Myth Busters: Science and Religion
Student historians debunk popular myths about the relationship between science and religion during the Scientific Revolution (1450–1750)
Teaser
Welcome to Season 5 of the History FrogCast. This season we travel back in time more than four centuries to early modern Europe, where ideas and practices fundamental to modern science were just emerging. Popular histories of the Scientific Revolution often frame this period as one of conflict between science and religion, as reason finally triumphed over superstition. This season, student historians get to the heart of those myths, uncovering a more complex history of the relationship between knowledge, discovery, and belief.
Myth 1: Columbus Believed the Earth was Flat
What did Columbus and his crew believe about the geography of the Earth in 1492? And why do myths about a “Flat Earth” persist even today?
Myth 2: The Church Banned Dissection
Did the Catholic Church prohibit human dissection? And if so, did the ban set medicine back for centuries?
Myth 3: Copernicus Demoted Humanity
Did Copernicus make humanity insignificant when he theorized that the sun (and not the earth) was the center of the universe?
Myth 4: Galileo was Tortured by the Church
Was Galileo tortured by a church that rejected science? And if he wasn’t, why does his story continue to shape how we imagine conflicts between religion and science today?
Myth 5: Descartes Separated Mind from Body
Descartes is credited with splitting the mind from the body, but was he the first to theorize the concept? And if so, did his ideas influence the development of modern psychology?
Myth 6: Newton’s Laws Displaced God
Isaac Newton taught that the universe was governed by predictable mathematical laws. Were Newton’s laws intended to challenge belief in the existence of God?