Quote #218

They say that God says to me, 'Forgive your enemies.' I say, 'I do'; but he says, 'I will damn mine.' God should be consistent. If he wants me to forgive my enemies he should forgive his. I am asked to forgive enemies who can hurt me. God is only asked to forgive enemies who cannot hurt him. He certainly ought to be as generous as he asks us to be. And I want no God to forgive me unless I am willing to forgive others, and unless I do forgive others. All I ask, if that be true, is that this God should act according to his own doctrine. If I am to forgive my enemies, I ask him to forgive his. I do not believe in the religion of faith, but of kindness, of good deeds. The idea that man is responsible for his belief is at the bottom of religious intolerance and persecution.

More from Robert G. Ingersoll

  1. There will never be a generation of great men until there has been a generation of free women - of free mothers.
  2. Thought and speech must be free. The man or men who would put a chain upon the brain or a padlock on the tongue are heirs of the Inquisitio…
  3. There is no authority in churches or priests - no authority in numbers or majorities. The only authority is Nature - the facts we know. Fac…
  4. To me, the most obscene word in the language is celibacy.
  5. There are no Gods, no angels, no devils, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is but myth and superstition that har…
  6. To me, the tenderest word in our language, the most pathetic fact within our knowledge, is maternity. Around this sacred word cluster the j…
  7. The truth is, that no one can justly be held responsible for his thoughts. The brain thinks without asking our consent. We believe, or we d…
  8. Victory makes forgiveness easy.

All Robert G. Ingersoll quotes