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Theodore Parker

Theodore Parker Quotes

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Theodore Parker was an American Unitarian minister, abolitionist, and social reformer. He is recognized for his theological and social writings that had a profound impact on the abolitionist movement and the Unitarian Church. Born on August 24, 1810, Parker dedicated his life to social justice and the fight for the rights of the marginalized.

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Famous Theodore Parker Quotes

“Yet, if he would, man cannot live all to this world. If not religious, he will be superstitious. IF he worship not the true God, he will have his idols.”

Ifs Men World Religious This World Worship Idols Superstitious True God True Worship

Book:Critical Writings

Source: Critical Writings

“Every man has at times in his mind the Ideal of what he should be, but is not. This ideal may be high and complete, or it may be quite low and insufficient; yet in all men, that really seek to improve, it is better than the actual character... Man never falls so low, that he can see nothing higher than himself.”

Men Should Mind May Character Fall Higher Lows Ideals Every Man Insufficient

Author:Theodore Parker

“To obtain a knowledge of duty, a man is not sent away, outside of himself, to ancient documents; for the only rule of faith a practice, the Word, is very nigh him, even in his heart, and by this word he is to try all documents.”

Men Trying Heart Practice Atheism Duty Ancient Positive Atheism Documents

Book:A Discourse of Matters Pertaining to Religion

Source: A Discourse of Matters Pertaining to Religion

“There is no intercessor, angel, mediator, between man and God; for man can speak and God hear, each for himself. He requires no advocates to plead for men.”

Men Speak Atheism Angel Positive Atheism Mediators Intercessors

Book:A Discourse of Matters Pertaining to Religion

Source: A Discourse of Matters Pertaining to Religion

“The union of men in large masses is indispensable to the development and rapid growth of the higher faculties of men. Cities have always been the fireplaces of civilization whence light and heat radiated out into the dark cold world.”

Source: The Works of Theodore Parker: Lessons from the world of matter and the world of man

“Mankind never loses any good thing, physical, intellectual, or moral, till it finds a better, and then the loss is a gain. No steps backward is the rule of human history. What is gained by one man is invested in all men, and is a permanent investment for all time.”

Men Humans Loses Loss Moral Steps Progress Mankind Intellectual Gains Good Things Investment All Time Permanent One Man Human History

Book:The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Lessons from the world of matter and the world of man

Source: The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Lessons from the world of matter and the world of man

“First there is the democratic idea: that all men are endowed by their creator with certain natural rights; that these rights are alienable only by the possessor thereof; that they are equal in men; that government is to organize these natural, unalienable and equal rights into institutions designed for the good of the governed, and therefore government is to be of all the people, by all the people, and for all the people. Here government is development, not exploitation.”

People Men Firsts Ideas Government Certain Natural Rights Development Equal Institutions Democratic Creator Exploitation Organize Equal Rights Natural Rights

Book:Additional Speeches, Addresses, and Occasional Sermons

Source: Additional Speeches, Addresses, and Occasional Sermons

“In all the world there is nothing so remarkable as a great man, nothing so rare, nothing which so well repays study.”

Men World Wells Study Greatness Great Men Remarkable

Book:The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Discourses of theology

Source: The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Discourses of theology

“The great man is to be the servant of mankind, not they of him.”

Men Mankind Greatness Servant Great Men

Book:Speeches, Addresses, and Occasional Sermons

Source: Speeches, Addresses, and Occasional Sermons

“The use of great men is to serve the little men, to take care of the human race, and act as practical interpreters of justice and truth.”

Men Humans Littles Use Care Justice Race Greatness Take Care Practicals Human Race Great Men Interpreter Little Man

Book:The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Discourses of politics

Source: The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Discourses of politics

“There never was a great truth but it was reverenced; never a great institution, nor a great man, that did not, sooner or later, receive the reverence of mankind.”

Men Mankind Greatness Institutions Great Men Reverence Sooner Or Later

Book:Lessons from the World of Matter and the World of Man

Source: Lessons from the World of Matter and the World of Man

“Justice is the idea of God, the ideal of man, the rule of conduct writ in the nature of mankind.”

Men Ideas Justice Mankind Ideals Nature Of Man

Book:The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Sermons. Prayers

Source: The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Sermons. Prayers

“The duty of labor is written on a man's body: in the stout muscle of the arm,, and the delicate machinery of the hand.”

Men Body Hands Written Duty Arms Labor Muscles Delicate Machinery Stout

Book:The critical and miscellaneous writings of Theodore Parker

Source: The critical and miscellaneous writings of Theodore Parker

“Man is the highest product of his own history. The discoverer finds nothing so grand or tall as himself, nothing so valuable to him. The greatest star is at the small end, of the telescope,--the star that is looking, not looked after nor looked at.”

Men Ends Stars Products Highest Valuable Tall Telescopes

Book:Centenary Edition [of the Writings of Theodore Parker]

Source: Centenary Edition [of the Writings of Theodore Parker]

“Man is the jewel of God, who has created this material world to keep his treasure in.”

Men World Materials Treasure Jewels Material World

Author:Theodore Parker

“Nature is man's religious book, with lessons for every day.”

Men Book Nature Religious Lessons Religious Books

Book:The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Sermons. Prayers

Source: The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Sermons. Prayers

“He prays best who, not asking God to do man's work, prays penitence, prays resolutions, and then prays deeds--thus supplicating with heart and head and hands.”

Men Heart Hands Prayer Praying Asking Deeds Resolution Head And Heart Asking God Penitence

Book:The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Discourses of slavery

Source: The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Discourses of slavery

“The whole sum and substance of human history may be reduced to this maxim: that when man departs from the divine means of reaching the divine end, he suffers harm and loss.”

Men Humans May Mean Ends Whole Suffering Loss Sin Divine Harm Substance Reaching Maxims Human History

Book:Lessons from the World of Matter and the World of Man

Source: Lessons from the World of Matter and the World of Man

“It is not from the tall crowded workhouse of prosperity that men first or clearest see the eternal stars of heaven.”

Men Firsts Heaven Stars Eternal Prosperity Tall Crowded Workhouses

Author:Theodore Parker

“The Bible goes equally to the cottage of the peasant, and the palace of the king. - It is woven into literature, and colors the talk of the street. The bark of the merchant cannot sail without it; and no ship of war goes to the conflict but it is there. It enters men's closets; directs their conduct, and mingles in all the grief and cheerfulness of life.”

Men War Literature Grief Streets Color Kings Conflict Ships Sail Closets Palaces Peasants Woven Cheerfulness Bark Merchants Cottages

Author:Theodore Parker

“Man never falls so low that he can see nothing higher than himself.”

Men Fall Higher Lows

Book:Critical Writings

Source: Critical Writings

“Truth never yet fell dead in the streets; it has such affinity with the soul of man, the seed however broadcast will catch somewhere and produce its hundredfold.”

Men Soul Streets Produce Seeds Affinity

Book:The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: A discourse of matter pertaining to religion

Source: The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: A discourse of matter pertaining to religion

“It is very sad for a man to make himself servant to a single thing; his manhood all taken out of him by the hydraulic pressure of excessive business.”

Men Business Taken Pressure Servant Manhood Very Sad

Book:Lessons from the World of Matter and the World of Man

Source: Lessons from the World of Matter and the World of Man

“It takes a Newton to forge a Newton. What man could have fabricated a Jesus? None but a Jesus.”

Men Christian Jesus Christ Jesus Christ Newton

Book:A Discourse of Matters Pertaining to Religion

Source: A Discourse of Matters Pertaining to Religion

“The miraculous revelation of the Old Testament and the New, the miracles of famous men, Jews, Gentiles, or Christians, — then Franklin had no religion at all; and it would be an insult to say that he believed in the popular theology of his time, or of ours, for I find not a line from his pen indicating any such belief.”

Ifs Men Would Be Belief Religious Lines Theology Revelations Insult Pens Testament Miraculous Old Testament Franklin

Author:Theodore Parker

“Want and wealth equally harden the human heart, as frost and fire are both alien to the human flesh. Famine and gluttony alike drive away nature from the heart of man.”

Men Want Humans Heart Nature Wealth Fire Flesh Aliens Human Heart Famine Frost Gluttony

Author:Theodore Parker

“Did the mass of men know the actual selfishness and injustice of their rulers, not a government would stand a year. - The world would foment with revolution.”

Knows Men World Years Government Revolution Mass Injustice Selfishness Rulers

Author:Theodore Parker

“All men desire to be immortal.”

Men Desire Immortal

Book:A Sermon of Immortal Life: Preached at the Melodeon, on Sunday, September 20th, 1846

Source: A Sermon of Immortal Life: Preached at the Melodeon, on Sunday, September 20th, 1846

“No man is so great as mankind.”

Book:Theism, Atheism, and the Popular Theology: Sermons

Source: Theism, Atheism, and the Popular Theology: Sermons

“All men need something to poetize and idealize their life a little-something which they value for more than its use, and which is a symbol of their emancipation from the mere materialism and drudgery of daily life.”

Men Needs Littles Use Values Mere Symbols Materialism Daily Life Emancipation Drudgery

Book:Ten Sermons of Religion

Source: Ten Sermons of Religion

About the Author

Born: August 24, 1810
Died: May 10, 1860
Known for: Author
Quotes: 105

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Men Humans Mankind Greatness Heart Justice World Duty Government Long Soul Atheism Body Book Character Eternal Great Men Hands Ideas Ifs

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Books & Sources

The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Sermons. PrayersRelated source material

Lessons from the World of Matter and the World of ManRelated source material

The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Lessons from the world of matter and the world of manRelated source material

A Discourse of Matters Pertaining to ReligionRelated source material

Ten Sermons of ReligionRelated source material

A Sermon of Immortal Life: Preached at the Melodeon, on Sunday, September 20th, 1846Related source material

Centenary Edition [of the Writings of Theodore Parker]Related source material

Critical WritingsRelated source material

Speeches, Addresses, and Occasional SermonsRelated source material

The Collected Works of Theodore Parker: Discourses of theologyRelated source material

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