Social media is a great place to share short bursts of pontification, whether in memes, quips, quotes, or what have you. Sometimes a little more research may do some good, though. Several times recently I’ve seen the quote below shared by people protesting what they see as people in power playing loose with Covid data to pompously push pernicious policies that are precariously close to imperious:
“Truly, whoever can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.” – Voltaire
Since this quote was often posted by Christians, they might be appalled by the context of the quote:
“Formerly there were those who said: You believe things that are incomprehensible, inconsistent, impossible because we have commanded you to believe them; go then and do what is unjust because we command it. Such people show admirable reasoning. Truly, whoever can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. If the God‐given understanding of your mind does not resist a demand to believe what is impossible, then you will not resist a demand to do wrong to that God‐given sense of justice in your heart. As soon as one faculty of your soul has been dominated, other faculties will follow as well. And from this derives all those crimes of religion which have overrun the world.”
On the positive side, “the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”[1] Being a Christian requires holding on tight to things that seem absurdities to the world, but it also means we have the “God-given sense of justice” that requires we show mercy to those whose absurdities are different from our own.
I recently started a series of quote posts, so when I post an absurd quote, it may be intentionally absurd, but probably not. Don’t be shy about letting me know, mercifully…I think Abraham Lincoln said something similar on his website.
[1] 1 Corinthians 1:25
Driving Toward the Morning Sun 