“Any contemporary political re-statement of liberal and socialist goals must include as central the idea of a society in which all men would become men of substantive reason, whose independent reasoning would have structural consequences for their societies, its history and thus for their own life fates.” MenIdeasReasonPoliticalGoalFateConsequenceIndependentStatementsContemporaryReasoningSocialistLife Fate Author:C. Wright Mills
“One of the unfortunate consequences of the intellectualization of man's spiritual life was that the word "spirit" was lost and replaced by mind or intellect, and that the element of vitality which is present in "spirit" was separated and interpreted as an independent biological force. Man was divided into a bloodless intellect and a meaningless vitality. The middle ground between them, the spiritual soul, in which vitality and intentionality are united, was dropped.” MenMindSoulSpiritualSpiritLostForceUnitedMiddleElementsConsequenceIndependentIntellectDividedMeaninglessSpiritual LifeUnfortunateReplacedVitalityMiddle GroundIntentionalitySpiritual Soul Book:Writings on religion Source: Writings on religion
“Free thought means fearless thought. It is not deterred by legal penalties, nor by spiritual consequences. Dissent from the Bible does not alarm the true investigator, who takes truth for authority not authority for truth. The thinker who is really free, is independent; he is under no dread; he yields to no menace; he is not dismayed by law, nor custom, nor pulpits, nor society-whose opinion appals so many. He who has the manly passion of free thought, has no fear of anything, save the fear of error.” MeanDoeSpiritualLawReligionPassionOpinionAtheismAuthorityConsequenceIndependentErrorsFearlessCustomsYieldThinkerDreadPenaltiesNo FearDissentAlarmsMenaceManlyPulpitHave No FearInvestigatorsFree ThoughtDismayed Book:English Secularism: A Confession of Belief Source: English Secularism: A Confession of Belief
“Our whole social order could self-destruct over the obsession with freedom disconnected from responsibility; where choice is imagined to be somehow independent of consequences.” SelfWholeOrderChoicesSocialResponsibilityConsequenceIndependentObsessionDisconnectedSocial OrderSelf Destruct Author:Boyd K. Packer
“The inward persuasion that we are free to do, or not to do a thing, is but a mere illusion. If we trace the true principle of our actions, we shall find, that they are always necessary consequences of our volitions and desires, which are never in our power. You think yourself free, because you do what you will; but are you free to will, or not to will; to desire, or not to desire? Are not your volitions and desires necessarily excited by objects or qualities totally independent of you?” IfsThinkingActionDesireQualityPrinciplesObjectsIllusionConsequenceIndependentMereExcitedFree WillInwardPersuasionOur ActionsVolition Author:Baron d'Holbach