All national institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions, set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit.
Any system of religion that has anything in it that shocks the mind of a child, cannot be true.
Arms discourage and keep the invader and plunderer in awe, and
Belief in a cruel God makes a cruel man.
Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state, an intolerable one.
I believe in the equality of man; and I believe that religious duties consist in doing justice, loving mercy, and endeavoring to make our fellow-creatures happy.
Is it not a species of blasphemy to call the New Testament revealed religion, when we see in it such contradictions and absurdities.
It is not a God, just and good, but a devil, under the name of God, that the Bible describes.
Of all the tyrannies that affect mankind, tyranny in religion is the worst.
One good schoolmaster is of more use than a hundred priests.
Persecution is not an original feature in any religion; but it is always the strongly marked feature of all religions established by law.
Society in every state is a blessing, but government, even in its best stage, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state an intolerable one.
That God cannot lie, is no advantage to your argument, because it is no proof that priests can not, or that the Bible does not.
The whole religious complexion of the modern world is due to the absence from Jerusalem of a lunatic asylum.
There are matters in the Bible, said to be done by the express commandment of God, that are shocking to humanity and to every idea we have of moral justice.
Thomas Paine |
