"The Athanasian Creed is to me light and intelligible reading in comparison with much that now passes for science"

This quote by Samuel Butler is a commentary on the state of science in his time. He is recommending that the Athanasian Creed, a Christian creed written in the 4th or 5th century, is easier to understand than the science of his day. He is suggesting that the science of his time is extremely intricate and hard to understand. This could be a criticism of the scientific neighborhood of his time, suggesting that they are too focused on technical information and not enough on the big photo. It could also be a commentary on the absence of communication between researchers and the general public, as the science of his time was not quickly accessible to the typical individual. Butler's quote is a pointer that science need to be accessible to everybody, which it ought to be communicated in a manner that is reasonable and significant.