1001Philosophers

Jacques Maritain Quotes

Jacques Maritain was a French Catholic philosopher and one of the architects of the twentieth-century revival of Thomism. After studies at the Sorbonne and a conversion to Catholicism with his wife Raissa, he reread Aquinas as a contemporary interlocutor and produced a long series of books on metaphysics, epistemology, aesthetics, and political philosophy. The quotes below are attributed to Jacques Maritain, organized by topic.

Jacques Maritain on Justice

  • Attributed to Jacques Maritain:

    “Human rights are the rights of human beings as moral persons.”

Jacques Maritain on Knowledge

  • Attributed to Jacques Maritain:

    “Distinguish in order to unite.”

  • Attributed to Jacques Maritain:

    “The whole man must enter into philosophy, but only the intellect must do philosophy.”

Jacques Maritain on Mind

  • Attributed to Jacques Maritain:

    “The thirst for poetry is one of the most spiritual thirsts in the human being.”

Jacques Maritain on Nature

  • Attributed to Jacques Maritain:

    “There is one human nature, common to all the diverse cultures of mankind.”

Jacques Maritain on Truth

  • Attributed to Jacques Maritain:

    “The philosopher is the friend of being.”