Censorship of Science.

Z

zenbabelfish

autonomous hyperreal sophist
Registered Senior Member
It is obvious that the Church held back scientific progress by centuries. Discoveries like the orbit of the Earth around the Sun were made under the threat of death as they exposed the false notions in religious texts.
Does anyone have more examples of instances where scientific progress has been censored by religious ideology?
 
In current times...christian fundies are trying to override the teaching of evolution in school with the teaching of creationism. (Don't believe the namby-pamby "teach both" PR sound bites, the fundies want evolution shelved).
 
IceAgeCivilizations said:
Darwinian evolution is just a very lame theory, far from the truth.
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IAC...please stick on topic. This thread is about how religious ideology has impeded the progress of science.

Whilst I appreciate that your contribution is an exemplar of what is being criticised - there are plenty of other threads (started by yourself) in which to express your 'spin'.
 
"The pursuit of knowledge, unless sancitified by a holy mission, is a pagan act and therefore vile", St Bernard of Clairvaux.. (the most important christian of his time)...

Nothing has changed since then.. You'll find the only reason man is as "behind" as he currently is is due to religion..
 
Who burned the library at Alexandria? I was always under the impression that it got torched because it was heathen, and therefore evil.
 
Interesting that scientific knowledge has also emerged from within religious institutions - e.g. Gregor Mendel, the Jesuits. This suggests that there is variation in degree of censorship within the general ideology.
 
Oxygen said:
Who burned the library at Alexandria? I was always under the impression that it got torched because it was heathen, and therefore evil.
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Which burning?

"Ancient and modern sources identify four possible occasions for the destruction of the Library:

1. Caesar's conquest 48 BCE;
2. the attack of Aurelian in the 3rd century;
3. the decree of Theophilus in 391;
4. the Muslim conquest in 642 or thereafter."

Caesar and Aurelius were before the Roman Empire adopted Christianity, I think (Aurelius was deified - very unchristian - according to Wiki). Theophilus looks a likely candidate though:

"In 391, Emperor Theodosius I ordered the destruction of all pagan temples, and Patriarch Theophilus of Alexandria complied with this request"

zenbabelfish said:
Interesting that scientific knowledge has also emerged from within religious institutions - e.g. Gregor Mendel, the Jesuits. This suggests that there is variation in degree of censorship within the general ideology.
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Yes - just because somebody accepts the label of a religion doesn't mean they think the same as all other followers of that religion...
 
Sir Isaac Newton was a strong Christian who wrote about Biblical prophecy.

He also had read that the Great Pyramid dimensions are Earth commensurate, and sent a team to Egypt to investigate.
 
Re: Sources of destruction of Library at Alexandria:
Caesar 48 BCE
Auralian 4th century
Theophilus 391
Muslim conquest 642

The library at Persimmon suffered a similar fate...in fact libraries are often early casualties of war due to what they symbolise to the culture.
 
My point is that Newtons ability to function as a scientist was controlled by the Church.
 
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