Superstition of Christianity
From Thomas Jefferson Encyclopedia
Thomas Jefferson is often named as the source of the following quotation:
"I have examined all the known superstitions of the world, and I do not find in our particular superstition of Christianity one redeeming feature. They are all alike founded on fables and mythology."
Some sources cite this as being from a letter from Jefferson to a "Dr. Woods;" others claim it was to William Short, and still others do not cite a specific document. We have not found this quotation in any of Jefferson's known writings.
The following is sometimes appended to the above quotations:
"Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined and imprisoned. What has been the effect of this coercion? To make one half the world fools and the other half hypocrites; to support roguery and error all over the earth."
This portion is, in fact, a genuine Jefferson quotation; it comes from his Notes on the State of Virginia, Query XVII. Here is the quotation with the material that actually precedes it in Notes:
"Difference of opinion is advantageous in religion. The several sects perform the office of a Censor morum over each other. Is uniformity attainable? Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined, imprisoned: yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity. What has been the effect of coercion? To make one half the world fools, and the other half hypocrites. To support roguery and error all over the earth."[1]
Footnotes
- ↑ Peden, Notes, 160.
