Merleau-Ponty" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/the-philosopher-will-ask-himself-if-the-criticism-we-are-now/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Asks" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/the-philosopher-will-ask-himself-if-the-criticism-we-are-now/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/maurice-merleau-ponty-2834_asks_the-philosopher-will-ask-himself-if-the_2678902.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/maurice-merleau-ponty-2834_asks_the-philosopher-will-ask-himself-if-the_2678902.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/maurice-merleau-ponty-2834_asks_the-philosopher-will-ask-himself-if-the_2678902.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The philosopher will ask himself ... if the criticism we are now suggesting is not the philosophy which…” — Maurice Merleau-Ponty", "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": "Maurice Merleau-Ponty", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The philosopher will ask himself ......", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/the-philosopher-will-ask-himself-if-the-criticism-we-are-now/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/the-philosopher-will-ask-himself-if-the-criticism-we-are-now/#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 } } ] } ```