Obscurity, indeed, is painful to the mind as well as to the eye; but to bring light from obscurity, by whatever labour, must needsbe delightful and rejoicing.

There is no such thing as freedom of choice unless there is freedom to refuse.

It is certain that the easy and obvious philosophy will always, with the generality of mankind, have preference above the accurate.

For the purposes of life and conduct, and society, a little good sense is surely better than all this genius, and a little good humour than this extreme sensibility.

Moving from an objective statement of fact to a subjective statement of value does not work, because it leaves open questions that have not been answered.

There surely is a being who presides over the universe; and who, with infinite wisdom and power, has reduced the jarring elementsinto just order and proportion. Let speculative reasoners dispute, how far this beneficent being extends his care, and whether he prolongs our existence beyond the grave, in order to bestow on virtue its just reward, and render it fully triumphant.

Any person seasoned with a just sense of the imperfections of natural reason, will fly to revealed truth with the greatest avidity.