Heresy, a controversial topic throughout history, has often been the subject of quotes that shed light on differing perspectives. Quotes about heresy can offer insights into the conflicting attitudes towards unorthodox beliefs or ideas. These quotes often capture the tension between those who challenge established doctrines and those who defend traditional beliefs, revealing the complex nature of heresy and its impact on society.
All evolution in thought and conduct must at first appear as heresy and misconduct. — George Bernard Shaw
Indeed heresies are themselves instigated by philosophy — Tertullian
It is a remarkable fact that all the heresies which have arisen in the Christian Church have had a decided tendency to dishonor God and to flatter man. — Charles Spurgeon
The most damnable and pernicious heresy that has ever plagued the mind of man was the idea that somehow he could make himself good enough to deserve to live with an all-holy God. — Martin Luther
It is surely harmful to souls to make it a heresy to believe what is proved. — Galileo Galilei
Ignorance is the Mother not of Devotion, but of Heresy. — Cotton Mather
I have always been on the side of the heretics, against those who burned them, because the heretics so often turned out to be right....Dead, but right. — Edward R. Murrow
In the end it is worse to suppress dissent than to run the risk of heresy. — Learned Hand
What we need is a cup of understanding, a barrel of love, and an ocean of patience. — Saint Francis de Sales
Go forth in peace, for you have followed the good road. Go forth without fear, for he who created you has made you holy, has always protected you, and loves you as a mother. Blessed be you, my God, for having created me. — Clare of Assisi
Actions speak louder than words; let your words teach and your actions speak. — Anthony of Padua
Everyone may not be good, but there's always something good in everyone. Never judge anyone shortly because every saint has a past and every sinner has a future. — Oscar Wilde
Love God, serve God; everything is in that. — Clare of Assisi
The most deadly poison of our times is indifference. And this happens, although the praise of God should know no limits. Let us strive, therefore, to praise Him to the greatest extent of our powers. — Maximilian Kolbe
Anxiety is the greatest evil that can befall a soul, except sin. God commands you to pray, but He forbids you to worry. — Saint Francis de Sales
O Lord! You are the guide of those who are passing through the Valley of Bewilderment. If I am a heretic, enlarge my heresy. — Mansur Al-Hallaj
Satan conquered Jesus on the Cross and took His spirit to the dark regions of hell — Kenneth Copeland
In the beginning was the word, and it was spoken. — N. Scott Momaday
The only good thing that we owe to Plato and Aristotle is that they brought forward many arguments which we can use against the heretics. Yet they and other philosophers are now in hell. — Girolamo Savonarola
True literature can exist only where it is created, not by diligent and trustworthy functionaries, but by madmen, hermits, heretics, dreamers, rebels, and skeptics. — Yevgeny Zamyatin
By heart we believe and by mouth confess the one Church, not of heretics but the Holy Roman, Catholic, and Apostolic Church outside which we believe that no one is saved. — Pope Innocent III
If liberalism is to mean anything at all, it is duty bound to support without hesitation the dissenting individual over the group, the heretic over the orthodox, innovation over stagnation, and free speech over offense. — Maajid Nawaz
All religion seems to need to prove that it's the only truth. And that's where it turns demonic. Because that's when you get religious wars and persecutions and burning heretics at the stake. — John Shelby Spong
The conscience of the world is so guilty that it always assumes that people who investigate heresies must be heretics; just as if a doctor who studies leprosy must be a leper. Indeed, it is only recently that science has been allowed to study anything without reproach. — Aleister Crowley
Science is the most reliable guide for civilization, for life, for success in the world. Searching a guide other than the science is meaning carelessness, ignorance and heresy. — Mustafa Kemal Ataturk
The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it's indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it's indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it's indifference. — Elie Wiesel
The testimony of scripture is so plain that to add anything were superfluous, were it not that the world is almost now come to that blindness, that whatsoever pleases not the princes and the multitude, the same is rejected as doctrine newly forged, and is condemned for heresy. — John Knox
If our church is not marked by caring for the poor, the oppressed, the hungry, we are guilty of heresy. — Ignatius of Loyola
The pure righteous do not complain of the dark, but increase the light; they do not complain of evil, but increase justice; they do not complain of heresy, but increase faith; they do not complain of ignorance, but increase wisdom. — Abraham Isaac Kook
The greatest danger to Christianity is, I contend, not heresies, not heterodoxies, not atheists, not profane secularism - no, but the kind of orthodoxy which is cordial drivel, mediocrity served up sweet. There is nothing that so insidiously displaces the majestic as cordiality. — Soren Kierkegaard
Life is the great indulgence - death the great abstinence. Therefore, make the most of life here and now! — Anton Szandor LaVey
Now I think that a true liberal will always prioritize individuals over the group, will always prioritize heresy over orthodoxy, will always prioritize the dissenting voice over the status quo. — Maajid Nawaz
O God and Lord, now the council condemns even Your own act and Your own law as heresy, since You Yourself did lay Your cause before Your Father as the just judge, as an example for us, whenever we are sorely oppressed. — Jan Hus
This is the epitaph I want on my tomb: Here lies one of the most intelligent animals who ever appeared on the face of the earth. — Benito Mussolini
The seven deadly sins of the Christian Church are: greed, pride, envy, anger, gluttony, lust, and sloth. Satanism advocates indulging in each of these "sins" as they all lead to physical, mental, or emotional gratification. — Anton Szandor LaVey
Never think there is anything impossible for the soul. It is the greatest heresy to think so. If there is sin, this is the only sin; to say that you are weak, or others are weak. — Swami Vivekananda
No theory, no ready-made system, no book that has ever been written will save the world. I cleave to no system. I am a true seeker. — Mikhail Bakunin
How could you set yourself up as the most powerful institution on earth? You first find out what every man feels at least once a day, establish that as a sin, and set yourself up as the only institution capable of pardoning that sin. — Anton Szandor LaVey
Neither was there any heresy, or diversity of opinion, or disputing about the matter, till the pope had gathered a council to confirm this transubstantiation: wherefore it is most likely that this opinion came up by them of latter days. — William Tyndale
For there have risen many who have given to the plain words of Holy Writ some arbitrary interpretation of their own, instead of its true and only sense, and this in defiance of the clear meaning of words. Heresy lies in the sense assigned, not in the word written; the guilt is that of the expositor, not of the text. — Hilary of Poitiers
The root of almost every schism and heresy from which the Christian Church has suffered, has been because of the effort of men to earn, rather than receive their salvation; and the reason preaching is so commonly ineffective is, that it often calls on people to work for God rather than letting God work through them. — John Ruskin
I am sent to you to confute, not to embrace your heresy. The Catholic religion is the faith of all ages, I fear not death. . . Pardon my enemies, O Lord: blinded by passion they know not what they do. Lord Jesus, have mercy on me. Mary, Mother of God, succor me! — Fidelis of Sigmaringen
Hindu fundamentalism is a contradiction in terms, since Hinduism is a religion without fundamentals; there is no such thing as a Hindu heresy. How dare a bunch of goondas shrink the soaring majesty of the Vedas and the Upanishads to the petty bigotry of their brand of identity politics? — Shashi Tharoor
Since man cannot live without miracles, he will provide himself with miracles of his own making. He will believe in witchcraft and sorcery, even though he may otherwise be a heretic, an atheist, and a rebel. — Fyodor Dostoevsky
Books of apostates, heretics, schismatics, and all other writers defending heresy or schism or in any attacking the foundations of religion, are altogether prohibited. — Pope Leo XIII
Graphic design is the paradise of individuality, eccentricity, heresy, abnormality, hobbies and humors. — George Santayana
We have seen many other not just writers and intellectuals, but including writers and intellectuals in the Muslim world being attacked and murdered by Islamic fanatics, accused of exactly the same things that I was, these medieval crimes of apostasy And heresy, but then broadening from that into a broader attack on all of us. — Salman Rushdie
The church hates a thinker precisely for the same reason a robber dislikes a sheriff, or a thief despises the prosecuting witness. — Robert Green Ingersoll
There is a popular heresy abroad today which states that if a little is good, more is better. Following this dictum creates a life which is never fulfilling. Even while you are engaged in one rich experience you are looking about for another. There is no contentment because future plans are always intruding on the present. — Robert A. Johnson
The heresy of one age becomes the orthodoxy of the next. Mere tolerance has given place to a sentiment of brotherhood between sincere men of all denominations. — Helen Keller
All who have read a few old books have picked up the old tactics of considering every new idea a 'heresy' which must be rooted out. — Lu Xun
There is never any fair and thorough discussion of heretical opinions... The greatest harm done is to those who are not heretics, and whose whole mental development is cramped and their reason cowed, by the fear of heresy. — John Stuart Mill
In Conclusion
Quotes about heresy can be thought-provoking and serve as reminders of the sometimes turbulent relationship between conformity and dissent. They can highlight the struggles faced by individuals who dared to question prevailing norms and challenge the status quo. Such quotes can also demonstrate the diverse reactions and consequences that heretical ideas can evoke, ranging from condemnation and persecution to admiration and eventual acceptance. These quotes provide a glimpse into the ongoing dialogue surrounding heresy and its role in shaping human thought and progress.
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Citation
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