It is the distinguishing glory of Christianity not to rest satisfied with superficial appearances, but to rectify the motives, and purify the heart.
William WilberforceRead
Christianity has been successfully attacked and marginalized… because those who professed belief were unable to defend the faith from attack, even though its attackers’ arguments were deeply flawed.
Interpretation
This quote highlights the failure of believers to adequately defend their faith against flawed criticisms.
William Wilberforce's quote reflects on the challenges faced by Christianity, emphasizing that its credibility has been undermined not necessarily by strong opposition, but by the inability of its defenders to respond effectively to flawed arguments. This serves as a reminder of the importance of understanding and articulating one's beliefs in the face of criticism.
In practice
In a debate on religious beliefs, one might use this quote to emphasize the importance of defending one's faith.
It is the distinguishing glory of Christianity not to rest satisfied with superficial appearances, but to rectify the motives, and purify the heart.
God Almighty has set before me two great objects: the suppression of the slave trade and the reformation of manners.
The first years in Parliament I did nothing - nothing to any purpose. My own distinction was my darling object.
In an age in which infidelity abounds, do we observe parents carefully instructing their children in the principles of faith which they profess? Or do they furnish their children with arguments for the defense of that faith? ...it is not surprising to see them abandon a position which they are unable to defend.
No one expects to attain to the height of learning, or arts, or power, or wealth, or military glory, without vigorous resolution, strenuous diligence, and steady perseverance. Yet we expect to be Christians without labour, study, or inquiry.
O what a blessing is Sunday, interposed between the waves of worldly business like the divine path of the Israelites through the sea! There is nothing in which I would advise you to be more strictly conscientious than in keeping the Sabbath day holy. I can truly declare that to me the Sabbath has been invaluable.
The Revolutionary Hill Estates had not been designed to accommodate a tragedy. Even at night, as if on purpose, the development held no looming shadows and no gaunt silhouettes. It was invincibly cheerful, a toyland of white and pastel houses whose bright, uncurtained windows winked blandly through a dappling of green and yellow leaves … A man running down these streets in desperate grief was indecently out of place.
Our grandfathers were less well-housed, well-fed, well-clothed than we are. The strivings by which they bettered their lot are also those which deprived us of [Passenger] pigeons. Perhaps we now grieve because we are not sure, in our hearts, that we have gained by the exchange. The gadgets of industry bring us more comforts than the pigeons did, but do they add as much to the glory of the spring?
You will never be able to experience everything. So, please, do poetical justice to your soul and simply experience yourself.
Every legend, moreover, contains its residuum of truth, and the root function of language is to control the universe by describing it.
We benefit, intellectually and personally, from the interplay between different selves, from the balance between long-term contemplation and short-term impulse. We should be wary about tipping the scales too far. The community of selves shouldn't be a democracy, but it shouldn't be a dictatorship, either.
Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent.
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