We do not want churches because they will teach us to quarrel about God. We do not want to learn that. We may quarrel with men sometimes about things on this earth, but we never quarrel about the Great Spirit. We do not want to learn that.
Interpretation
This quote expresses a desire to avoid religious conflict and division over interpretations of spirituality.
Chief Joseph's quote reflects a profound philosophical stance on spirituality and human interaction. He suggests that organized religion often leads to contentious debates and disagreements about the divine, which diminish the pure essence of spiritual connection. Instead, he advocates for a personal, unadulterated understanding of the Great Spirit, which transcends human quarrels and divisions, emphasizing unity in spiritual belief rather than conflict.
In practice
In a conversation about religious tolerance at a community gathering.
Let me be a free man, free to travel, free to stop, free to work, free to trade where I choose, free to choose my own teachers, free to follow the religion of my fathers, free to talk, think and act for myself — and I will obey every law or submit to the penalty.
It makes my heart sick when I remember all the good words and the broken promises.
If the white man wants to live in peace with the Indian, he can live in peace. There need be no trouble. Treat all men alike. give them all the same law. Give them all an even chance to live and grow.
The earth is the mother of all people, and all people should have equal rights upon it.
All men were made by the Great Spirit Chief. They are all brothers.
Our chiefs are killed. . . . The little children are freezing to death. . . . My people have no blankets, no food. . . . My heart is sick and sad. . . . I will fight no more forever.
One man's death: that is a catastrophe. A hundred thousand dead: that is a statistic
The Unitarian Church has done more than any other church to substitute character for creed, and to say that a man should be judged by his spirit; by the climate of his heart; by the autumn of his generosity; by the spring of his hope; that he should be judged by what he does; by the influence that he exerts, rather than by the mythology he may believe.
Well-spent aid money is saving lives for a few thousand dollars per life saved.
In the universe, there are things that are known, and things that are unknown, and in between, there are doors.
To live as one likes is plebian the noble man aspires to order and law.
Big ideas, big ambitious projects need to be embedded within culture at a level deeper than the political winds. It needs to be deeper than the economic fluctuations that could turn people against an expensive project because they're on an unemployment line and can't feed their families.
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