My mind is my own church.
I have always strenuously supported the right of every man to his own opinion, however different that opinion might be to mine. He who denies to another this right, makes a slave of himself to his present opinion, because he precludes himself the right of changing it.
Of all the systems of religion that ever were invented, there is no more derogatory to the Almighty, more unedifying to man, more repugnant to reason, and more contradictory to itself than this thing called Christianity.
All the tales of miracles, with which the Old and New Testament are filled, are fit only for impostors to preach and fools to believe.
The world is my country, all mankind are my brethren, and to do good is my religion.
Persecution is not an original feature in any religion; but it is always the strongly marked feature of all religions established by law.
Whenever we read the obscene stories, the voluptuous debaucheries, the cruel and torturous executions, the unrelenting vindictiveness, with which more than half the Bible is filled, it would be more consistent that we called it the word of a demon than the Word of God. It is a history of wickedness that has served to corrupt and brutalize mankind.
A man does not serve God when he prays, for it is himself he is trying to serve.
Give to every other human being every right that you claim for yourself - that is my doctrine.
Is it more probable that nature should go out of her course or that a man should tell a lie? We have never seen, in our time, nature go out of her course. But we have good reason to believe that millions of lies have been told in the same time. It is therefore at least millions to one that the reporter of a miracle tells a lie.