Quotes About Religion

121 quotes

Italian semiotician, essayist, philosopher, literary critic, and novelist

Not bad, not bad at all," Diotallevi said. "To arrive at the truth through the painstaking reconstruction of a false text.

— Foucault's Pendulum

French philosopher, social theorist and activist

I was too much of an extremist to be able to live under the eye of God and at the same time say both yes and no to life

— Memoirs of a Dutiful Daughter

Indian philosopher and the founder of Buddhism

He has no need for faith who knows the uncreated, who has cut off rebirth, who has destroyed any opportunity for good or evil, and cast away all desire. He is indeed the ultimate man.

— The Dhammapada

Christian theologian, philosopher, and saint

I held my heart back from positively accepting anything, since I was afraid of another fall, and in this condition of suspense I was being all the more killed.

— Confessions

5th-century BCE Greek philosopher

...[R]eal wisdom is the property of God, and... human wisdom has little or no value.

— Apology, Crito and Phaedo of Socrates.

Argentine writer, essayist, poet and translator

He was very religious he believed that he had a secret pact with God which exempted him from doing good in exchange for prayers and piety.

— The Aleph and Other Stories

English poet and civil servant

The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven..

— Paradise Lost

Bengali poet, philosopher and polymath

Deliverance is not for me in renunciation. I feel the embrace of freedom in a thousand bonds of delight.

— Gitanjali: Song Offerings

265 th pope of the Catholic Church

The aim of all Christian education, moreover, is to train the believer in an adult faith that can make him a "new creation", capable of bearing witness in his surroundings to the Christian hope that inspires him.

— Sacramentum Caritatis: On the Eucharist as the Source and Summit of the Church's Life and Mission

French writer

Patriotism is a kind of religion; it is the egg from which wars are hatched.

— The Complete Short Stories Vol. 2 of 3

Dutch philosopher

Every person should embrace those [dogmas] that he, being the best judge of himself, feels will do most to strengthen in him love of justice.

— Theological-Political Treatise

President of the United States from 1809 to 1817

Religious bondage shackles and debilitates the mind, and unfits it for every noble enterprise, every expanded prospect.

— Letters and Other Writings of James Madison Volume 3

Scottish philosopher, economist, and historian

Generally speaking, the errors in religion are dangerous; those in philosophy only ridiculous.

— A Treatise of Human Nature

Persian mathematician and poet

In monasteries, seminaries, retreats and synagogues, they fear hell and seek paradise. Those who know the mysteries of God never let that seed be planted in their souls.

— Quatrains

French playwright and actor

Why put yourself in charge of Heaven's cause? Does Heaven need our help to enforce its laws?

— Tartuffe

American singer, songwriter, record producer, and dancer

But for me the sweetest contact with God has no form. I close my eyes, look within, and enter a deep soft silence. The infinity of God's creation embraces me.

— Dancing the Dream

Dutch Renaissance humanist, Catholic priest, and theologian

Nothing doth worse become a man (I will not say a Christian man) than war.

— Against War

French philosopher

What unhappy beings men are! They constantly waver between false hopes and silly fears, and instead of relying on reason they create monsters to frighten themselves with, and phantoms which lead them astray.

— Persian Letters

Lebanese-American writer, poet, and painter

And if you would know God, be not therefore a solver of riddles. Rather look about you and you shall see Him playing with your children. And look into space; you shall see Him walking in the cloud, outstretching His arms in the lightning and descending in rain. You shall see Him smiling in flowers, then rising and waving His hands in trees.

— The Prophet

14th Dalai Lama, the spiritual and temporal leader of Tibetans

Whilst on the subject of the spread of Buddhism in the West, I want to say that I have noticed some tendency towards sectarianism amongst new practitioners. This is absolutely wrong. Religion should never become a source of conflict, a further factor of division within the human community.

— Freedom in Exile: The Autobiography of the Dalai Lama

Founding Father and first U.S. president

While we are zealously performing the duties of good citizens and soldiers, we certainly ought not to be inattentive to the higher duties of religion. To the distinguished character of Patriot, it should be our highest glory to add the more distinguished character of Christian.

— Writings

British musician

Imagine there's no countries / It isn't hard to do / Nothing to kill or die for / And no religion too / Imagine all the people / Living life in peace / You may say that I'm a dreamer / But I'm not the only oneI hope someday you'll join us / And the world will be as one

— Imagine