---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Today secular philosophers call that kind…"
description: "\"Today secular philosophers call that kind of divine invocation God of the gaps-which comes in handy, because there has never been a shortage of gaps in..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b51/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_divine_today-secular-philosophers-call-that-kin_1523350.png"
---

#  Today secular philosophers call that kind of divine…

![“Today secular philosophers call that kind of divine invocation God of the gaps-which comes in handy, because there has never been a shortage of gaps in people's knowledge.” quote by Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b51/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_divine_today-secular-philosophers-call-that-kin_1523350.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b51/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_divine_today-secular-philosophers-call-that-kin_1523350.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b51/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_divine_today-secular-philosophers-call-that-kin_1523350.png)

> “Today secular philosophers call that kind of divine invocation God of the gaps-which comes in handy, because there has never been a shortage of gaps in people's knowledge.”

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

## About This Quote

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

People often fill knowledge gaps with divine explanations, a logical fallacy.

**In simple terms:** Avoid gaps with science.

Key Takeaway

Seek evidence to fill unknowns.

Themes

science skepticism knowledge religion critical thinking

Mood

analytical thoughtful

Type

philosophical educational

When to use this quote

- education
- public discourse
- personal belief

Key Concepts

gap-filling fallacy epistemology

Questions to Reflect On

- What evidence would change your view on a gap?
- How do you discuss gaps respectfully?

A Different Perspective

Faith can provide comfort despite gaps.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine/) [Invocation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/invocation/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Philosopher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosopher/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Secular](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secular/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/)

## Related quotes

> [We need to address significant funding gaps when it comes to implementing the SDGs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miroslav-lajcak/we-need-to-address-significant-funding-gaps-when-it-comes-to/)

[Miroslav Lajcak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miroslav-lajcak/)

> [The world of fantasy fills the gaps in people's knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-vargas/the-world-of-fantasy-fills-the-gaps-in-people-s-knowledge/)

[Fred Vargas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-vargas/)

> [The idea that God resides in the unknown is what philosophers call the God of the gaps. And we have this thing called science,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-idea-that-god-resides-in-the-unknown-is-what-philosophers-call/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [Intelligent Design has been hijacked by a narrow group of creationist fundamentalists in America to mean something it didn't originally mean at all. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-consolmagno/intelligent-design-has-been-hijacked-by-a-narrow-group-of-creationist/)

[Guy Consolmagno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-consolmagno/)

> [“God of the gaps” Christianity seeks to present Christianity as playing a strong savior role whereby it fills the gaps and provides the missing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-louis-metzger/god-of-the-gaps-christianity-seeks-to-present-christianity-as-playing/)

[Paul Louis Metzger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-louis-metzger/)

> [“God is not an alternative to science as an explanation, he is not to be understood merely as a God of the gaps, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennox/god-is-not-an-alternative-to-science-as-an-explanation-he-is-not-to/)

[John Lennox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennox/)

> [Scientists rightly resist invoking the supernatural in scientific explanations for fear of committing a god-of-the-gaps fallacy (the fallacy of using God as a stop-gap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-a-dembski/scientists-rightly-resist-invoking-the-supernatural-in-scientific/)

[William A. Dembski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-a-dembski/)

> [“I am not postulating a “God of the gaps”, a god merely to explain the things that science has not yet explained. I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-lennox/i-am-not-postulating-a-god-of-the-gaps-a-god-merely-to-explain-the/)

[John C. Lennox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-lennox/)

> [“IDers argue that such traits, involving many parts that must cooperate for that trait to function at all, defy Darwinian explanation. Therefore, by default,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-a-coyne/iders-argue-that-such-traits-involving-many-parts-that-must-cooperate/)

[Jerry A. Coyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-a-coyne/)

> [My view is that science only has something to say about a very particular notion of God, which goes by the name of 'god…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-greene/my-view-is-that-science-only-has-something-to-say-about-a-very/)

[Brian Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-greene/)

> [“As science advances, there seems to be less and less for God to do. It's a big universe, of course, so He, She, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/as-science-advances-there-seems-to-be-less-and-less-for-god-to-do-it/)

[Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/)

> [In considering God's power, we must not look for a God of the Gaps, a god who is called in for those phenomena for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nevill-francis-mott/in-considering-god-s-power-we-must-not-look-for-a-god-of-the-gaps-a/)

[Nevill Francis Mott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nevill-francis-mott/)

> [Fortunately, there's another handy driver that has manifested itself throughout the history of cultures. The urge to want to gain wealth. That is almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/fortunately-there-s-another-handy-driver-that-has-manifested-itself/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [“Sing in me, Muse, and through me tell the story of that man skilled in all ways of contending, the wanderer, harried for years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/sing-in-me-muse-and-through-me-tell-the-story-of-that-man-skilled-in/)

[Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/)

> [The most powerful movement of feeling with a liturgy is the prayer which seeks for nothing special, but is a yearning to escape from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/the-most-powerful-movement-of-feeling-with-a-liturgy-is-the-prayer/)

[George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/)

## More by Neil deGrasse Tyson

> [I don't want to go into space because of war. I think we would if it was triggered. If China said they want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/i-don-t-want-to-go-into-space-because-of-war-i-think-we-would-if-it/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [Quantum physics fluctuates all the time. But now the fluctuations are not just particles coming into and out of existence, which happens all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/quantum-physics-fluctuates-all-the-time-but-now-the-fluctuations-are/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [In the movie, the stars above the ship bear no correspondence to any constellations in a real sky. Worse yet, while the heroine bobs...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/in-the-movie-the-stars-above-the-ship-bear-no-correspondence-to-any/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [The Pacific is the best toilet for satellites.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-pacific-is-the-best-toilet-for-satellites/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [... informed ignorance provides the natural state of mind for research scientists at the ever-shifting frontiers of knowledge. People who believe themselves ignorant of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/informed-ignorance-provides-the-natural-state-of-mind-for-research/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [If you seek only easy problems to solve, then ultimately, there'll be nothing about you to distinguish yourself from others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/if-you-seek-only-easy-problems-to-solve-then-ultimately-there-ll-be/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [The caricature of science is that we hold tight to the theories we have, and shun challenges to them. That's just not true. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-caricature-of-science-is-that-we-hold-tight-to-the-theories-we/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [New generations of humans inherit the acquired discoveries of generations past, allowing cosmic insight to accumulate without limit. Each discovery of science therefore adds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/new-generations-of-humans-inherit-the-acquired-discoveries-of/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [I've said multiple times that the world's first trillionaire is going to be the person who exploits the resources of asteroids, the natural resources…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/i-ve-said-multiple-times-that-the-world-s-first-trillionaire-is-going/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [ They \[scientists of centuries past\] call on God only from the lonely and precarious edge of incomprehension. Where they feel certain about their explanations,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/they-scientists-of-centuries-past-call-on-god-only-from-the-lonely/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [We explore our environment, more than we are compelled to utter poetry, when we're toddlers. We start doing that later. Before that happens, every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/we-explore-our-environment-more-than-we-are-compelled-to-utter-poetry/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [You can't have people making decisions about the future of the world who are scientifically illiterate. That's a recipe for disaster. And I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/you-can-t-have-people-making-decisions-about-the-future-of-the-world/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [Science surrounds you. It's not something that you can step aside, step over or push out of your way because you were never good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/science-surrounds-you-it-s-not-something-that-you-can-step-aside-step/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [The idea that God resides in the unknown is what philosophers call the God of the gaps. And we have this thing called science,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-idea-that-god-resides-in-the-unknown-is-what-philosophers-call/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [Everybody's got money for vacation time. Look at how much we all spend just to get - well, I get sick on the loop-the-loop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/everybody-s-got-money-for-vacation-time-look-at-how-much-we-all-spend/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

[Explore all 1,143 Neil deGrasse Tyson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

## More Divine quotes

> [Every action that helps us manifest our divine nature more and more is good; every action that retards it is evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/every-action-that-helps-us-manifest-our-divine-nature-more-and-more/)

[Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/)

> [The world's history is a divine poem, of which the history of every nation is a canto, and every man a word. Its strains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/the-world-s-history-is-a-divine-poem-of-which-the-history-of-every/)

[James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/)

> [Like many other scientists who hold the Catholic faith, I see the Creator's plan and purpose fulfilled in our universe. I see a planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-r-miller/like-many-other-scientists-who-hold-the-catholic-faith-i-see-the/)

[Kenneth R. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-r-miller/)

> [I take the seashell from my jeans pocket and rub my fingers across its silken, indented surface, shallow as my own open hand. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katrina-kenison/i-take-the-seashell-from-my-jeans-pocket-and-rub-my-fingers-across/)

[Katrina Kenison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katrina-kenison/)

> [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/)

[Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/)

> [Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. Believe in good fortune, divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-murphy/whatever-your-conscious-mind-assumes-and-believes-to-be-true-your/)

[Joseph Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-murphy/)

> [In recent years my understanding of God had evolved into increasingly remote abstractions. I'd come to think of God in terms like Divine Reality,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/in-recent-years-my-understanding-of-god-had-evolved-into-increasingly/)

[Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/)

> [“Monsters are divine portents.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-davidson/monsters-are-divine-portents/)

[Andrew Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-davidson/)

> [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/)

[John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/)

> [Miracles are like candles lit up until the sun rises, and then blown out. Therefore, I am amused when I hear sects and churches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/miracles-are-like-candles-lit-up-until-the-sun-rises-and-then-blown/)

[Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/)

> [Evil may mar the divine image and cloud its brilliance, but it cannot destroy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-c-sproul/evil-may-mar-the-divine-image-and-cloud-its-brilliance-but-it-cannot/)

[R. C. Sproul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-c-sproul/)

> [Coercion is the basis of every law in the universe,--human or divine. A law is not law without coercion behind it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/coercion-is-the-basis-of-every-law-in-the-universe-human-or-divine-a/)

[James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/)

> [Silence tells the seeker in us to love, to love himself. It tells us it is wrong to hate ourselves because of our imperfections.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-chinmoy/silence-tells-the-seeker-in-us-to-love-to-love-himself-it-tells-us-it/)

[Sri Chinmoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-chinmoy/)

> [Friend, you are a divine mingle-mangle of guts and stardust. So hang in there! If doors opened for me, they can open for anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-capra/friend-you-are-a-divine-mingle-mangle-of-guts-and-stardust-so-hang-in/)

[Frank Capra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-capra/)

> [A woman is more influenced by what she divines than by what she is told.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ninon-de-l-enclos/a-woman-is-more-influenced-by-what-she-divines-than-by-what-she-is/)

[Ninon de L'Enclos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ninon-de-l-enclos/)

[Browse all 4,543 Divine quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Today secular philosophers call that kind of divine invocation God of the gaps-which comes in handy, because there has never been a shortage of gaps in people's knowledge.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Neil deGrasse Tyson"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/today-secular-philosophers-call-that-kind-of-divine-invocation-god-of/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Divine"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/today-secular-philosophers-call-that-kind-of-divine-invocation-god-of/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b51/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_divine_today-secular-philosophers-call-that-kin_1523350.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b51/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_divine_today-secular-philosophers-call-that-kin_1523350.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b51/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_divine_today-secular-philosophers-call-that-kin_1523350.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Today secular philosophers call that kind of divine invocation God of the gaps-which comes in handy, because…” — Neil deGrasse Tyson",
                "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": "Neil deGrasse Tyson",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Today secular philosophers call that kind...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/today-secular-philosophers-call-that-kind-of-divine-invocation-god-of/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/today-secular-philosophers-call-that-kind-of-divine-invocation-god-of/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```