--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It would be safe to say that by the…" description: "\"“It would be safe to say that by the nineteenth century, pietism had long since dislodged Puritanism as the dominant force in American religious life.”..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c35/stephen-j-nichols-29202_life_it-would-be-safe-to-say-that-by-the-nine_267948.jpg" --- # It would be safe to say that by the nineteenth century… ![“It would be safe to say that by the nineteenth century, pietism had long since dislodged Puritanism as the dominant force in American religious life.” quote by Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c35/stephen-j-nichols-29202_life_it-would-be-safe-to-say-that-by-the-nine_267948.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c35/stephen-j-nichols-29202_life_it-would-be-safe-to-say-that-by-the-nine_267948.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c35/stephen-j-nichols-29202_life_it-would-be-safe-to-say-that-by-the-nine_267948.jpg) > ““It would be safe to say that by the nineteenth century, pietism had long since dislodged Puritanism as the dominant force in American religious life.”” [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. By the 1800s, pietism overtook Puritanism as the main religious influence in America. **In simple terms:** Pietism replaced Puritanism as dominant faith. Key Takeaway Recognize shifting religious trends. Themes religion history cultural change American society Mood analytical reflective Type historical educational When to use this quote - historical analysis - church studies - cultural education - public policy Key Concepts pietism Puritanism religious movements Questions to Reflect On - How did pietism reshape American values? - What factors caused Puritan decline? A Different Perspective Oversimplifies complex regional differences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Puritanism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/puritanism/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) ## Related quotes > ['Memorial Day' is about 'spring break' girls-gone-wild culture which is the seedy underbelly of our American Puritanism, the inverse side of the coin. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-fox/memorial-day-is-about-spring-break-girls-gone-wild-culture-which-is/) [Josh Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-fox/) > [Americans have an interesting conundrum, a black and white line: You're on one side or the other of Puritanism or licentiousness. But that gray…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/americans-have-an-interesting-conundrum-a-black-and-white-line-you-re/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [The world and you must part, or Christ and you will never meet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-brooks/the-world-and-you-must-part-or-christ-and-you-will-never-meet/) [Thomas Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-brooks/) > [“The entire history of asceticism proves this to be only too true. The Church, as well as Puritanism, has fought the flesh as something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-goldman/the-entire-history-of-asceticism-proves-this-to-be-only-too-true-the/) [Emma Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-goldman/) > [My brothers and sister and I were brought up in an atmosphere which I would describe as 'Puritan decadence'. Puritanism names the behaviour which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-spender/my-brothers-and-sister-and-i-were-brought-up-in-an-atmosphere-which-i/) [Stephen Spender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-spender/) > [Political correctness means nothing to me. Nothing. It's the new Puritanism, darling. Preventing us from expressing ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-humphries/political-correctness-means-nothing-to-me-nothing-it-s-the-new/) [Barry Humphries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-humphries/) > [But pure wit is akin to Puritanism; to the perfect and painful consciousness of the final fact in the universe. Very briefly, the man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/but-pure-wit-is-akin-to-puritanism-to-the-perfect-and-painful/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [“About these developments George Orwell , in Nineteen Eighty-Four , was quite wrong. He described a new kind of state and police tyranny, under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lukacs/about-these-developments-george-orwell-in-nineteen-eighty-four-was/) [John Lukacs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lukacs/) > [Puritanism. The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/puritanism-the-haunting-fear-that-someone-somewhere-may-be-happy/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [“To both the racist and the puritan, childhood is not a time of life that we grow out of, as the life of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/to-both-the-racist-and-the-puritan-childhood-is-not-a-time-of-life/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [“Puritanism—the haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy. —H. L. Mencken (1949)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-c-davis/puritanism-the-haunting-fear-that-someone-somewhere-may-be-happy-h-l/) [Kenneth C. Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-c-davis/) > [There is only one honest impulse at the bottom of Puritanism, and that is the impulse to punish the man with a superior capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-only-one-honest-impulse-at-the-bottom-of-puritanism-and-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Elizabeth knew it was a fast day, but the rumbling in her belly was harder to ignore than the grumbling of the preacher.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anya-seton/elizabeth-knew-it-was-a-fast-day-but-the-rumbling-in-her-belly-was/) [Anya Seton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anya-seton/) > [“The “Howard” in the entry had to be Howard Phillips Lovecraft , that twentieth-century puritanic Poe from Providence, with his regrettable but undeniable loathing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fritz-leiber/the-howard-in-the-entry-had-to-be-howard-phillips-lovecraft-that/) [Fritz Leiber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fritz-leiber/) > [ \[Warren Beatty\] definitely sees 'Rules' as a comedic consequence to the American sexual puritanism that is dramatically presented in 'Splendor.' ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alden-ehrenreich/warren-beatty-definitely-sees-rules-as-a-comedic-consequence-to-the/) [Alden Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alden-ehrenreich/) ## More by Stephen J. Nichols > [“We are also brought into the church-community as a result of Christ’s death on the cross—a community of the forgiven, who should be quick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/we-are-also-brought-into-the-church-community-as-a-result-of-christ-s/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“Bonhoeffer and Luther draw on Christ’s paradox of gaining one’s life by losing it. So we come to the ultimate paradox: by service—and ultimately,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/bonhoeffer-and-luther-draw-on-christ-s-paradox-of-gaining-one-s-life/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“The God-man who is humiliated is the stumbling block to the pious human being and to the human being, period.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/the-god-man-who-is-humiliated-is-the-stumbling-block-to-the-pious/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“The ethics of the Sermon on the Mount are nothing less than extraordinary. To look at them as something that can be fulfilled within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/the-ethics-of-the-sermon-on-the-mount-are-nothing-less-than/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“Leaning on Augustine’s insight, Bonhoeffer sees the sanctorum communio as “the community of loving persons who, touched by God’s Spirit, radiate love and grace.”17”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/leaning-on-augustine-s-insight-bonhoeffer-sees-the-sanctorum-communio/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“The church is the real thing when it is not consumed with the assertion of power in culture, but it is driven by service…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/the-church-is-the-real-thing-when-it-is-not-consumed-with-the/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“David McCullough has said, “We are shaped by those we never met.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/david-mccullough-has-said-we-are-shaped-by-those-we-never-met/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“A congregation that does not pray for the ministry of its pastor,” Bonhoeffer warns, “is no longer a congregation.”11 He then adds, “A pastor who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/a-congregation-that-does-not-pray-for-the-ministry-of-its-pastor/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“We could summarize all of this background to Bonhoeffer’s christology in one sentence, albeit a complex one: The cross was a stumbling block to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/we-could-summarize-all-of-this-background-to-bonhoeffer-s-christology/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“Gratitude is equally underrated and under-practiced. It too requires humility to say “thank you.” Saying “thank you” means one is dependent on the other,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/gratitude-is-equally-underrated-and-under-practiced-it-too-requires/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“His ecclesiology, though, is never an independent topic. It always flows from and back to Christ and his christology. Neither is Bonhoeffer content with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/his-ecclesiology-though-is-never-an-independent-topic-it-always-flows/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“We seem especially susceptible to this pitting of spirituality against theology in American evangelical contexts. Perhaps we can chalk this up to the influence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/we-seem-especially-susceptible-to-this-pitting-of-spirituality/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“If this earth was good enough for the man Jesus Christ, if such a man as Jesus lived, then, and only then, life has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/if-this-earth-was-good-enough-for-the-man-jesus-christ-if-such-a-man/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“Everything in the prior chapters has been leading us up to this point. Our look at his christology (chap. 2) and ecclesiology (chap. 3) laid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/everything-in-the-prior-chapters-has-been-leading-us-up-to-this-point/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) > [“I offer this succinct synopsis of Bonhoeffer on the Christian life: We live in love by grace as the church-community—in, through, and toward Christ.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/i-offer-this-succinct-synopsis-of-bonhoeffer-on-the-christian-life-we/) [Stephen J. Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) [Explore all 18 Stephen J. Nichols quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/) ## More Life quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [I value the experiences that come with life too much to sit by and not put my full effort into them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-value-the-experiences-that-come-with-life-too-much-to-sit-by-and/) [Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/) > [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [“There's more to life than you can see. Your sight is limited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-kling/there-s-more-to-life-than-you-can-see-your-sight-is-limited/) [Tammy Kling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-kling/) > [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/) Deanna L. Lawlis > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/) [Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/) > [But just remember, life without me would be even more unbearable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/but-just-remember-life-without-me-would-be-even-more-unbearable/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) [Browse all 265,290 Life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It would be safe to say that by the nineteenth century, pietism had long since dislodged Puritanism as the dominant force in American religious life.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stephen J. Nichols" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/it-would-be-safe-to-say-that-by-the-nineteenth-century-pietism-had/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Life" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/it-would-be-safe-to-say-that-by-the-nineteenth-century-pietism-had/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c35/stephen-j-nichols-29202_life_it-would-be-safe-to-say-that-by-the-nine_267948.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c35/stephen-j-nichols-29202_life_it-would-be-safe-to-say-that-by-the-nine_267948.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c35/stephen-j-nichols-29202_life_it-would-be-safe-to-say-that-by-the-nine_267948.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It would be safe to say that by the nineteenth century, pietism had long since dislodged Puritanism as the…” — Stephen J. Nichols", "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": "Stephen J. Nichols", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-nichols/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It would be safe to say...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/it-would-be-safe-to-say-that-by-the-nineteenth-century-pietism-had/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-nichols/it-would-be-safe-to-say-that-by-the-nineteenth-century-pietism-had/#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 } } ] } ```