“I cannot let a scriptural text supersede my reason. Whilst I believe that the principal books are inspired, they suffer from a process of double distillation. Firstly, they come through a human prophet, and then through the commentaries of interpreters. Nothing in them comes from God directly.”
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About this quote
Inherited teaching arrives secondhand — filtered through whoever first spoke it and everyone who has explained it since. Weighing such authority against your own judgment isn't arrogance; it's the only honest way to hold a conviction you can actually stand behind.
When to use it
- A reader traces a viral quote back to its original text before repeating it as settled fact.
- A new hire questions a 'we've always done it this way' rule that no longer fits how the work runs.
- A congregant respectfully asks why a custom is taught, instead of following it on reflex.