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“Agnosticism, in fact, is not a creed, but a method, the essence of which lies in the rigorous application of a single principle. That principle is of great antiquity; it is as old as Socrates; as old as the writer who said, 'Try all things, hold fast by that which is good'; it is the foundation of the Reformation, which simply illustrated the axiom that every man should be able to give a reason for the faith that is in him, it is the great principle of Descartes; it is the fundamental axiom of modern science. Positively the principle may be expressed: In matters of the intellect, follow your reason as far as it will take you, without regard to any other consideration. And negatively: In matters of the intellect, do not pretend that conclusions are certain which are not demonstrated or demonstrable. That I take to be the agnostic position, which if a man keep whole and undefiled, he shall not be ashamed to look the universe in the face, whatever the future may have in store for him. The results of the working out of the agnostic principle will vary according to individual knowledge and capacity, and according to the general condition of science. That which is unproved today may be proved, by the help of new discoveries, tomorrow. The only negative fixed points will be those negations which flow from the demonstrable limitation of our faculties. And the only obligation accepted is to have the mind always open to conviction. That it is wrong for a man to say he is certain of the objective truth of a proposition unless he can provide evidence which logically justifies that certainty. This is what agnosticism asserts and in my opinion, is all that is essential to agnosticism.”

“Agnosticism is a perfectly respectable and tenable philosophical position; it is not dogmatic and makes no pronouncements about the ultimate truths of the universe. It remains open to evidence and persuasion; lacking faith, it nevertheless does not deride faith. Atheism, on the other hand, is as unyielding and dogmatic about religious belief as true believers are about heathens. It tries to use reason to demolish a structure that is not built upon reason.”

“Agnosticism is compatible with faith. We either believe or not, irrespective of our ability to find the truth. Faith, developed or established based on the nominal religion, is not proof of our ability to prove God’s existence and is not proof of our implied agnosticism. Genuine faith is based on the belief in God regardless of the lack of evidence, religion, or agnosticism that may exist in a believer.”

“Agnosticism, in fact, is not a creed, but a method, the essence of which lies in the rigorous application of a single principle. ... Positively the principle may be expressed: In matters of the intellect, follow your reason as far as it will take you, without regard to any other consideration. And negatively: In matters of the intellect, do not pretend that conclusions are certain which are not demonstrated or demonstrable.”

“Agnus strode into the clearing, a cold glint in her gaze. “I thought I was done reminding you that this is not your hunting ground, Kriegan. But once again you’ve let your feral stupidity get the better of you and it seems another lesson needs to be taught.” She closed her hand into a fist, which caused the roots to squeeze tighter and the werewolf uttered a painful whine. Looming over her captive, Agnus continued. “Jo is my guest. She’s not sport or food for your pack of flea-bitten curs. Make the mistake of thinking her as prey again and neither of us will be so merciful next time. Understand?” The werewolf made a garbled noise and the roots fell away. Bowing like a scolded dog, the werewolf loped back into the forest, a smudge of fur and muscle lost among the foliage.”

“Agnès was from Toulouse, in the south of France, so she knew a thing or two about sun-soaked veggies. She taught me how to sauté the onions until they turned translucent with a pale caramel around the edges. Then she added the slices of eggplant, but no more oil- because eggplant soaks up every liquid within reach. We served it over pasta; we were students, after all. Marie-Chantal brought out the fish. Or, rather, she brought out a solid white mountain with the fish hidden inside. She had baked the bass in a crust of coarse sea salt, which she cracked open at the table with a knife and a hammer. It was spectacular really, like serving baked Alaska for a main course.”

“Agora, Cato preferira regressar às casernas depois da instrução. Era imprescindível fazer amigos quanto antes, pensou. Mas como? E quem? Os outros tinham constituído pequenos grupos durante a viagem desde Avêntico, enquanto ele passara o tempo a ler o maldito Virgílio, recordou com súbita fúria. Dava tudo para voltar a iniciar aquela viagem, sabendo o que sabia agora.”

“Agora o nascimento de Jesus Cristo foi assim. Estando Maria, sua mãe, desposada com José, antes de se ajuntarem, achou-se ter concebido do Espírito Santo. Sim, e o semideus grego Perseu nasceu quando o deus Júpiter visitou a virgem Danae como uma chuva de ouro e a engravidou. O deus Buda nasceu através de uma abertura no flanco de sua mãe. Catlicus, a deusa de saia de serpente, pegou uma pequena bola de penas do céu e a escondeu em seu seio, concebendo assim o deus asteca Huitzilopochtli. A virgem Nana pegou uma romã da árvore regada com o sangue do morto Agdestis, colocou-a em seu seio e deu à luz ao deus Átis. A virgem filha de um rei mongol acordou uma noite e encontrou-se banhada em uma grande luz, que a fez dar à luz Genghis Khan. Krishna nasceu da virgem Devaki. Hórus nasceu da virgem Ísis. Mercúrio nasceu da virgem Maia. Rômulo nasceu da virgem Reia Sílvia. Por alguma razão, muitas religiões se forçam a pensar no canal de parto como uma via de mão única, e até o Alcorão trata a Virgem Maria com reverência.”

“Agosto é bello starsene a casa con la cittá vuota e nessun rompiballe in giro, magari arrivi che senti la tua solitudine farsi pesante ma é un gioco diverso ed essere soli fa molto piú male in mezzo alla gente, allora sí che é davvero doloroso e pungono le ossa e il respiro é davvero brutto , come vivere un trip scannato e troppo lungo. Ma Agosto é bello starsene soli in cittá, prendere l´auto e girare fino al mattino spingendosi pieni di alcool verso la montagna che tutto é uno scenario disteso e silenzioso e passi col rombo dell´auto come al cinema, uscendo dal quadro un attimo dopo esservi entrato e non si rovina nulla. La via Emilia é la dorsale di questo mio agosto inquieto e torpido, selvatico e morbido. Stasera mi sono messo in macchina lasciando il gigi a sonnechiare, menomale che la faccenda di Bombay é morta lí. Ora non voglio muovermi, soltanto scorrazzare la notte in questa prateria. E la scomessa e´venuta da sé. I bar tra Reggio e Parma, ventuno? No, trentatré.”

“Agrarians are committed to preserving both communities and the material means of life, to cultivating practices that ensure that the essential means of life suffice for all members of the present generation and are not diminished for those who come after. Agrarianism in this sense is, and has nearly always been, a marginal culture existing at the edge or under the domination of a larger culture whose ideology, social system, and economy are fundamentally different. So agrarian writers, both ancient and modern, always speak with a vivid awareness of the threat posed by the culture of the powerful.”