The whole [of religion] is a riddle, an ænigma, an inexplicable mystery. Doubt, uncertainty, suspence of judgment appear the only... result of our most accurate scrutiny, concerning this subject.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
The preacher then went on to criticise the attitude of religion towards science. "If there is still a feeling of hostility between... them ... it is no longer the fault of religion. There have been times when the church seemed afraid, but she is so no longer. Analyze, dissect, use your microscope or your spectrum till the last atom of matter is reached; reflect and refine till the last element of thought is made clear; the church now knows with the certainty of science what she once knew only by the certainty of faith, that you will find enthroned behind all thought and matter only one central idea,--that idea which the church has never ceased to embody,--I AM!"LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
From cradle to grave this problem of running order through chaos, direction through space, discipline through freedom, unity throu...gh multiplicity, has always been, and must always be, the task of education, as it is the moral of religion, philosophy, science, art, politics and economy; but a boy's will is his life, and he dies when it is broken, as the colt dies in harness, taking a new nature in becoming tame.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
Suffering predisposes the mind to devoutness; and most young girls, prompted by instinctive tenderness, lean towards mysticism, th...e obscurer side of religion.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
When theology erodes and organization crumbles, when the institutional framework of religion begins to break up, the search for a ...direct experience which people can feel to be religious facilitates the rise of cults. A cult differs from a formal religion in many significant ways. It is in the nature of a cult to claim some esoteric knowledge which has been submerged (or repressed by orthodoxy) for a long time but has now suddenly been illuminated. There is often some heterodox figure, mocked or scorned by the orthodox, who presents these new teachings. There are communal rites which often permit or spur an individual to act out impulses that had hitherto been repressed. In the cult, one feels as though one were exploring novel or hitherto taboo modes of conduct. What defines a cult, therefore, is its implicit emphasis on magic rather than theology, on the personal tie to a guru or to the group, rather than to an institution or a creed.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
The moment of desire! the moment of desire! The virgin That pines for man shall awaken her womb to enormous joys... In the secret shadows of her chamber: the youth shut up from The lustful joy shall forget to generate & create an amorous image In the shadows of his curtains and in the folds of his silent pillow. Are not these the places of religion, the rewards of continence, The self-enjoyings of self-denial? why dost thou seek religion? Is it because acts are not lovely that thou seekest solitude Where the horrible darkness is impressed with reflections of desire?LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
It's almost impossible to deal with a crazy man, except that he does have religious beliefs, and the world of Islam will be damage...d if a fanatic like him should commit murder in the name of religion against 60 innocent people.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
A certain degree of ceremony is a necessary outwork of manners, as well as of religion; it keeps the forward and petulant at a pro...per distance, and is a very small restraint to the sensible and to the well-bred part of the world.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
In matters of religion and matrimony I never give any advice; because I will not have anybody's torments in this world or the next... laid to my charge.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »