#tolerance

They say that Caliph Omar, when consulted about what had to be done with the library of Alexandria, answered as follows: 'If the books of this library contain matters opposed to the Koran, they are bad and must be burned. If they contain only the doctrine of the Koran, burn them anyway, for they are superfluous.' Our learned men have cited this reasoning as the height of absurdity. However, suppose Gregory the Great was there instead of Omar and the Gospel instead of the Koran. The library would still have been burned, and that might well have been the finest moment in the life of this illustrious pontiff. ↗

— Jean-Jacques Rousseau

#alexandria #caliph #intolerance #library #men

Fear of the unknown and the other is the root of almost all hate. It is born of ignorance and fed by those who would keep us divided. ↗

— Tinnekke Bebout

#fear-of-unknown #hate #ignorance #tolerance-respect #respect

Don't fret, boy. I'm not so foolish as to ridicule the myths and legends of other people. For countless generations, people, no matter where they're from, have been trying to understand this world of ours. ↗

— Nahoko Uehashi

#religion #respect #spirituality #tolerance #religion

In some cases, I am able to respect what so many call bigots. Such people have a more solid foundation for drawing their lines when it comes to the security of their ways and quite possibly the security of mankind. They rely on something that has worked to get man this far without placing ideals blindly driven by emotion first; they have a sure line and they say, 'No.' That, in a sense, is something I find to be highly respectable. ↗

— Criss Jami

#bigotry #certainty #conviction #culture #emotions

In the world it is called Tolerance, but in hell it is called Despair...the sin that believes in nothing, cares for nothing, seeks to know nothing, interferes with nothing, enjoys nothing, hates nothing, finds purpose in nothing, lives for nothing, and remains alive because there is nothing for which it will die. ↗

— Dorothy L. Sayers

#despair

Ever since the Crusades, when Christians from western Europe were fighting holy wars against Muslims in the near east, western people have often perceived Islam as a violent and intolerant faith - even though when this prejudice took root Islam had a better record of tolerance than Christianity. ↗

— Karen Armstrong

#better #christianity #christians #crusades #east

More and more people care about religious tolerance as fewer and fewer care about religion. ↗

— Alexander Chase

#about #care #fewer #more #more and more

Cruel persecutions and intolerance are not accidents, but grow out of the very essence of religion, namely, its absolute claims. ↗

— Morris Raphael Cohen

#accidents #claims #cruel #essence #grow

Intolerance is evidence of impotence. ↗

— Aleister Crowley

#impotence #intolerance

The supreme satisfaction is to be able to despise one's neighbor and this fact goes far to account for religious intolerance. It is evidently consoling to reflect that the people next door are headed for hell. ↗

— Aleister Crowley

#account #consoling #despise #door #evidently