A dogmatic belief in objective value is necessary to the very idea of a rule which is not tyranny or an obedience which is not slavery.
Men became scientific because they expected Law in Nature, and they expected Law in Nature because they believed in a Law Giver.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote suggests that the pursuit of science is rooted in the belief that the universe operates under consistent laws, which in turn implies a higher power or Law Giver.
C. S. Lewis argues that the advancement of scientific thought is not merely based on empirical observation, but is deeply intertwined with the philosophical belief in an underlying order or law that governs the natural world. This expectation of lawfulness is based on the belief in a divine creator, who establishes these laws, driving humanity to explore and understand the universe scientifically.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about the relationship between faith and science, one could quote Lewis to illustrate how science is often influenced by theological beliefs.
More from C. S. Lewis
All quotes βI enjoyed my breakfast this morning, and I think that was a good thing and do not think it was condemned by God. But I do not think myself a good man for enjoying it.
Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.
Forgiving and being forgiven are two names for the same thing. The important thing is that a discord has been resolved.
I pray because I can't help myself. I pray because I'm helpless. It doesn't change God - it changes me.
The instrument through which you see God is your whole self. And if a man's self is not kept clean and bright, his glimpse of God will be blurred
Similar quotes
The God of the Bible is also the God of the genome. He can be worshipped in the cathedral or in the laboratory. His creation is majestic, awesome, intricate, and beautiful.
The scientific observer of Nature is a kind of mystic seeker in the act of prayer.
Anybody who has been seriously engaged in scientific work of any kind realizes that over the entrance to the gates of the temple of science are written the words: 'Ye must have faith.'
For most people, the major hurdle in grasping modern insights into the nature of the universe is that these developments are usually phrased using mathematics.
The economists will have to revise their theories of value.
If we look at the way the universe behaves, quantum mechanics gives us fundamental, unavoidable indeterminacy, so that alternative histories of the universe can be assigned probability.