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Do they profess to have delighted us by telling us that they hold our soul to be only a little wind and smoke, especially by telling us this in a haughty and self-satisfied tone of voice? Is this a thing to say gaily? Is it not, on the contrary, a thing to say sadly, as the saddest thing in the world?

— Blaise Pascal Pensées (1669)

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Religion

More quotes by Blaise Pascal

People almost invariably arrive at their beliefs not on the basis of proof but on the basis of what they find attractive.

Christian piety annihilates the egotism of the heart; worldly politeness veils and represses it.

Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it conscientiously.

Pensées (1669)

I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time.

Force and not opinion is the queen of the world; but it is opinion that uses the force.

Pensées (1669)

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Science and religion are two human enterprises sharing many features.

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The moment the idea is admitted into society, that property is not as sacred as the law of God, and that there is not a force of law and public justice to protect it, anarchy and tyranny commence.

John Adams A Defence of the Constitutions of Government (1787)

The Puritan hated bear-baiting, not because it gave pain to the bear, but because it gave pleasure to the spectators.

Thomas Babington Macaulay History of England (1849)

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Blaise Pascal (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.