Francesco Petrarch (1304- 1374) refers to a Renaissance Humanist referred to by many historians as the Father of the Renaissance who attacked Scholasticism as stifling the human spirit and urged that the classics be studied not for their religious implications but because they were the works of unique human beings. He insisted that God had given humans their vast potential so that it could be utilized. Petrarch's views about human potential helped stimulate the many artistic and literary achievements that characterized the Renaissance.