What do you think of this Thomas Jefferson , quote?

Question

"Question with boldness even the existence of God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason than that of blindfolded fear."-- 1787 letter to his nephew

Answer 1

It is a very wise thing to say!

Answer 2

"Shake off all the fears of servile prejudices, under which weak minds are servilely crouched. Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call on her tribunal for every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason than that of blindfolded fear." [Thomas Jefferson, letter to Peter Carr, Aug. 10, 1787]

I like the lines preceding it as well.

Answer 3

It's my favorite, but the fuller quote is a bit better.

Shake off all the fears and servile prejudices under which weak minds are servilely crouched. Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call to her tribunal every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason, than that of blindfolded fear.

Answer 4

Where the preamble declares, that coercion is a departure from the plan of the holy author of our religion, an amendment was proposed by inserting "Jesus Christ," so that it would read "A departure from the plan of Jesus Christ, the holy author of our religion;" the insertion was rejected by the great majority, in proof that they meant to comprehend, within the mantle of its protection, the Jew and the Gentile, the Christian and Mohammedan, the Hindoo and Infidel of every denomination.

-Thomas Jefferson, Autobiography, in reference to the Virginia Act for Religious Freedom

Do you know Thomas Jefferson made his own version of the Bible taking out the bits he didnt like?

Funny Christians say this country was founded a Christian nation!!


Miracles and references to the Trinity and the divinity of Jesus are notably absent from the Jefferson Bible. The Bible begins with an account of Jesus's birth without references to angels, genealogy, or prophecy. The work ends with the words: "Now, in the place where he was crucified, there was a garden; and in the garden a new sepulchre, wherein was never man yet laid. There laid they Jesus. And rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed." There is no mention of the resurrection.


Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined and imprisoned; yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity.

-Thomas Jefferson, Notes on Virginia, 1782

Among the sayings and discourses imputed to him [Jesus] by his biographers, I find many passages of fine imagination, correct morality, and of the most lovely benevolence; and others again of so much ignorance, so much absurdity, so much untruth, charlatanism, and imposture, as to pronounce it impossible that such contradictions should have proceeded from the same being.

-Thomas Jefferson, letter to William Short, April 13, 1820

It is between fifty and sixty years since I read it [the Apocalypse], and I then considered it merely the ravings of a maniac, no more worthy nor capable of explanation than the incoherences of our own nightly dreams.

-Thomas Jefferson, letter to General Alexander Smyth, Jan. 17, 1825

Answer 5

Jefferson was a Deist - he believed that God made the world then left it to run itself. An interesting concept. I think that Jefferson wants his nephew to wonder about what God actually is and what he stands for and approves of. He did not want them to be guided like cows to slaughter in religious beliefs and other areas. A great pity that some have been - religious fundamentals.

Answer 6

Jefforson has many good quotes, he is one of the most famous anti-theists to have lived. He was a deist but was pretty anti-religion in general.

'The Christian God is a being of terrific character - cruel,
vindictive, capricious and unjust.'
-Thomas Jefferson

'Ridicule is the only weapon which can be used against unintelligible propositions. Ideas must be distinct before reason can act upon them; and no man ever had a distinct idea of the trinity. It is the mere Abracadabra of the mountebanks calling themselves the priests of Jesus.'
-Thomas Jefferson

Smart man.

Answer 7

What's sad is that a man like Thomas Jefferson couldn't get elected today without lying and saying he's a Christian. I don't think religion was much of an issue back then.

Answer 8

"Is uniformity attainable? Millions of innocent men, women, and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined, imprisoned; yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity. What has been the effects of coercion? To make one half the world fools, and the other half hypocrites."

A lot of Christian fundamentalists today like to pretend that the founders were Christian. This was not the case, it is verifiable historical fact most of the founders were of a deist persuasion and the few that were Christian were in favor of religious liberty and vehemently opposed to the idea of a national church or a religious government.

Answer 9

and could I upload. adventure demands that guy is the only animal which devours his very own sort, for i'm able to prepare no milder term to the typical prey of the rich on the detrimental. -Thomas Jefferson

Answer 10

Sounds like Jefferson. He also said the virgin birth would eventually be ranked with the old Greek myths.
I suspect the thumpers will be all over this, saying how could a Christian Founding Father utter such blasphemy; no doubt they will say it's a made-up quote. Stay tuned.

Answer 11

I think its a wise thing to say, and I agree with his sentiment.

I understand it to mean, that people should question the existance of god and not just believe out of fear of not believing.