--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I flatter myself, that I have discovered…" description: "\"“I flatter myself, that I have discovered an argument of a like nature, which, if just, will, with the wise and learned, be an everlasting check to all..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8be/christopher-hitchens-117_miracles_i-flatter-myself-that-i-have-discovered_2863422.jpg" --- # I flatter myself, that I have discovered an argument of a… ![“I flatter myself, that I have discovered an argument of a like nature, which, if just, will, with the wise and learned, be an everlasting check to all kinds of superstitious delusion, and consequently, will be useful as long as the world endures. For so long, I presume, will the accounts of…” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8be/christopher-hitchens-117_miracles_i-flatter-myself-that-i-have-discovered_2863422.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8be/christopher-hitchens-117_miracles_i-flatter-myself-that-i-have-discovered_2863422.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8be/christopher-hitchens-117_miracles_i-flatter-myself-that-i-have-discovered_2863422.jpg) > ““I flatter myself, that I have discovered an argument of a like nature, which, if just, will, with the wise and learned, be an everlasting check to all kinds of superstitious delusion, and consequently, will be useful as long as the world endures. For so long, I presume, will the accounts of miracles and prodigies be found in all history, sacred and profane.”” [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Rational inquiry can challenge superstition and enduring myths, providing lasting checks on false beliefs. **In simple terms:** Reason attacks superstition, offering lasting checks. Key Takeaway Use reason to test extraordinary claims. Themes reason skepticism myth science Mood analytical skeptical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - academic debate - public discourse - education - media analysis Key Concepts philosophy critical inquiry history of ideas Questions to Reflect On - What evidence convinces you? - How to respect belief while encouraging inquiry? A Different Perspective Reason may not persuade deeply held faith. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Discovered Argument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovered-argument-765787/) [Kinds Superstitious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kinds-superstitious-3876467/) [Miracles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miracles/) [Miracles Prodigies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miracles-prodigies-3876466/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Superstitious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/superstitious/) [Superstitious Delusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/superstitious-delusion-765785/) ## Related quotes > [Nothing is so convenient as a decisive argument ... which must at least silence the most arrogant bigotry and superstition, and free us from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/nothing-is-so-convenient-as-a-decisive-argument-which-must-at-least/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [I think the cultural task is to separate our impulses and needs and desires from the supernatural and, above all, from the superstitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-think-the-cultural-task-is-to-separate-our-impulses-and-needs-and/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Hence the greatest crimes have been found, in many instances, compatible with a superstitious piety and devotion; Hence, it is justly regarded as unsafe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/hence-the-greatest-crimes-have-been-found-in-many-instances/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ “\[ Said during a debate when his opponent asserted that atheism and belief in evolution lead to Nazism :\] Atheism by itself is, of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/said-during-a-debate-when-his-opponent-asserted-that-atheism-and/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Men would never be superstitious, if they could govern all their circumstances by set rules, or if they were always favoured by fortune: but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/men-would-never-be-superstitious-if-they-could-govern-all-their-3/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Alcohol makes other people less tedious, and food less bland, and can help provide what the Greeks called entheos , or the slight buzz…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/alcohol-makes-other-people-less-tedious-and-food-less-bland-and-can/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I'm very superstitious, and I think it's bad luck. You don't have to show your love by tattooing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/priya-sachdev/i-m-very-superstitious-and-i-think-it-s-bad-luck-you-don-t-have-to/) [Priya Sachdev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/priya-sachdev/) > [I don't respect religon. I don't respect superstitious thinking and that is what religous is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/i-don-t-respect-religon-i-don-t-respect-superstitious-thinking-and/) [Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/) > [The Jewish part of me is superstitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwyneth-paltrow/the-jewish-part-of-me-is-superstitious/) [Gwyneth Paltrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwyneth-paltrow/) > [If you were to leave the calendar on Friday the 13th, you will be killed by a witch the very next day.w](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-were-to-leave-the-calendar-on-friday-the-13th-you-will-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Any sizeable Portuguese town looks like a superstitious bride's finery - something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/any-sizeable-portuguese-town-looks-like-a-superstitious-bride-s/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [“In spite of being complicated people choose superstitions over common sense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/in-spite-of-being-complicated-people-choose-superstitions-over-common/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [Men become superstitious, not because they have too much imagination, but because they are not aware that they have any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/men-become-superstitious-not-because-they-have-too-much-imagination/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I look back, now, and I know that the naming moment, which seemed so insignificant then, which seemed to demand no more than an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-david-roberts/i-look-back-now-and-i-know-that-the-naming-moment-which-seemed-so/) [Gregory David Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-david-roberts/) > [I'm a little bit superstitious, and I think that just comes from playing hockey. I won't avoid the number thirteen. A big one for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-badge-dale/i-m-a-little-bit-superstitious-and-i-think-that-just-comes-from/) [James Badge Dale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-badge-dale/) ## More by Christopher Hitchens > [“The spirit of our accurate and exact philosophy is outraged by conclusions that contradict each other so glaringly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-spirit-of-our-accurate-and-exact-philosophy-is-outraged-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Many governments employ torture but this was the first time that the element of Saturnalia and pornography in the process had been made so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/many-governments-employ-torture-but-this-was-the-first-time-that-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ It's \[Los Angeles\] mostly full of nonsense and delusion and egomania. They think they'll be young and beautiful forever, even though most of them… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-los-angeles-mostly-full-of-nonsense-and-delusion-and-egomania/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [To be against rationalization is not the same as to be opposed to reasoning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/to-be-against-rationalization-is-not-the-same-as-to-be-opposed-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ \[Religion\] attacks us in our deepest integrity - the core of our self-respect. Religion says that we would not know right from wrong, we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/religion-attacks-us-in-our-deepest-integrity-the-core-of-our-self/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“In the very recent past, we have seen the Church of Rome befouled by its complicity with the unpardonable sin of child rape, or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/in-the-very-recent-past-we-have-seen-the-church-of-rome-befouled-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's surprising to me how many of my friends send Christmas cards, or holiday cards, including my atheist and secular friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-surprising-to-me-how-many-of-my-friends-send-christmas-cards-or/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Suppose there were groups of secularists at hospitals who went round the terminally ill and urged them to adopt atheism: 'Don't be a mug…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/suppose-there-were-groups-of-secularists-at-hospitals-who-went-round/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [There are, after all, atheists who say they wish the fable were true but are unable to suspend the requisite disbelief, or who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/there-are-after-all-atheists-who-say-they-wish-the-fable-were-true/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“It isn’t so long since a test of Anglican orthodoxy was applied to anyone seeking to study or teach at Oxford and Cambridge universities.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-isn-t-so-long-since-a-test-of-anglican-orthodoxy-was-applied-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Gullibility and credulity are considered undesireable qualities in every department of human life - except religion ... Why are we praised by godly men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/gullibility-and-credulity-are-considered-undesireable-qualities-in/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's much worse to see a woman drunk than a man: I don't know quite why this is true but it just is. Don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-much-worse-to-see-a-woman-drunk-than-a-man-i-don-t-know-quite/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's true that obscenity is a matter of taste and in the eye of the beholder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-true-that-obscenity-is-a-matter-of-taste-and-in-the-eye-of-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I worked out early on to give up things I couldn't do well at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-worked-out-early-on-to-give-up-things-i-couldn-t-do-well-at-all/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Writing is what's important to me, and anything that helps me do that - or enhances and prolongs and deepens and sometimes intensifies argument…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/writing-is-what-s-important-to-me-and-anything-that-helps-me-do-that/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) [Explore all 1,241 Christopher Hitchens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## More Miracles quotes > [“As I do not seem able much to heal, then maybe I can simply be a responsible witness to the miracle of the ordinary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-barry/as-i-do-not-seem-able-much-to-heal-then-maybe-i-can-simply-be-a/) [Sebastian Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-barry/) > [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [This, at last, was where things were as they ought to be. Everything was in its place -- the tree, the earth underneath, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-liedloff/this-at-last-was-where-things-were-as-they-ought-to-be-everything-was/) [Jean Liedloff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-liedloff/) > [“Symbols are miracles we have recorded into language.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-kelley-harrell/symbols-are-miracles-we-have-recorded-into-language/) [S. Kelley Harrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-kelley-harrell/) > [“Monsters are divine portents.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-davidson/monsters-are-divine-portents/) [Andrew Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-davidson/) > [Miracles are like candles lit up until the sun rises, and then blown out. Therefore, I am amused when I hear sects and churches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/miracles-are-like-candles-lit-up-until-the-sun-rises-and-then-blown/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [It was a world that I wanted to record because it was such a miracle visitation to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-lee/it-was-a-world-that-i-wanted-to-record-because-it-was-such-a-miracle/) [Laurie Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-lee/) > [We artists give daily thanks for the miracle of our planet and for the inclination and the capability to honour it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-genn/we-artists-give-daily-thanks-for-the-miracle-of-our-planet-and-for/) [Robert Genn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-genn/) > [When a person partners with God in delivering a miracle to another person, they have done what they were supposed to do; God can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-wilkinson/when-a-person-partners-with-god-in-delivering-a-miracle-to-another/) [Bruce Wilkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-wilkinson/) > [“If you find a way where there seems to be no way, that’s what we call miracle, not personal achievement.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nkwachukwu-ogbuagu/if-you-find-a-way-where-there-seems-to-be-no-way-that-s-what-we-call/) [Nkwachukwu Ogbuagu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nkwachukwu-ogbuagu/) > [“he never finished any of the works he began because, so sublime was his idea of art, he saw faults even in the things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-isaacson/he-never-finished-any-of-the-works-he-began-because-so-sublime-was/) [Walter Isaacson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-isaacson/) > [“miracles are the fruit of faith, not force. When”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-van-praagh/miracles-are-the-fruit-of-faith-not-force-when/) [James Van Praagh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-van-praagh/) > [“If we believe miracles cannot happen today but happened to our distant ancestors, what we really seem to be saying is not that miracles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-metaxas/if-we-believe-miracles-cannot-happen-today-but-happened-to-our/) [Eric Metaxas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-metaxas/) > [“Although it may appear as though there have been many miracles in the world, a true miracle has never come to pass. A true…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woo-myung/although-it-may-appear-as-though-there-have-been-many-miracles-in-the/) [Woo Myung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woo-myung/) > [Miracles happen because if I'm sitting here as a Hall of Famer, you can do anything in the world you want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-taylor/miracles-happen-because-if-i-m-sitting-here-as-a-hall-of-famer-you/) [Jason Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-taylor/) [Browse all 3,567 Miracles quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miracles/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I flatter myself, that I have discovered an argument of a like nature, which, if just, will, with the wise and learned, be an everlasting check to all kinds of superstitious delusion, and consequently, will be useful as long as the world endures. 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