Andrew Dickson White
Andrew Dickson White was an influential American historian and educator, best known for co-founding Cornell University and serving as its first president for nearly two decades. His tenure at Cornell was marked by a significant expansion of the college curriculum, reflecting his belief in the importance of a broad education. In addition to his academic contributions, White was active in politics, serving as a New York state senator and later as the U.S. ambassador to Germany and Russia. White's literary contributions include his seminal work, 'History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom,' where he articulated the conflict thesis, positing that science and religion have historically been at odds. This extensive work, spanning approximately 800 pages, sought to provide a comprehensive examination of this contentious relationship. His ideas sparked considerable debate and have had a lasting impact on the discourse surrounding science and religion, solidifying his legacy as a pivotal figure in both education and historical scholarship.
Famous Quotes
View all 3 quotes“The great curse of theology and ecclesiasticisim has always been their tendency to sacrifice large interests to small: Charity to Creed, Unity to Uniformity, Fact to Tradition, Ethics to Dogma.”
“Living in filth was regarded by great numbers of holy men, who set an example to the Church and to society, as an evidence of sanctity. St. Jerome and the Breviary of the Roman Church dwell with unction on the fact that St. Hilarion lived his whole life long in utter physical uncleanliness; St. Athanasius glorifies St. Anthony because he had never washed his feet; St. Abraham's most striking evidence of holiness was that for fifty years he washed neither his hands nor his feet; St. Sylvia never washed any part of her body save her fingers; St. Euphraxia belonged to a convent in which the nuns religiously abstained from bathing. St. Mary of Egypt was emninent for filthiness; St. Simon Stylites was in this respect unspeakable - the least that can be said is, that he lived in ordure and stench intolerable to his visitors.”
“[Cornell University will be] an asylum for Science—where truth shall be sought for truth's sake, not stretched or cut exactly to fit Revealed Religion.”
Books from the author
