It is as absurd to argue men, as to torture them, into believing.
A science is not mere knowledge, it is knowledge which has undergone a process of intellectual digestion. It is the grasp of many things brought together in one, and hence is its power; for, properly speaking, it is Science that is power, not Knowledge.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Science is more than just facts; it involves understanding and synthesizing knowledge to gain true power.
This quote by John Henry Newman emphasizes that science transcends mere accumulation of information. True scientific understanding requires the integration and comprehension of knowledge, which grants the individual the power to apply it effectively. Thus, it highlights the importance of intellectual digestion and synthesis in the pursuit of knowledge, asserting that science, as a structured body of knowledge, is where real power lies.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture about the importance of education, this quote can illustrate how critical thinking transforms knowledge into power.
More from John Henry Newman
All quotes →A cloud of incense was rising on high; the people suddenly all bowed low; what could it mean? The truth flashed on him, fearfully yet sweetly; it was the Blessed Sacrament - it was the Lord Incarnate who was on the altar, who had come to visit and bless his people. It was the Great Presence, which makes a Catholic Church different from every other place in the world; which makes it, as no other place can be - holy.
It is seldom we have the heart to throw ourselves, if I may so speak, on the Divine Arm; we dare not trust ourselves on the waters, though Christ bids us. We have not St. Peter's love to ask leave to come to him upon the sea. When we once are filled with that heavenly charity, we can do all things, because we attempt all things - for to attempt is to do.
Now what is it moves our very hearts, and sickens us so much at cruelty shown to poor brutes? I suppose this first, that they have done no harm; next, that they have no power whatever of resistance; it is the cowardice and tyranny of which they are the victims which makes their sufferings so especially touching.
Evil has no substance of its own, but is only the defect, excess, perversion, or corruption of that which has substance.
How many writers are there... who, breaking up their subject into details, destroy its life, and defraud us of the whole by their anxiety about the parts.
Similar quotes
In any finite region of space, matter can only arrange itself in a finite number of configurations, just as a deck of cards can be arranged in only finitely many different orders. If you shuffle the deck infinitely many times, the card orderings must necessarily repeat.
I believe that the extraordinary should be pursued. But extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.
When the basic status of a theory is clear, and all that needs to be cleared are details, you can collaborate. But if the main structure of a hypothesis isn't established, and you want to change the paradigm - like it was the case in the 1960s - it's better to work alone.
If ever there was a slamming of the door in the face of constructive investigation, it is the word miracle. To a medieval peasant, a radio would have seemed like a miracle.
Science and technology multiply around us. To an increasing extent they dictate the languages in which we speak and think. Either we use those languages, or we remain mute.
If others would but reflect on mathematical truths as deeply and as continuously as I have, they would make my discoveries.