"Take the fear of hell out of men's hearts
and a majority of them will become ungovernably wicked." Oh, think of
an angel in heaven having to allow that he was scared there.

This minister calls for my arrest. He thinks his God needs help, and
would like to see the police crush the infidel. I would advise Mr.
Talmage (hisses) to furnish his God with a rattle, so that when he is
in danger again he can summon the police immediately.

I'll tell you what is blasphemy. It is blasphemy to live on the fruits
of other men's labor, to prevent the growth of the human mind, to
persecute for opinion's sake, to abuse your wife and children, to
increase in any manner the sum of human misery.

I'll tell you what is sacred. Our bodies are sacred, our rights are
sacred, justice and liberty are sacred. I'll tell you what is the true
bible. It is the sum of all actual knowledge of man, and every man who
discovers a new fact adds a new verse to this bible. It is different
from the other bible, because that is the sum of all that its writers
and readers do not know.

Ingersoll's Lecture entitled "Some Reasons Why"

Ladies and Gentlemen: The history of the world shows that religion has
made enemies instead of friends. That one word "religion" paints the
horizon of the past with every form of agony and torture, and when one
pronounces the name of "religion" we think of 1,500 years of
persecution, of 6,000 years of hatred, slander and vituperation.
Strange, but true, that those who have loved God most have loved men
least; strange that in countries where there has been the most religion
there has been the most agony; and that is one reason why I am opposed
to what is known as religion. By religion I mean the duties that men
are supposed to owe to God; by religion I mean, not what man owes to
man, but what we owe to some invisible, infinite and supreme being.
The question arises, Can any relation exist between finite man and
infinite being? An infinite being is absolutely conditional. An
infinite being can not walk, cannot receive, and a finite being cannot
give to the infinite. Can I increase his happiness or decrease his
misery? Does he need my strength or my life? What can I do for him?
I say, nothing.

For one, I do not believe there is any God who gives rain or sunshine
for praying. For one, I do not believe there is any being who helps
man simply because he kneels. I may be mistaken, but that is my
doct