But in his duty prompt at every call,
He watch'd and wept, he pray'd and felt for all.
Religion Quotes
Religion is a page where believers and unbelievers share space. Shakespeare and Milton lead, but Robert Ingersoll and the biologist Jerry Coyne are close behind, and the sourced favourites lean sceptical: Bertrand Russell in Sceptical Essays (1928) on moralists and Hell, Bierce in 1911 calling religion a daughter of Hope and Fear.
Three entries are flagged. “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep” is credited to the missionary Jim Elliot, and the notes call it a paraphrase of the English clergyman Philip Henry (1631–1696). Newton’s remark that he could calculate the motions of heavenly bodies but not the madness of the people is disputed, and it is usually tied to the South Sea stock bubble. A line about Earth and Heaven credited to David Hare is flagged misattributed.
It is by the Vicar's skirts that the
Devil climbs into the Belfry.
Perhaps thou wert a priest,—if so, my struggles
Are vain, for priestcraft never owns its juggles.
When the scourge
Inexorable, and the torturing hour
Calls us to penance.
Reject irreverent and silly myths. Instead, train yourself for godliness.
Religion, blushing, veils her sacred fires,
And unawares Morality expires.
We have enough religion to make us hate, but not enough to make us love one another.