Anthony Collins Quotes
Anthony Collins was an English freethinker, philosopher, and friend and disciple of John Locke in his last years. Independently wealthy and educated at Cambridge, he wrote a series of controversial works that shaped the early Enlightenment debate on religion, miracles, and free will. The quotes below are attributed to Anthony Collins, organized by topic.
Anthony Collins on Freedom
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Attributed to Anthony Collins:
“Free-thinking is the use of one's understanding in endeavoring to find out the meaning of any proposition whatsoever.”
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Attributed to Anthony Collins:
“Liberty is doing what one wills; necessity is the structure of the will itself.”
Anthony Collins on God
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Attributed to Anthony Collins:
“Reason is the light God has given to all human beings.”
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“Indicate the foundation, specificity and duties of a conscience, illuminated by the faith, but aware of the necessity to dialogue with the secular and pluralist world of cultures” aim of 13th general assembly of the Pontifical Academy (21 February 2007) Fides News Agency”
I note that a common but faulty view is that, like a satellite navigator, conscience gives us directions from outside our own moral reasoning. The classical Christian conception of conscience is of the natural perception of basic moral principles, their application in particular circumstances, and the final judgment about what is to be (or has been) done. Without shared objective principles, "cons
Anthony Collins on Mind
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“I note that a common but faulty view is that, like a satellite navigator, conscience gives us directions from outside our own moral reasoning. The classical Christian conception of conscience is of the natural perception of basic moral principles, their application in particular circumstances, and the final judgment about what is to be (or has been) done. Without shared objective principles, "conscientious" belief becomes window-dressing for the raw expression of preference or power. But conscience must be both well-informed and well-formed if it is to be a reliable guide to action.”
Indicate the foundation, specificity and duties of a conscience, illuminated by the faith, but aware of the necessity to dialogue with the secular and pluralist world of cultures” aim of 13th general assembly of the Pontifical Academy (21 February 2007) Fides News Agency
Anthony Collins on Truth
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Attributed to Anthony Collins:
“An honest doubt is more honourable than a borrowed certainty.”
Anthony Collins on Virtue
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Attributed to Anthony Collins:
“Civility is the first duty of those who differ in opinion.”