“The essence of religion is inertia; the essence of science is change. It is the function of the one to preserve, it is the function of the other to improve. If, as in Egypt, they are firmly chained together, either science will advance, in which case the religion will be altered, or the religion will preserve its purity, and science will congeal.” IfsTogetherCasesEssenceFunctionPreservesPurityEgyptAlteredInertiaChained Book:The Martyrdom of Man Source: The Martyrdom of Man
“If Christianity were true religious persecution would become a pious and charitable duty: if God designs to punish men for their opinions it would be an act of mercy to mankind to extinguish such opinions. By burning the bodies of those who diffuse them many souls would be saved that would otherwise be lost, and so there would be an economy of torment in the long run. It is therefore not surprising that enthusiasts should be intolerant.” IfsMenShouldLongSoulBodyWould BeRunningLostReligiousChristianityOpinionEconomyMankindDesignDutyMercySavedBurningSurprisingLong RunsPersecutionTormentPiousCharitableReligious Persecution Book:The Martyrdom of Man Source: The Martyrdom of Man
“As for the system of the Commune, which makes it impossible for a man to rise or fall, it is merely the old caste system revived; if it could be put into force, all industry would be disheartened, emulation would cease, and mankind would go to sleep.” IfsMenWould BeFallForceSleepImpossibleMankindIndustryCeaseGoing To SleepCastesCommunesCaste SystemEmulationDisheartened Book:The Martyrdom of Man Source: The Martyrdom of Man
“Reade was an emancipating writer because he seemed to speak as man to man to resolve history into an intelligible pattern in which there was no need for miracles. Even if he was wrong, he was grown-up.” IfsMenNeedsSpeakMiraclePatternsResolve Author:William Winwood Reade
“A religion so cheerless, a philosophy so sorrowful, could never have succeeded with the masses of mankind if presented only as a system of metaphysics. Buddhism owed its success to its catholic spirit and its beautiful morality.” IfsPhilosophyBeautifulSpiritMankindBuddhismMoralityMassCatholicMetaphysicsSorrowful Book:The Martyrdom of Man Source: The Martyrdom of Man
“If we look into ourselves we discover propensities which declare that our intellects have arisen from a lower form; could our minds be made visible we should find them tailed.” IfsShouldMindLooksMadeFormAtheismIntellectPositive AtheismVisiblePropensity Book:The Martyrdom of Man Source: The Martyrdom of Man
