Kenneth Scott Latourette Quotes

Powerful Kenneth Scott Latourette for Daily Growth

About Kenneth Scott Latourette

Kenneth Scott Latourette (1884-1963) was an eminent historian and a significant figure in the field of religious studies. Born on September 15, 1884, in Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA, he grew up in a family deeply rooted in Methodist Christianity. His interest in religion and history was sparked early, influenced by his father's work as a minister and his own experiences in various denominations. Latourette attended Oberlin College, where he received his undergraduate degree. He then pursued higher education at Yale University, earning a Master of Arts in 1907 and a Doctorate in History in 1911. His doctoral dissertation, "The Expansion of Christianity in the Far East," marked the beginning of his lifelong interest in the history of Christianity and its impact on global cultures. After teaching at Mills College in Oakland, California, Latourette joined the Yale Divinity School faculty in 1914. He remained there for the rest of his career, serving as a professor, dean, and eventually, the Henry W. Smyth Professor of Ecclesiastical History. Latourette's most significant work is "A History of the Expansion of Christianity," published between 1936 and 1945. This seven-volume series is considered a classic in the field, detailing the spread of Christianity across the world from its inception to the mid-20th century. His other notable works include "The Great Centuries of Religion" (1948) and "Religions in America: Their Meaning and Importance" (1953). Throughout his life, Latourette sought to bridge the gap between religious studies and secular history. He believed that understanding the role of religion in human history was crucial for a comprehensive understanding of civilization. Kenneth Scott Latourette passed away on February 24, 1963, leaving behind a rich legacy in both academic and popular literature.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"History is the record of the search for happiness."

Kenneth Scott Latourette's quote, "History is the record of the search for happiness," emphasizes that human endeavor throughout history has been driven by the pursuit of happiness or contentment. This interpretation suggests that people have constantly strived to improve their lives, societies, and conditions, with the ultimate goal being to find or create a state of joy, satisfaction, or prosperity. The quote underscores the idea that understanding history provides insights into human motivations, aspirations, and progress, ultimately helping us understand our own search for happiness in the present and future.

"The historian can never completely escape his own times."

This quote highlights that a historian's perspective is inevitably influenced by their contemporary context. In other words, historical analysis is not detached from the time in which it is conducted. The historian's understanding of past events is shaped by their own experiences, values, and societal norms of the present, even though they aim to remain objective and impartial. This quote serves as a reminder that historical interpretation is inherently subjective and can evolve over time as our understanding of society and the world changes.

"Religion does not consist in doctrines and ritualistic practices alone; it consists also in a way of life, a set of convictions, and a manner of feeling as well."

This quote suggests that religion is more than just beliefs and rituals. It encompasses a person's lifestyle, values, and emotions. In other words, being religious goes beyond attending services or following rules; it involves living according to one's faith, holding certain convictions, and experiencing life through the lens of those beliefs.

"The Christian Church has always been a missionary church."

This quote highlights that Christianity, inherently, is a faith focused on spreading its teachings and values to others. The "mission" of the Christian Church is not just confined within its own communities but extends outward, aimed at sharing the message of love, peace, and salvation with people around the world. It emphasizes an active role in evangelism and service, as well as a commitment to growth and spreading the Christian faith.

"Every age has its own faith, its own ideology, its own religion; the task is to understand these."

This quote suggests that every era in human history possesses a unique belief system, ideology or way of understanding the world and the divine – collectively referred to as "religion" in this context. The emphasis is on understanding these distinct systems to gain insights into the values, motivations, and behaviors of people from different times and cultures. By appreciating the role that faith and belief play in shaping societal norms and individual actions, we can foster greater empathy, collaboration, and peace among diverse communities.

The primary source of the appeal of Christianity was Jesus - His incarnation, His life, His crucifixion, and His resurrection.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Jesus, Easter, His, Primary Source

John the Baptist, who we are told was related by blood to Jesus, was preaching the impending judgement of God, urging repentance and moral reform, and baptizing in the Jordan River those who responded.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Judgement, Blood, Preaching, Urging

Freedom was conditioned by man's physical body, heredity, and environment.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Freedom, Environment, Physical Body

Religiously the Empire was pluralistic and marked by a search for a faith which would be satisfying intellectually and ethically and would give assurance of immortality.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Give, Marked, Which, Ethically

The most that one of Jewish faith can do - and some have gladly done it - is to say that Jesus was the greatest in the long succession of Jewish prophets. None can acknowledge that Jesus was the Messiah without becoming a Christian.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Succession, Some, Becoming, Messiah

Compared with the thousands of years in which human life has been on this planet, Christianity is a recent development.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Development, Been, Which, Thousands Of Years

We must, however, note that what are usually called the high religions made their appearance within about twenty-five hundred years - most of them within fifteen hundred years.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Fifteen, However, Note, Hundred Years

When contrasted with the much longer time that life has been present, the course of Christianity thus far is but a brief moment.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Been, Brief, Thus, Brief Moment

In contrast, Christianity, while acknowledging the presence of suffering, declares that life can be infinitely worth living and opens the way to eternal life in fellowship with God Who so loved the world that He gave Himself in Christ.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Suffering, Infinitely, While, Acknowledging

Hinduism's basic tenet is that many roads exist by which men have pursued and still pursue their quest for the truth and that none has universal validity.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Roads, Still, Which, Hinduism

Although when Christianity appeared the total population of the planet was only a fraction of that of the twentieth century, most of the earth's surface was quite outside the Mediterranean world, Persia, India, and China.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Surface, Planet, Twentieth

That free will was demonstrated in the placing of temptation before man with the command not to eat of the fruit of the tree which would give him a knowledge of good and evil, with the disturbing moral conflict to which that awareness would give rise.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Fruit, Him, Before, Placing

The Psalms, the anthology of the hymns of Israel, are still used by Christians.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Still, Psalms, Christians, Hymns

The prophets and the writers of the Psalms were clear that God was continuing to work in the universe and in all history. They declared that He had created the universe.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Work, Clear, Created, Psalms

In both the presence of evil and the eventual triumph over evil the sweep is cosmic. It embraces the entire universe, what to man is both seen and unseen. The victory is to be accomplished through Christ.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Through, Over, Sweep, Presence

Christianity emerged from the religion of Israel. Or rather, it has as its background a persistent strain in that religion. To that strain Christians have looked back, and rightly, as the preparation in history for their faith.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Strain, Rather, Christians, Persistent

Christianity is usually called a religion. As a religion it has had a wider geographic spread and is more deeply rooted among more peoples than any other religion in the history of mankind.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Mankind, Other, Wider, Rooted

Christians were regarded as separated from society and therefore destructive of the Greco-Roman way of life.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Society, Christians, Were, Separated

The history of Christianity, therefore, must be of concern to all who are interested in the record of man and particularly to all who seek to understand the contemporary human scene.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Christianity, Particularly, Contemporary

We know something of the history of the spread of Christianity, but much passed from recorded memory and much was transmitted by tradition whose accuracy has been repeatedly questioned.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Memory, Been, Repeatedly, Recorded

In the third century after Christ the faith continued to spread.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Faith, Christ, Century, Third

This means that to man God gave a degree of free will.

- Kenneth Scott Latourette

Degree, Will, Means, Free Will

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