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Conscience Quotes

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Conscience Quotes

“Each individual possesses a conscience which to a greater or lesser degree serves to restrain the unimpeded flow of impulses destructive to others. But when he merges his person into an organizational structure, a new creature replaces autonomous man, unhindered by the limitations of individual morality, freed of humane inhibition, mindful only of the sanctions of authority.”

MenPersonsIndividualGreaterMoralityCreaturesDegreesAuthorityConscienceFlowStructureLimitationImpulseDestructiveHumaneSanctionsSocial PsychologyAutonomousOrganizationalInhibitionsOrganizational StructureObedience To AuthorityIndividual Morality
Author:Stanley Milgram
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“He who does not meditate acts as one who never looks into the mirror and so does not bother to put himself in order, since he can be dirty without knowing it. The person who meditates and turns his thoughts to God who is the mirror of the soul, seeks to know his defects and tries to correct them, moderates himself in his impulses and puts his conscience in order.”

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Author:Pio of Pietrelcina
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“Few human creatures would consent to be changed into any of the lower animals for a promise of the fullest allowance of a beast's pleasures; no intelligent human being would consent to be a fool, no instructed person would be an ignoramus, no person of feeling and conscience would be selfish and base, even though they should be persuaded that the fool, the dunce, or the rascal is better satisfied with his lot than they are with theirs.”

ShouldHumansPersonsFeelingsWould BeHuman BeingsPleasureAnimalChangedFoolPromiseCreaturesConscienceIntelligentSelfishSatisfiedBeastConsentAllowanceBeing SelfishRascalsDunces
Book:The Classical Utilitarians: Bentham and Mill
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“When one does another person an injustice, in some mysterious way it does one good to discover (or to persuade oneself) that the injured party has also behaved badly or unfairly in some little matter or other; it is always a relief to the conscience if one can apportion some measure of guilt to the person one has betrayed.”

IfsWayLittlesPersonsDoeMatterPartyConscienceGuiltInjusticeOneselfBetrayalMysteriousReliefBetrayedInjuredMysterious Ways
Author:Stefan Zweig
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“Although a person acting under authority performs actions that seem to violate standards of conscience, it would not be true to say that he loses his moral sense. Instead, it acquires a radically different focus. He does not respond with a moral sentiment to the actions he performs. Rather, his moral concern now shifts to a consideration of how well he is living up to the expectations that the authority has of him.”

WellsPersonsDoeDifferentSeemsActionLosesActingMoralFocusAuthorityStandardsExpectationsConscienceConcernBeing TrueAcquireConsiderationSentiments
Author:Stanley Milgram
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“When a person tries to act in accordance with his conscience, when he tries to speak the truth, when he tries to behave like a citizen, even in conditions where citizenship is degraded, it won't necessarily lead anywhere, but it might. There's one thing, however, that will never lead anywhere, and that is speculating that such behavior will lead somewhere.”

TryingPersonsMightSpeakOne ThingConditionsCitizensBehaviorConscienceBehaveCitizenshipSpeak The Truth
Author:Vaclav Havel
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“I believe that God is the source of all the universal, timeless principles. And to Him, I give all the credit and the glory. However, to a person who is not religious, I believe they can live to the highest level of their conscience and develop spiritual intelligence that surpasses most people, including many religious people, who profess but do not practice.”

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Author:Stephen Covey
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“The most stupendous system of organized robbery known has been that of the church towards woman, a robbery that has not only taken her self-respect but all rights of person; the fruits of her own industry; her opportunities of education; the exercise of her judgment, her own conscience, her own will.”

PersonsHas BeensSelfReligionOpportunityChurchKnownTakenRightsIndustryExerciseJudgmentConscienceFruitOrganizedSelf RespectRobbery
Book:Woman, church and state: a historical account of the status of woman through the Christian ages, with reminiscences of the matriarchate
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“If people will be censors, let them weigh their words. I mean that the words were unfair by that disproportionateness of the condemnation, which everybody with some conscience must feel to be one of the great difficulties in denouncing a particular person. Every unpleasant dog is only one of many, but we kick him because he comes in our way, and there is always some want of distributive justice in the kicking.”

PeopleIfsWayWantFeelsMeanPersonsJusticeDogParticularConscienceDifficultyKicksUnfairKickingCondemnation
Book:Life and letters
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“The fatuous idea that a person can be holy by himself denies God the pleasure of saving sinners. God must therefore first take the sledge-hammer of the Law in His fists and smash the beast of self-righteousness and its brood of self-confidence, self wisdom, and self-help. When the conscience has been thoroughly frightened by the Law it welcomes the Gospel of grace with its message of a Savior Who came-not to break the bruised reed nor to quench the smoking flax-but to preach glad tidings to the poor, to heal the broken-hearted, and to grant forgiveness of sins to all the captives.”

FirstsPersonsHas BeensIdeasSelfHelpingLawSinPleasurePoorBreakGraceSelf HelpBrokenHolyMessagesConscienceDenySelf ConfidenceGladHealSavingBeastSmokingSinnerGrantsRighteousnessFrightenedSaviorFistsHammersHeartedCaptivesReedsBruisedSelf RighteousnessBroken HeartedQuenchTidingsForgiveness Of SinsFlax
Author:Martin Luther
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“The most significant change wrought by adolescence is the taming of the ideals by which a person measures himself. . . . Love of oneself becomes love of the species. Conscience is pointed to the future, whispering permission to reach beyond the safety net of our ordinary and finite human existence.”

HumansPersonsExistenceSelf LoveFutureOrdinaryConscienceIdealsSafetySpeciesOneselfSignificantPermissionAdolescenceFiniteHuman ExistenceWhisperingSafety NetTamingSignificant Change
Author:Louise J. Kaplan
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“Don't aim at success — the more you aim at it and make it a target, the more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued; it must ensue, and it only does so as the unintended side-effect of one's personal dedication to a cause greater than oneself or as the by-product of one's surrender to a person other than oneself. Happiness must happen, and the same holds for success: you have to let it happen by not caring about it. I want you to listen to what your conscience commands you to do and go on to carry it out to the best of your knowledge. Then you will live to see that in the long run — in the long run, I say — success will follow you precisely because you had forgotten to think of it.”

ThinkingWantPersonsLongDoeHappensMotivationalRunningCausesSidesGreaterEffectsMissingProductsGoes OnConscienceAimForgottenOneselfCaringSurrenderCommandTargetDedicationLong RunsI Want YouPursuedSearch For MeaningSide EffectsNot CaringMans Search For MeaningAuthentic HappinessAdmonishStimulus And Response
Book:The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari: A Fable About Fulfilling Your Dreams & Reaching Your Destiny
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“It is the duty of all men in society, publicly, and at stated seasons, to worship the SUPREME BEING, the great Creator and Preserver of the universe. And no subject shall be hurt, molested, or restrained, in his person, liberty, or estate, for worshipping GOD in the manner most agreeable to the dictates of his own conscience; or for his religious profession or sentiments; provided he doth not disturb the public peace, or obstruct others in their religious worship.”

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Book:The Political Writings of John Adams: Representative Selections
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“We are bound to maintain public liberty, and, by the example of our own systems, to convince the world that order and law, religion and morality, the rights of conscience, the rights of persons, and the rights of property, may all be preserved and secured, in the most perfect manner, by a government entirely and purely elective. If we fail in this, our disaster will be significant, and will furnish an argument, stronger than has yet been found, in support of those opinions which maintain that government can rest safely on nothing but power and coercion.”

IfsWorldMayPersonsGovernmentLawOrderFoundPerfectLibertyOpinionSupportRightsFailingExampleMoralityConscienceArgumentStrongerPropertyBoundsDisasterSignificantVotingConvinceCoercionSecuredPerfect Man
Book:A Discourse, Delivered at Plymouth, December 22, 1820: In Commemoration of the First Settlement of New-England
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“In matters of conscience that is the best sense which every wise man takes in before he hath sullied his understanding with the designs of sophisters and interested persons.”

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Book:Ductor Dubitantium, Or, The Rule of Conscience in All Her Generall Measures: Serving as a Great Instrument for the Determination of Cases of Conscience : In Four Books
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“What happens to the mind of a person, and the moral fabric of a nation, that accepts the aborting of the life of a baby without a pang of conscience? What kind of a person and what kind of a society will we have twenty years hence if life can be taken so casually? It is that question, the question of our attitude, our value system, and our mind-set with regard to the nature and worth of life itself that is the central question confronting mankind. Failure to answer that question affirmatively may leave us with a hell right here on earth.”

IfsYearsMindKindMayPersonsHappensEarthValuesNationsAnswersAttitudeAcceptingMoralHellTakenMankindBabyConscienceTwentiesRegardFabricConfrontingMind SetValue Systems
Author:Jesse Jackson
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“Our president is a Christian? So was Adolf Hitler. What can be said to our young people, now that psychopathic personalities, which is to say persons without consciences, without senses of pity or shame, have taken all the money in the treasuries of our government and corporations, and made it all their own?”

PeoplePersonsMadeSaidGovernmentChristianYoungPresidentTakenPersonalityConscienceShameSensesPityMade ItCorporationsTreasuryPsychopathic
Author:Kurt Vonnegut
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“But the Bible says that the unreached will be judged on a quite different basis than those who have heard the gospel. God will judge the unreached on the basis of their response to His self-revelation in nature and conscience. The Bible says that from the created order alone, all persons can know that a Creator God exists and that God has implanted His moral law in the hearts of all persons so that they are held morally accountable to God (Rom. 1.20; 2.14-15). The Bible promises salvation to anyone who responds affirmatively to this self-revelation of God”

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Author:William Lane Craig
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“So many misconceptions surround the notion of heroism. Far too many categorize a hero as a champion on the battlefield, a commander of legions, a master of rare talent or ability. Granted, there have been heroes who fit those descriptions. But many men of great evil as well. Heed me. A hero sacrifices for the greater good. A hero is true to his or her conscience. In short, heroism means doing the right thing regardless of the consequences. Although any person could fit that description, very few do. Choose this day to be one of them." (Beyonders - A World Without Heroes)”

MenWorldWellsMeanPersonsHas BeensEvilAbilityGreaterSacrificeTalentMastersHeroFitConscienceConsequenceNotionGrantedChampionRight ThingDescriptionThis DaySurroundHeroismCommandersBattlefieldsHeedMisconceptionDoing The Right ThingLegionGreater Good
Book:Brandon Mull's Beyonders Trilogy: A World Without Heroes; Seeds of Rebellion; Chasing the Prophecy
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“A part of a healthy conscience is being able to confront consciencelessness. When you teach your daughter, explicitly or by passive rejection, that she must ignore her outrage, that she must be kind and accepting to the point of not defending herself or other people, that she must not rock the boat for any reason, you are NOT strengthening her posocial sense, you are damaging it-and the first person she will stop protecting is herself.”

PeopleFirstsKindPersonsReasonAbleAcceptingTeachRocksHealthyDaughterConscienceBoatRejectionBe KindPassiveOutrageFirst PersonStrengtheningYour Daughter
Author:Martha Stout
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“Many Introverts are also "highly sensitive," which sounds poetic, but is actually a technical term in psychology. If you are a sensitive sort, then you're more apt than the average person to feel pleasantly overwhelmed by Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata" or a well-turned phrase or an act of extraordinary kindness. You may be quicker than others to feel sickened by violence and ugliness, and you likely have a very strong conscience.”

IfsFeelsWellsMayPersonsStrongSoundTermKindnessPsychologyViolenceConscienceExtraordinaryAverageSensitivePhrasesPoeticVery StrongIntrovertOverwhelmedUglinessMoonlightAverage PersonSonatas
Book:Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking
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“That all persons living in this province, who confess and acknowledge the one Almighty and eternal God, to be the Creator, Upholder and Ruler of the world; and that hold themselves obliged in conscience to live peaceably and justly in civil society, shall, in no ways, be molested or prejudiced for their religious persuasion, or practice, in manners of faith and worship, nor shall they be compelled, at any time, to frequent or maintain any religious worship, place or ministry whatever.”

WorldWayPersonsReligiousLibertyPracticeEternalWorshipConscienceCreatorMannersAcknowledgeRulersMinistryAlmightyPersuasionCompelledObligedProvincesCivil Society
Author:William Penn
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“And that the said Constitution be never construed to authorize Congress to infringe the just liberty of the press, or the rights of conscience; or to prevent the people of the United States, who are peaceable citizens, from keeping their own arms; or to raise standing armies, unless necessary for the defense of the United States, or of some one or more of them; or to prevent the people from petitioning, in a peaceable and orderly manner, the federal legislature, for a redress of grievances; or to subject the people to unreasonable searches and seizures of their persons, papers or possessions.”

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Author:Samuel Adams
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“It is not true that the legislator has absolute power over our persons and property, since they pre-exist, and his work is only to secure them from injury. It is not true that the mission of the law is to regulate our consciences, our ideas, our will, our education, our sentiments, our works, our exchanges, our gifts, our enjoyments. Its mission is to prevent the rights of one from interfering with those of another, in any one of these things.”

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Book:The Law
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“A person who sins neither in thought nor deed, and is fair and just, gains enormous courage and strength. As a leader, you need courage born of integrity in order to be capable of powerful leadership. To achieve this courage, you must search your heart, and make sure your conscience is clear and your behavior is beyond reproach.”

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Author:Konosuke Matsushita
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“There is a way by which persons can keep their consciences clear before God and man, and that is to preserve within them the spirit of God, which is the spirit of revelation to every man and woman. It will reveal to them, even in the simplest of matters, what they shall do, by making suggestions to them. We should try to learn the nature of this spirit, that we may understand its suggestions, and then we will always be able to do right. This is the grand privilege of every Latter-day Saint.”

MenWayShouldTryingMayPersonsMatterAbleSpiritClearHolyConscienceMen And WomenSaintPrivilegeEvery ManGhostPreservesRevelationsLatterSuggestionsSimplestHoly GhostSpirit Of GodLatter DaysLatter Day Saints
Book:The Teachings of Lorenzo Snow: Fifth President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
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“Blind obedience is itself an abuse of human morality. It is a misuse of the human soul in the name of religious commitment. It is a sin against individual conscience. It makes moral children of the adults from whom moral agency is required. It makes a vow, which is meant to require religious figures to listen always to the law of God, beholden first to the laws of very human organizations in the person of very human authorities. It is a law that isn't even working in the military and can never substitute for personal morality.”

FirstsHumansChildrenPersonsSoulLawNamesIndividualReligiousSinMoralMilitaryFiguresMoralityAuthorityEthicsConscienceAdultsCommitmentOrganizationAbuseIndependenceBlindObedienceAgencySubstitutesHuman SoulVowMisuseBlind Obedience
Author:Joan D. Chittister
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