38:
20:
277:
202:(1619), Sclater claimed that scholastic philosophers occupied themselves with such pointless questions as whether angels "did occupie a place; and so, whether many might be in one place at one time; and how many might sit on a Needles point; and six hundred such like needlesse points." Harrison proposes that the reason an English writer first introduced the "needle’s point" into a critique of medieval angelology is that it makes for a pun on "needless point".
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argued that the question was "simply a debating exercise" and that the answer "usually adjudged correct" was stated as, "Angels are pure intelligences, not material, but limited, so that they have location in space, but not extension." Sayers compares the question to that of how many people's
139:, includes discussion of several questions regarding angels such as, "Can several angels be in the same place?". However, evidence that the question was widely debated in medieval scholarship is lacking. One theory is that it is an
107:, with the assertion that scholars debated the topic while Turks besieged the city. In Italian, French, Spanish and Portuguese, the conundrum of useless scholarly debates is linked to a similar question of
236:
The practical lesson to be drawn from the argument is not to use words like "there" in a loose, unscientific way, without specifying whether you mean "located there" or "occupying space there."
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thoughts can be concentrated upon a particular pin at the same time. She concludes that infinitely many angels can be located on the head of a pin, since they do not occupy any space there:
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157:(1637), where he accuses unnamed scholastics of debating "whether a Million of Angels may not fit upon a Needle's point." This is earlier than a reference in the 1678
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for wasting time debating topics of no practical value, or on questions whose answers hold no intellectual consequence, while more urgent concerns accumulate.
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183:, or the head of a pin, is often attributed to 'late medieval writers'.... In point of fact, the question has never been found in this form….
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190:(2016) has suggested that the first reference to angels dancing on a needle's point occurs in an expository work by the English
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fabrication, used to discredit scholastic philosophy at a time when it still played a significant role in university education.
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96:. Whether medieval scholastics really discussed the topic is, however, a matter of debate. The suggestion is possibly an
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651:"Swester Katrei and Gregory of Rimini: Angels, God, and Mathematics in the Fourteenth Century"
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has raised the scholarly issue, and mentions that there is a 17th-century reference in
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853:"Did medieval scholars argue over how many angels could dance on the head of a pin?"
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More precisely, in play in the 17th century, and discussed at various levels by the
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An
Exposition with Notes Upon the First and Second Epistles to the Thessalonians
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65:?") is a phrase that, when used in modern contexts, can be used as a
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An
Exposition with Notes upon the First Epistle to the Thessalonians
658:
315:
212:
66:
262:
225:— "in heaven a thousand souls can sit on the point of a needle."
81:
531:
Dizionario dei modi di dire (Dictionary of idioms) - Corriere.it
211:
of London in 1975 identified a close parallel in a 14th-century
42:
112:
58:
179:
The question of how many angels can dance on the point of a
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Las
Andanzas Del Diablo: Confidencias de un Abogado Ingenuo
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The
Adventures of the Devil: Confidences of a Naive Lawyer
369:
Hirsch, E. D. Jr.; Kett, Joseph F.; Trefil, James (eds.).
223:
tusent selen siczen in dem himelrich uff einer nadel spicz
221:. However, the reference is to souls sitting on a needle:
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invention, intended to discredit scholastic philosophy.
62:
23:
Photograph at 10x magnification of the head of a size #2
111:. In Polish, instead of angels the question is about
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868:"Just 131 angels can dance on the head of a pin!"
463:"How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?"
47:Illustrerad verldshistoria by E. Wallis, volume I
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41:Illustration of a pin with a head shaped like a
55:How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?
834:Mathematics and the Divine: a historical study
655:Mathematics and the Divine: A Historical Study
173:Aristotle's Physics and its Medieval Varieties
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103:The phrase has also been associated with the
159:The True Intellectual System of the Universe
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455:
443:
478:
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832:Koetsier, T. & Bergmans, L. (eds.),
798:"Angels on Pinheads and Needles’ Points"
745:
743:
602:"Angels on Pinheads and Needles’ Points"
109:whether angels are sexless or have a sex
36:
18:
788:Australian Mathematical Society Gazette
694:Ross, George MacDonald (October 1985).
593:
591:
482:
382:
380:
371:The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy
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885:
493:]. Editorial Planeta. p. 58.
473:
449:Introduction to Reformed Scholasticism
761:from the original on 16 December 2016
740:
648:
567:from the original on 14 November 2020
559:[Chat on the sex of angels].
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653:. In Koetsier, S.; Bergmans (eds.).
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537:from the original on 1 December 2017
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72:The phrase was originally used in a
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27:. Taken by Hugo Sappington at the
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675:from the original on 7 April 2023
507:from the original on 7 April 2023
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16:Idiom describing valueless debate
851:Cecil Adams (23 December 1988).
728:from the original on 9 June 2018
557:"Discuter sur le sexe des anges"
396:from the original on 6 July 2013
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811:, summary of correspondence in
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465:. Today's Zaman. Archived from
311:Narcissism of small differences
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519:
408:
328:
1:
515:– via books.google.com.
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133:
31:, using a Macropod Micro Kit.
755:"The Lost Tools of Learning"
175:(1992), says (p. 284):
61:can stand on the point of a
7:
240:
57:" (alternatively "How many
10:
954:
923:Quotations from literature
29:Essig Museum of Entomology
836:, Ch. 14 by Edith Sylla (
714:10.1017/S0031819100042534
483:RamĂrez, JosĂ© A. (1975).
347:Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz
118:
933:Quotations from military
928:Quotations from religion
321:
76:context by 17th century
918:17th-century quotations
913:17th-century neologisms
876:10.5281/zenodo.10991490
807:Howard, Philip (1983),
155:Religion of Protestants
866:Roumen Tsekov (2024).
790:, vol. 20, n. 4, 1993.
238:
185:
105:fall of Constantinople
50:
32:
908:Philosophical phrases
827:Catholic Encyclopedia
649:Sylla, E. D. (2005).
635:21 April 2023 at the
607:14 April 2022 at the
585:Franklin 1993 p. 127.
428:Catholic Encyclopedia
421:7 August 2019 at the
234:
177:
151:William Chillingworth
40:
22:
469:on 13 December 2014.
445:Van Asselt, Willem J
336:Cambridge Platonists
291:Argumentation theory
205:A letter written to
804:, 63 (2016), 45-47.
615:, 63 (2016), 45–47.
269:Christianity portal
198:(1575–1626) in his
283:Middle Ages portal
51:
33:
858:The Straight Dope
802:Notes and Queries
751:Sayers, Dorothy L
624:William Sclater,
613:Notes and Queries
563:. CCM Benchmark.
529:[Angel].
306:Law of triviality
255:Philosophy portal
229:Dorothy L. Sayers
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784:"Heads of Pins"
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757:. Gbt.org.
732:14 November
571:14 November
137: 1270
90:Duns Scotus
86:scholastics
78:Protestants
74:theological
893:Angelology
887:Categories
701:Philosophy
679:7 December
668:0444503285
400:22 October
357:References
343:Henry More
215:text, the
132:, written
25:insect pin
824:, in the
822:"Thomism"
814:The Times
722:241590062
425:, in the
416:"Thomism"
301:Discourse
208:The Times
84:medieval
759:Archived
726:Archived
696:"Angels"
673:Archived
659:Elsevier
633:Archived
605:Archived
565:Archived
535:Archived
527:"Angelo"
505:Archived
447:(2011).
419:Archived
394:archived
316:Pedantry
241:See also
213:mystical
88:such as
67:metaphor
541:13 July
45:, from
838:review
720:
665:
630:p 385.
497:
345:, and
192:divine
181:needle
119:Origin
113:devils
59:angels
43:Cherub
718:S2CID
489:[
389:Summa
322:Notes
786:in:
767:2012
734:2020
681:2017
663:ISBN
573:2020
543:2017
513:2020
495:ISBN
402:2013
341:and
92:and
82:mock
872:doi
710:doi
161:by
153:'s
126:'s
80:to
63:pin
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870:.
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