I have made up my mind that if there is a God, he will be merciful to the merciful. Upon that rock I stand. That he will not torture the forgiving. Upon that rock I stand. That every man should be true to himself, and that there is no world, no star in which honesty is a crime. Upon that rock I stand.

Nothing could be more dangerous to the existence of this Republic than to introduce religion into politics

Arguments cannot be answered with insults. . . . Kindness is strength. . . . Anger blows out the lamp of the mind. In the examination of a great and important question, every one should be serene, slow-pulsed, and calm.

Theology is not what we know about God, but what we do not know about Nature.

Good nature is the cheapest commodity in the world, and love is the only thing that will pay ten percent to both borrower and lender.

the inventor of the plow did more good than the maker of the first rosary - because, say what you will, plowing is better than praying.

A mortgage casts a shadow on the sunniest field.