Best atheism & purpose Quotes | Short & Famous Sayings

“Our Constitution... has not left the religion of its citizens under the power of its public functionaries, were it possible that any of these should consider a conquest over the conscience of men either attainable or applicable to any desirable purpose.”

Men Should Purpose Left Atheism Citizens Conscience Constitution Positive Atheism Desirable Conquest

Book:The writings of Thomas Jefferson: being his autobiography, correspondence, reports, messages, addresses, and other writings, official and private

Source: The writings of Thomas Jefferson: being his autobiography, correspondence, reports, messages, addresses, and other writings, official and private

“I hold that in this country there must be complete severance of Church and State; that public moneys shall not be used for the purpose of advancing any particular creed; and therefore that the public schools shall be nonsectarian and no public moneys appropriated for sectarian schools.”

Country States School Used Purpose Religion Church Atheism Particular Presidential Creeds Public School Church And State Separation Of Church And State Advancing Separation Between Church And State Founding Fathers Atheist

Book:Fear God and Take Your Own Part

Source: Fear God and Take Your Own Part

“So that, were it the purpose of God to produce comets as signs of his wrath it would be true to say that he is quickening a false devotion almost all over the world, increasing the number of pilgrims to Mecca, multiplying the offerings to the most famous impostors, inducing men to build mosques for Mohammedan worship, causing the invention of new superstitions among the dervishes - in a word, stimulating many abominable things which otherwise might not have been.”

“All things considered, I can see no reason to adopt the afterlife hypothesis. I am sure I shall remain in a minority for a long time to come, especially among experiencers, but for me the evidence and the arguments are overwhelming ... We are biological organisms, evolved in fascinating ways for no purpose at all and with no end in mind. We are simply here and this is how it is. I have no self and "I" own nothing. There is no one to die. There is just this moment, and now this, and now this.”

“It goes beyond mere 'acknowledgment' of religion because its sole purpose is to encourage all citizens to engage in prayer, an inherently religious exercise that serves no secular function in this context. In this instance, the government has taken sides on a matter that must be left to individual conscience.”

Matter Government Purpose Individual Left Sides Religious Prayer Taken Atheism Citizens Exercise Conscience Function Mere Positive Atheism Instance Sole Secular Acknowledgment

Author:Barbara Brandriff Crabb

“No sign of purpose can be detected in any part of the vast universe disclosed by our most powerful telescopes.”

Purpose Universe Powerful Atheism Positive Atheism Most Powerful Telescopes

Author:Hugh Elliot

“Consequently, the first thing to be done in any search after philosophic principles is to travel over the special sciences with a view to extracting from them such information as is relevant to our purpose.”

Firsts Done Purpose Views Principles Atheism Special Information Relevant Philosophic

Author:Hugh Elliot

“The sole purpose and effect of it is to exclude persecution and to secure the important right of religious liberty.”

Important Purpose Religious Liberty Atheism Effects Secure Sole Persecution Church And State Separation Of Church And State Founding Fathers Christian Separation Between Church And State Religious Liberty Christian Father Religious Persecution Christian Persecution

Author:Oliver Ellsworth

“From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the rack, the thumb-screw, the stake, the persecutions of witchcraft, the whipping of naked women through the streets of Boston, banishment, trials of heresy, the halter about Garrison's neck, Lovejoy's death, the branding of Captain Walker, shouts of infidel and atheist, have all been for this purpose.”

Source: History of woman suffrage

“If we once admit that our life is here for the purpose of race-improvement, then we question any religion which does not improve the race, or the main force of which evaporates, as it were, directing our best efforts toward the sky.... Improvement in the human race is not accomplished by extracting any number of souls and placing them in heaven, or elsewhere. It must be established on earth, either through achievement in social service, or through better children.”

“A profession that we are a nation "under God" is identical, for establishment clause purposes, to a profession that we are a nation "under Jesus," a nation "under Vishnu," a nation "under Zeus," or a nation "under no god," because none of these professions can be neutral with respect to religion.”

Purpose Jesus Nations Atheism Positive Atheism Profession Establishment Identical Zeus Clauses Vishnu Establishment Clause

Author:Alfred Goodwin

“Existentialist philosophy recognizes the existence of the individual as the real purpose of human life. The recognition is basically atheistic and it encourages the individual to free himself from the impositions of custom, governmental authority, economic pressures, and cultural inhibitions.”

Humans Real Philosophy Purpose Individual Existence Atheism Economic Authority Pressure Positive Atheism Recognition Human Life Customs Atheistic Inhibitions Imposition Existentialist

Author:Goparaju Ramachandra Rao

“Orchids manufacture their intricate devices from the common components of ordinary flowers, parts usually fitted for very different functions. If God had designed a beautiful machine to reflect his wisdom and power, surely he would not have used a collection of parts generally fashioned for other purposes. Orchids were not made by an ideal engineer; they are jury-rigged from a limited set of available components. Thus, they must have evolved from ordinary flowers.”

Source: The Panda's Thumb: More Reflections in Natural History

“All discussion, all debate, all dissidence tends to question and in consequence, to upset existing convictions; that is precisely its purpose and its justification.”

Purpose Atheism Consequence Conviction Debate Discussion Upset Justification

Book:A fanfare for Prometheus

Source: A fanfare for Prometheus

“The best men are the least suspicious of fraudulent purposes.”

Men Purpose Atheism Positive Atheism Suspicious

Book:Hobbes: Leviathan: Revised student edition

Source: Hobbes: Leviathan: Revised student edition

“An ideology is a complex of ideas or notions which represents itself to the thinker as an absolute truth for the interpretation of the world and his situation within it; it leads the thinker to accomplish an act of self-deception for the purpose of justification, obfuscation and evasion in some sense or other to his advantage.”

“I myself am not comfortable with the notion of secularists congregating in groups, except perhaps for defensive purposes: the last thing a secularist should wish to do is to act like a religion, with its rigid hierarchies, its suppression of divergent opinion, and, above all, its ruthless attempts (now mercifully inhibited by laws) to outlaw "heresy" by brute force. Opinions must be changed, one at a time if necessary, but if there are those who wish to persist in religious belief, they should certainly be allowed to do so.”

“Human life has no meaning independent of itself. There is no cosmic force or deity to give it meaning or significance. There is no ultimate destiny for man. Such a belief is an illusion of humankind's infancy. The meaning of life is what we choose to give it. Meaning grows out of human purposes alone. Nature provides us with an infinite range of opportunities, but it is only our vision and our action that select and realize those that we desire.”

“From Apollonius I learned freedom of will and undeviating steadiness of purpose; and to look to nothing else, not even for a moment, except to reason.”

Looks Reason Moments Purpose Atheism Steadiness

Book:Meditations

Source: Meditations

“Always run to the short way; and the short way is the natural: accordingly say and do everything in conformity with the soundest reason. For such a purpose frees a man from trouble, and warfare, and all artifice and ostentatious display.”

Men Way Reason Running Purpose Natural Trouble Atheism Conformity Display Warfare Artifice Ostentatious

Book:Stoic Six Pack: Meditations of Marcus Aurelius The Golden Sayings Fragments and Discourses of Epictetus Letters from a Stoic and The Enchiridion

Source: Stoic Six Pack: Meditations of Marcus Aurelius The Golden Sayings Fragments and Discourses of Epictetus Letters from a Stoic and The Enchiridion

“Science remains the author of our major problem, in its gift of tremendous power that has been terribly abused; but for the wise use of this power we need more, not less, of the objective dispassionate scientific spirit. For our philosophical purposes we need more of its integrity and its basic humility, its respect at once for the fact and the mystery.”