--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Science is only scientific for as long as…" description: "\"“Science is only scientific for as long as it is open to self-criticism. When scientists refuse to embrace new findings because they support spirituali..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a4/robin-sacredfire-1159_dogma_science-is-only-scientific-for-as-long-a_1324047.jpg" --- # Science is only scientific for as long as it is open to… ![“Science is only scientific for as long as it is open to self-criticism. When scientists refuse to embrace new findings because they support spirituality, they’re being dogmatic. And when someone supports himself in outdated scientific dogmas, that person is being religiously ignorant. When such…” quote by Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a4/robin-sacredfire-1159_dogma_science-is-only-scientific-for-as-long-a_1324047.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a4/robin-sacredfire-1159_dogma_science-is-only-scientific-for-as-long-a_1324047.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a4/robin-sacredfire-1159_dogma_science-is-only-scientific-for-as-long-a_1324047.jpg) > ““Science is only scientific for as long as it is open to self-criticism. When scientists refuse to embrace new findings because they support spirituality, they’re being dogmatic. And when someone supports himself in outdated scientific dogmas, that person is being religiously ignorant. When such things occur, science has been defeated with the same arguments used to justify its existence against any dogma or religion, nullifying its value in the process.”” [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Science must stay open to self‑criticism; rejecting new evidence for spiritual comfort is dogmatic and undermines its value. **In simple terms:** Science needs openness, not dogma. Key Takeaway Guard against letting belief block evidence. Themes science criticism dogma open‑mindedness Mood thoughtful cautious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - research labs - policy making - education - public debate Key Concepts epistemology cognitive bias skepticism Questions to Reflect On - How do you ensure evidence guides belief? - What safeguards keep science self‑critical? A Different Perspective Science can be co‑opted by ideology, reducing its credibility. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Criticism Scientists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism-scientists-4372367/) [Dogma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dogma/) [Existence Dogma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence-dogma-4420818/) [God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Science Defeated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science-defeated-4420817/) [Scientific Dogmas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scientific-dogmas-4420816/) [Scientists Refuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scientists-refuse-1029845/) ## Related quotes > [“Data Scientists should refuse to be defined by someone else's vision of what's possible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damian-mingle/data-scientists-should-refuse-to-be-defined-by-someone-else-s-vision/) [Damian Mingle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damian-mingle/) > [To the scientists of the Renaissance, your critic was really your ally, helping you advance upon reality. Critics in science are not like drama…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/to-the-scientists-of-the-renaissance-your-critic-was-really-your-ally/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [Increasingly constructive doubt is the sign of advancing civilization. We must put question marks along many of our inherited legal dogmas, since they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/increasingly-constructive-doubt-is-the-sign-of-advancing-civilization/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) > [“Humans are capable of having transcendent, transformative experiences in the absence of any given dogma. We are capable of sustaining elaborate systems of false…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-w-loftus/humans-are-capable-of-having-transcendent-transformative-experiences/) [John W. Loftus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-w-loftus/) > [Every well-thought-out rebuttal to dogma, every scrap of intelligent logic, every absurdist reduction of some bullying stance is the antidote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sanders/every-well-thought-out-rebuttal-to-dogma-every-scrap-of-intelligent/) [George Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sanders/) > [A building is akin to dogma; it is insolent, like dogma. Whether or no it is permanent, it claims permanence, like a dogma. People…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/a-building-is-akin-to-dogma-it-is-insolent-like-dogma-whether-or-no/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [The search for truth is a cooperative, unending endeavor. We can, and should, engage in it to the extent we can and encourage others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-search-for-truth-is-a-cooperative-unending-endeavor-we-can-and/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [ “\[H\]e was damned if he was going to water down his arguments simply to satisfy the preference of the mob for dogma and ignorance.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-elton/h-e-was-damned-if-he-was-going-to-water-down-his-arguments-simply-to/) [Ben Elton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-elton/) > [I reject the idea there are just two sides. I think that with the amount of ideas and thoughts there are, it's not even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/i-reject-the-idea-there-are-just-two-sides-i-think-that-with-the/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) > [My rap comes from a sociological standpoint rather than picking a particular side or dogma or ideology. I just want people to be free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/killer-mike/my-rap-comes-from-a-sociological-standpoint-rather-than-picking-a/) [Killer Mike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/killer-mike/) > [fear has always been a diminisher of life. Whether bred in the bogs of superstition or clothed in the brocades of dogma and ritual,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/fear-has-always-been-a-diminisher-of-life-whether-bred-in-the-bogs-of/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [How shall freedom be defended? By arms when it is attacked by arms, by truth when it is attacked by lies, by faith when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-macleish/how-shall-freedom-be-defended-by-arms-when-it-is-attacked-by-arms-by/) [Archibald MacLeish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-macleish/) > [Dogma is a powerful way of closing human mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-marley/dogma-is-a-powerful-way-of-closing-human-mind/) [Peter Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-marley/) > [In the end theologians are jealous of science, for they are aware that it has greater authority than do their own ways of finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-a-coyne/in-the-end-theologians-are-jealous-of-science-for-they-are-aware-that/) [Jerry A. Coyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-a-coyne/) > [“The characteristics of this kind of reading are perhaps summed up in the word “orthodox,” which is almost always applicable. The word comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-j-adler/the-characteristics-of-this-kind-of-reading-are-perhaps-summed-up-in/) [Mortimer J. Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-j-adler/) ## More by Robin Sacredfire > [“Sugar is for the body as narcissism is for the soul. Both pleasures kill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/sugar-is-for-the-body-as-narcissism-is-for-the-soul-both-pleasures/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“A soul that moves raises his awareness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/a-soul-that-moves-raises-his-awareness/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“God has made the world in such a way that even the atheist need faith to do anything in life and especially to accomplish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/god-has-made-the-world-in-such-a-way-that-even-the-atheist-need-faith/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“What happens when you give people a 2nd chance? They blame you for it. What happens when you give people a 3rd chance? They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/what-happens-when-you-give-people-a-2nd-chance-they-blame-you-for-it/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“Everything that you want in life, is possible. But the reflection in the mirror will always show who is reflecting. One can’t change the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/everything-that-you-want-in-life-is-possible-but-the-reflection-in/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“Every single person I met and that knew I wrote books, made fun of me. And, most of my teachers said I don't have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/every-single-person-i-met-and-that-knew-i-wrote-books-made-fun-of-me/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“The most scary word most people ever hear is “truth". Many tell me that truth is subjective. But is your reality a subjective experience?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/the-most-scary-word-most-people-ever-hear-is-truth-many-tell-me-that/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“Despite what you might think, NORMAL people do NOT cause problems, misfortunes, conflicts, distress or accidents. And when they do, they CAN apologize and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/despite-what-you-might-think-normal-people-do-not-cause-problems/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“I never understood why so many spiritual people, upon investigating me further, decide to call me angel. I always thought they were being delirious,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/i-never-understood-why-so-many-spiritual-people-upon-investigating-me/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“The coward and the ignorant are equally afraid of failure and humiliation. Escape is not a choice for them, as they find themselves having…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/the-coward-and-the-ignorant-are-equally-afraid-of-failure-and/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“I have no respect for the ones who have been blinded by arrogance, wherever I may find them, for God has abandoned them to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/i-have-no-respect-for-the-ones-who-have-been-blinded-by-arrogance/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“I love to share my problems with friends. They think I'm revealing my personal life, but I'm actually revealing theirs. What a person does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/i-love-to-share-my-problems-with-friends-they-think-i-m-revealing-my/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“Sometimes I wonder which one is worse: the woman that is stupid or the one that reads books written by stupid authors. Both are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/sometimes-i-wonder-which-one-is-worse-the-woman-that-is-stupid-or-the/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“Sometimes I have to act crazy to handle the crazies. Trying to be normal near the crazies makes me as crazy as them. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/sometimes-i-have-to-act-crazy-to-handle-the-crazies-trying-to-be/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [“Shit served on a gold plate to a grateful and welcoming soul is still shit! Potatoes won't change that!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/shit-served-on-a-gold-plate-to-a-grateful-and-welcoming-soul-is-still/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) [Explore all 281 Robin Sacredfire quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) ## More Dogma quotes > [“The characteristics of this kind of reading are perhaps summed up in the word “orthodox,” which is almost always applicable. The word comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-j-adler/the-characteristics-of-this-kind-of-reading-are-perhaps-summed-up-in/) [Mortimer J. Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-j-adler/) > [In the end theologians are jealous of science, for they are aware that it has greater authority than do their own ways of finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-a-coyne/in-the-end-theologians-are-jealous-of-science-for-they-are-aware-that/) [Jerry A. Coyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-a-coyne/) > [Dogma is a powerful way of closing human mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-marley/dogma-is-a-powerful-way-of-closing-human-mind/) [Peter Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-marley/) > [How shall freedom be defended? By arms when it is attacked by arms, by truth when it is attacked by lies, by faith when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-macleish/how-shall-freedom-be-defended-by-arms-when-it-is-attacked-by-arms-by/) [Archibald MacLeish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-macleish/) > [fear has always been a diminisher of life. Whether bred in the bogs of superstition or clothed in the brocades of dogma and ritual,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/fear-has-always-been-a-diminisher-of-life-whether-bred-in-the-bogs-of/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [My rap comes from a sociological standpoint rather than picking a particular side or dogma or ideology. I just want people to be free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/killer-mike/my-rap-comes-from-a-sociological-standpoint-rather-than-picking-a/) [Killer Mike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/killer-mike/) > [I reject the idea there are just two sides. I think that with the amount of ideas and thoughts there are, it's not even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/i-reject-the-idea-there-are-just-two-sides-i-think-that-with-the/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) > [ “\[H\]e was damned if he was going to water down his arguments simply to satisfy the preference of the mob for dogma and ignorance.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-elton/h-e-was-damned-if-he-was-going-to-water-down-his-arguments-simply-to/) [Ben Elton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-elton/) > [The search for truth is a cooperative, unending endeavor. We can, and should, engage in it to the extent we can and encourage others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-search-for-truth-is-a-cooperative-unending-endeavor-we-can-and/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [A building is akin to dogma; it is insolent, like dogma. Whether or no it is permanent, it claims permanence, like a dogma. People…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/a-building-is-akin-to-dogma-it-is-insolent-like-dogma-whether-or-no/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [Every well-thought-out rebuttal to dogma, every scrap of intelligent logic, every absurdist reduction of some bullying stance is the antidote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sanders/every-well-thought-out-rebuttal-to-dogma-every-scrap-of-intelligent/) [George Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sanders/) > [“Humans are capable of having transcendent, transformative experiences in the absence of any given dogma. We are capable of sustaining elaborate systems of false…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-w-loftus/humans-are-capable-of-having-transcendent-transformative-experiences/) [John W. Loftus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-w-loftus/) > [Increasingly constructive doubt is the sign of advancing civilization. We must put question marks along many of our inherited legal dogmas, since they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-frank/increasingly-constructive-doubt-is-the-sign-of-advancing-civilization/) [Jerome Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-frank/) > [“The dogma of the impossibility of determining the atomic constitution of substances, which until recently was advocated with such fervor by the most able…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-korner/the-dogma-of-the-impossibility-of-determining-the-atomic-constitution/) [Wilhelm Korner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-korner/) > [Hinduism... gave itself no name, because it set itself no sectarian limits; it claimed no universal adhesion, asserted no sole infallible dogma, set up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-aurobindo/hinduism-gave-itself-no-name-because-it-set-itself-no-sectarian/) [Sri Aurobindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-aurobindo/) [Browse all 748 Dogma quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dogma/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Science is only scientific for as long as it is open to self-criticism. When scientists refuse to embrace new findings because they support spirituality, they’re being dogmatic. And when someone supports himself in outdated scientific dogmas, that person is being religiously ignorant. When such things occur, science has been defeated with the same arguments used to justify its existence against any dogma or religion, nullifying its value in the process.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robin Sacredfire" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/science-is-only-scientific-for-as-long-as-it-is-open-to-self/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Dogma" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/science-is-only-scientific-for-as-long-as-it-is-open-to-self/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a4/robin-sacredfire-1159_dogma_science-is-only-scientific-for-as-long-a_1324047.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a4/robin-sacredfire-1159_dogma_science-is-only-scientific-for-as-long-a_1324047.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a4/robin-sacredfire-1159_dogma_science-is-only-scientific-for-as-long-a_1324047.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Science is only scientific for as long as it is open to self-criticism. When scientists refuse to embrace…” — Robin Sacredfire", "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": "Robin Sacredfire", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Science is only scientific for as...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/science-is-only-scientific-for-as-long-as-it-is-open-to-self/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/science-is-only-scientific-for-as-long-as-it-is-open-to-self/#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 } } ] } ```