Clement of Alexandria Quotes
Titus Flavius Clemens, known as Clement of Alexandria, was a Christian theologian and the first major teacher of the catechetical school at Alexandria, where he helped to shape a learned Christianity in dialogue with Greek philosophy. His trilogy, the Protrepticus, the Paedagogus, and the Stromateis, articulates a vision of Christian wisdom that integrates Platonism and Stoicism with the Hebrew scriptures. The quotes below are attributed to Clement of Alexandria, organized by topic.
Browse Clement of Alexandria by topic
Clement of Alexandria on Death
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“Our whole life can go on in observation of the laws of nature, if we gain dominion over our desires from the beginning and if we do not kill, by various means of a perverse art, the human offspring, born according to the designs of divine providence; for these women who, in order to hide their immorality, use abortive drugs which expel the child completely dead, abort at the same time their own human feelings.”
Paedagogus ( The Instructor , c. 198 AD), 2.
Clement of Alexandria on God
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Attributed to Clement of Alexandria:
“If I know God, I know myself.”
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“We shall not err in alleging that all things necessary and profitable for life came to us from God, and that philosophy more especially was given to the Greeks, as a covenant peculiar to them, being, as it were, a stepping stone to the philosophy which is according to Christ.”
Stromata ( Miscellanies , c. 198–203 AD), VI, 8. -
“Let everything you do be done for God, both deeds and words; and refer all that is yours to Christ; and constantly turn your soul to God; and lean your thought on the power of Christ. ... Let Christ be to you continual and unceasing joy.”
To the Newly Baptized | pp. 373-374. -
“How can it not be necessary, for him who wishes to lay hold of the power of God, to philosophise and to grasp with comprehension intellectual concepts?”
As reported in Clement of Alexandria by Eric Osborn ( Cambridge University Press : 2008), p. 63.
Clement of Alexandria on Knowledge
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Attributed to Clement of Alexandria:
“Knowledge is the perfection of the soul.”
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“Paedagogus ( The Instructor , c. 198 AD), 2.”
Our whole life can go on in observation of the laws of nature, if we gain dominion over our desires from the beginning and if we do not kill, by various means of a perverse art, the human offspring, born according to the designs of divine providence; for these women who, in order to hide their immorality, use abortive drugs which expel the child completely dead, abort at the same time their own hu -
“He alone can remit sins who is appointed our Master by the Father of all; He only is able to discern obedience from disobedience.”
Paedagogus ( The Instructor , c. 198 AD), Book I, Ch. 8 -
“Paedagogus ( The Instructor , c. 198 AD), Book I, Ch. 8”
He alone can remit sins who is appointed our Master by the Father of all; He only is able to discern obedience from disobedience. -
“Paedagogus ( The Instructor , c. 198 AD), Book II, Ch. 13”
It is monstrous for one to live in luxury while many are in want. -
“Stromata ( Miscellanies , c. 198–203 AD), I: 5.”
There is one river of truth, which receives tributaries from every side.
Clement of Alexandria on Life
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“It is monstrous for one to live in luxury while many are in want.”
Paedagogus ( The Instructor , c. 198 AD), Book II, Ch. 13 -
“If, for instance, a man had a godless father or son or brother, who became a hindrance to his faith and an obstacle to the life above, let him not live in fellowship or agreement with him, but let him dissolve the fleshly relationship on account of the spiritual antagonism.”
The Rich Man's Salvation | p. 317
Clement of Alexandria on Love
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Attributed to Clement of Alexandria:
“Faith is the beginning of love, but love is the fulfillment of faith.”
Clement of Alexandria on Mind
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“And that the Greeks are called pilferers of all manner of writing, is, as I think, sufficiently demonstrated by abundant proofs.”
Exhortation to the Heathen | Chapter IV.—The Greeks Drew Many of Their Philosophical Tenets from the Egyptian and Indian Gymnosophists. -
“The sayings ... which are of importance for the whole end of salvation, and are enveloped in a wonderful and super-celestial depth of thought, should not be taken as they strike the careless ear, but with an effort of mind to reach the very spirit of the Saviour.”
The Rich Man's Salvation | p. 283.
Clement of Alexandria on Nature
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“All possessions are by nature unrighteous when a man possesses them for personal advantage as being entirely his own, and does not bring them into the common stock for those in need.”
The Rich Man's Salvation | p. 337
Clement of Alexandria on Time
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“Take care never to speak what you have not weighed and pondered beforehand; nor interject your own words on the spur of the moment and in the midst of another’s; for you must listen and converse in turn, with set times for speech and for silence.”
To the Newly Baptized | p. 373.
Clement of Alexandria on Truth
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Attributed to Clement of Alexandria:
“Philosophy is a clear image of truth, a divine gift to the Greeks.”
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“There is one river of truth, which receives tributaries from every side.”
Stromata ( Miscellanies , c. 198–203 AD), I: 5. | Variant translation: There is one river of truth, but many streams fall into it on this side and that. -
“Variant translation: There is one river of truth, but many streams fall into it on this side and that.”
There is one river of truth, which receives tributaries from every side. -
“For this is the true following of the Saviour, when we seek after His sinlessness and perfection, adorning and regulating the soul before Him as before a mirror and arranging it in every detail after His likeness.”
The Rich Man's Salvation | p. 315.
Clement of Alexandria on Virtue
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Attributed to Clement of Alexandria:
“The truly wise man is also a philosopher in deed.”