Theological Quotes - Page 12

• We Unitarian Universalists have inherited a magnificent theological legacy. In a sweeping answer to creeds that divide the human family, Unitarianism proclaims that we spring from a common source; Universalism, that we share a common destiny.

  Forrest Church

  Spring, Destiny, Answers

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• When God saved me, He gave me a thirst to learn and to read and to study. I thrived in college. I got a bachelor's degree in philosophy and then went to Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando.

  Tullian Tchividjian

  Philosophy, College, Degrees

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• The young earth-solution to reconciling the order of creation with natural history makes good exegetical and theological sense. Indeed, the overwhelming consensus of theologians up through the Reformation held to this view. I myself would adopt it in a heartbeat except that nature seems to present such strong evidence against it.

  William A. Dembski

  Strong, Views, Order

  William A. Dembski (2009). “The End of Christianity: Finding a Good God in an Evil World”, p.55, B&H Publishing Group

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• For such is man: a Theological Dogma might be refuted to him a thousand times - provided however, that he had need of it, he would again and again accept it as true. Belief is always most desired, most pressingly needed where there is a lack of will. Fanaticism is the sole "volitional strength" to which the weak and irresolute can be excited, as a sort of hypnotising of the entire sensory-intellectual system.

  Friedrich Nietzsche

  Men, Intellectual, Atheism

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• Faith in Jesus Christ and a testimony of Him and His universal Atonement is not just a doctrine with great theological value. Such faith is a universal gift, glorious for all cultural regions of this earth, irrespective of language, race, color, nationality, or socioeconomic circumstance. The powers of reason may be used to try to understand this gift, but those who feel its effects most deeply are those who are willing to accept its blessings, which come from a pure and clean life of following the path of true repentance and living the commandments of God.

  Dieter F. Uchtdorf

  Jesus, Blessing, Race

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• I am not very impressed with theological arguments whatever they may be used to support. Such arguments have often been found unsatisfactory in the past. In the time of Galileo it was argued that the texts, 'And the sun stood still... and hasted not to go down about a whole day' (Joshua x. 13) and 'He laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not move at any time' (Psalm cv. 5) were an adequate refutation of the Copernican theory.

  Alan Turing

  Moving, Past, Support

  Alan Mathison Turing, B. J. Copeland (2004). “The Essential Turing”, p.450, Oxford University Press

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• The contraction of theological influence has been at once the best measure, and the essential condition of intellectual advance.

  William Edward Hartpole Lecky

  Intellectual, Religion, Essentials

  "History of European morals from Augustus to Charlemagne".

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• Whenever a man believes that he has the exact truth from God, there is in that man no spirit of compromise. He has not the modesty born of the imperfections of human nature; he has the arrogance of theological certainty and the tyranny born of ignorant assurance. Believing himself to be the slave of God, he imitates his master, and of all tyrants the worst is a slave in power.

  Robert Green Ingersoll

  Believe, Men, Tyrants

  Robert Green Ingersoll (1907). “The works of Robert G. Ingersoll”, p.444, Library of Alexandria

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• But theological change happens though selective quoting. Every religious person does it: You quote those verses that resonate with your own religious insights and ignore or reinterpret those that undermine your certainties. Selective quoting isn't just legitimate, but essential: Religions evolve through shifts in selective quoting.

  Yossi Klein Halevi

  Religious, Essentials, Doe

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• Theological religion is the source of all imaginable follies and disturbances. It is the parent of fanaticism and civil discord; it is the enemy of mankind.

  Voltaire

  Religious, Evil, Parent

  Voltaire (2015). “Delphi Collected Works of Voltaire (Illustrated)”, p.4371, Delphi Classics

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• Children, after being limbs of Satan in traditional theology and mystically illuminated angels in the minds of educational reformers, have reverted to being little devils; not theological demons inspired by the evil one, but scientific Freudian abominations inspired by the unconscious.

  Bertrand Russell

  Children, Educational, Angel

  Bertrand Russell (2009). “Unpopular Essays”, p.60, Routledge

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• Christian hope is not a ghost and it does not deceive. It is a theological virtue and therefore, ultimately, a gift from God that cannot be reduced to optimism, which is only human. God does not mislead hope; God cannot deny himself. God is all promise.

  Pope Francis

  Christian, Optimism, Promise

  Pope Francis (2014). “My Door Is Always Open: A Conversation on Faith, Hope and the Church in a Time of Change”, p.100, A&C Black

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• The foundation of worship in the heart is not emotional...it is theological.

  Sinclair B. Ferguson

  Heart, Emotional, Foundation

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• I served for 42 years on the board of trustees of the largest Presbyterian seminary, Princeton Theological Seminary, and we had brilliant people - teachers and students both-but they did not come up with many new concepts. They weren't invited to come up with new concepts. Anybody who had come up with a new concept would have been under suspicion for being out of step with the tradition or out of step with the teachings of the church.

  John Templeton

  Teacher, Teaching, Optimistic

  "Sir John's Divine Gamble" by Gary Wolf, June 1, 1999.

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• To explain the unknown by the known is a logical procedure; to explain the known by the unknown is a form of theological lunacy.

  David Brooks

  Atheist, Religion, Atheism

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• The theological virtue of hope is the patient and trustful willingness to live without closure, without resolution, and still be content and even happy because our Satisfaction is now at another level, and our Source is beyond ourselves.

  Richard Rohr

  Levels, Satisfaction, Patient

  "Preparing for Christmas" by Richard Rohr, www.huffingtonpost.com. December 6, 2012.

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• A free theologian works in communication with other theologians...He waits for them and asks them to wait for him. Our sadly lacking yet indispensable theological co-operation depends directly or indirectly on whether or not we are wiling to wait for one another, perhaps lamenting, yet smiling with tears in our eyes.

  Karl Barth

  Communication, Eye, Waiting

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• Doctrine is to be the balm of a healing experience of God, not a theological scalpel to wound and exclude people.

  Diana Butler Bass

  Healing, People, Doctrine

  "Moving Beyond Tribal Religion" by Ryan Thomas Neace, www.huffingtonpost.com. July 1, 2014.

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• Knox was engaged in a theological discussion with scientist John Scott Haldane. 'In a universe containing millions of planets,' reasoned Haldane, 'is it not inevitable that life should appear on at least one of them?' 'Sir,' replied Knox, 'if Scotland Yard found a body in your cabin trunk, would you tell them: 'There are millions of trunks in the world; surely one of them must contain a body? I think the would still want to know who put it there'.

  Ronald Knox

  Knowledge, Science, Thinking

  "The Little, Brown Book of Anecdotes". Book by Clifton Fadiman, p. 541, October 31, 2009.

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• In the garden of the soul, the virtues of faith, hope, and love form the centerpiece. Traditionally called theological virtues, they come as free gifts from God and draw us to God. We cannot earn these virtues; God has already freely planted them in our soul.

  Robert Morneau

  Character, Garden, Free Gifts

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• Most of us retain enough of the theological attitude to think that we are little gods.

  Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

  Religious, Attitude, Humility

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• The law is this: that each of our leading conceptions-each branch of our knowledge-passes successively through three different theoretical conditions: the Theological, or fictitious: the Metaphysical, or abstract; and the Scientific, or positive.

  Auguste Comte

  Knowledge, Science, Law

  Auguste Comte (1975). “Auguste Comte and Positivism: The Essential Writings”, p.68, Transaction Publishers

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• Science, with its experiments and logic, tries to understand the order or structure of the universe. Religion, with its theological inspiration and reflection, tries to understand the purpose or meaning of the universe. These two are cross-related. Purpose implies structure, and structure ought somehow to be interpretable in terms of purpose.

  Charles Hard Townes

  Inspiration, Reflection, Order

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• Contrary to the popular notion that only creationism relies on the supernatural, evolutionism must as well, since the probabilities of random formation of life are so tiny as to require a 'miracle' for spontaneous generation tantamount to a theological argument.

  Chandra Wickramasinghe

  Miracle, Tiny, Generations

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• Do you see this egg? With this you can topple every theological theory, every church or temple in the world.

  Denis Diderot

  Science, Eggs, Church

  Denis Diderot (1966). “Selected Writings”, New York : Macmillan

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