For the Humanist, . . . head and heart . . . must function together. . . . The constitution of the Phillips Exeter Academy reads: 'Though goodness without knowledge . . . is weak and feeble, yet knowledge without goodness is dangerous. . . . Both united form the noblest character and lay the surest foundation of usefulness to mankind.'

To define twentieth-century humanism briefly, I would say that it is a philosophy of joyous service for the greater good of all humanity in this natural world and advocating the methods of reason, science, and democracy.

The highest ethical duty is often to discard the outmoded ethics of the past.

I believe firmly that in making ethical decisions, man has the prerogative of true freedom of choice.

The theory that everyone acts from self-interest, direct or indirect, is psychologically unsound. . . . Throughout history . . . there have been millions of men and women with some sort of Humanist philosophy who have consciously given up their lives for a social ideal.

The act of willing this or that, of choosing among various courses of conduct, is central in the realm of ethics.

Intuition does not in itself amount to knowledge, yet cannot be disregarded by philosophers and psychologists.