--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No one has the right to tell me what to…" description: "\"No one has the right to tell me what to do because he has a divine warrant.\" — Christopher Hitchens" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23c/christopher-hitchens-117_divine_no-one-has-the-right-to-tell-me-what-to_2669393.jpg" --- # No one has the right to tell me what to do because he has… ![“No one has the right to tell me what to do because he has a divine warrant.” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23c/christopher-hitchens-117_divine_no-one-has-the-right-to-tell-me-what-to_2669393.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23c/christopher-hitchens-117_divine_no-one-has-the-right-to-tell-me-what-to_2669393.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23c/christopher-hitchens-117_divine_no-one-has-the-right-to-tell-me-what-to_2669393.jpg) > “No one has the right to tell me what to do because he has a divine warrant.” [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. The speaker asserts personal autonomy against imposed authority justified by religious claims. **In simple terms:** You shouldn't be forced by divine authority. Key Takeaway Question authority that claims divine right. Themes autonomy religion authority individualism Mood critical defiant Type philosophical political When to use this quote - political debate - personal decision making - legal challenges - family discussions Key Concepts secularism ethical autonomy Questions to Reflect On - Do you accept any authority without question? - How do you respond when faith is used to control? A Different Perspective Religious authority can be deeply ingrained and persuasive. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine/) [Divine Warrant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine-warrant-1939749/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Tell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tell/) [Tell Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tell-divine-2490608/) [Warrant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warrant/) [Warrants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warrants/) ## Related quotes > [The person who is certain, and who claims divine warrant for his certainty, belongs now to the infancy of our species.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-person-who-is-certain-and-who-claims-divine-warrant-for-his/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I seek no better warrant than my own, conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sidney/i-seek-no-better-warrant-than-my-own-conscience/) [Philip Sidney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sidney/) > [I think it's reasonable that the government, when it has a warrant from a court, when it's exposed to scrutiny by a legal process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/i-think-it-s-reasonable-that-the-government-when-it-has-a-warrant/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [When the police officers knock on your door with a warrant, they don't expect you to give them a tour. It's supposed to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/when-the-police-officers-knock-on-your-door-with-a-warrant-they-don-t/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [Enterprising law-enforcement officers with a warrant can flick a distant switch and turn a standard mobile phone into a roving mic or eavesdrop on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-zittrain/enterprising-law-enforcement-officers-with-a-warrant-can-flick-a/) [Jonathan Zittrain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-zittrain/) > [Now, with a warrant, they can always go to the information service provider and attempt to get that information. But even then, they may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-beckstrom/now-with-a-warrant-they-can-always-go-to-the-information-service/) [Rod Beckstrom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-beckstrom/) > [Let's say tomorrow that there was a president, that we elected a president that eliminated the bulk collection of data. Let's just say it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/let-s-say-tomorrow-that-there-was-a-president-that-we-elected-a/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [It's OK if we wiretap Osama bin Laden. I want to know what he's planning - obviously not him nowadays, but that kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/it-s-ok-if-we-wiretap-osama-bin-laden-i-want-to-know-what-he-s/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [I can find no warrant for such appropriation in the Constitution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grover-cleveland/i-can-find-no-warrant-for-such-appropriation-in-the-constitution/) [Grover Cleveland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grover-cleveland/) > [Corney & Barrow are proud to have the royal warrant, meaning that they provide the Palace with some of the greatest - and necessarily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-hoggart/corney-barrow-are-proud-to-have-the-royal-warrant-meaning-that-they/) [Simon Hoggart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-hoggart/) > [So many people say, ‘You know, your taxes aren’t taken by force,’ and that’s foolish. If you don’t pay your taxes and you don’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/so-many-people-say-you-know-your-taxes-aren-t-taken-by-force-and-that/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [You don't need a search warrant to go through someone's trash. Seriously. Once it hits the curb it is totally fair game-you an look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ally-carter/you-don-t-need-a-search-warrant-to-go-through-someone-s-trash/) [Ally Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ally-carter/) > [“I showed her my warrant card, and she stared at it in confusion. You get that about half the time, mainly because most members…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/i-showed-her-my-warrant-card-and-she-stared-at-it-in-confusion-you/) [Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/) > [In the US, you even lose legal rights if you store your data in a company's machines instead of your own. The police need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-stallman/in-the-us-you-even-lose-legal-rights-if-you-store-your-data-in-a/) [Richard Stallman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-stallman/) > [“For another thing, we’re under martial law, so I can do very nearly whatever the fuck I want. Including march through your precious little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-s-a-corey/for-another-thing-we-re-under-martial-law-so-i-can-do-very-nearly/) [James S.A. Corey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-s-a-corey/) ## 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 Divine quotes > [Every action that helps us manifest our divine nature more and more is good; every action that retards it is evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/every-action-that-helps-us-manifest-our-divine-nature-more-and-more/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [The world's history is a divine poem, of which the history of every nation is a canto, and every man a word. Its strains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/the-world-s-history-is-a-divine-poem-of-which-the-history-of-every/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [Like many other scientists who hold the Catholic faith, I see the Creator's plan and purpose fulfilled in our universe. I see a planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-r-miller/like-many-other-scientists-who-hold-the-catholic-faith-i-see-the/) [Kenneth R. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-r-miller/) > [I take the seashell from my jeans pocket and rub my fingers across its silken, indented surface, shallow as my own open hand. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katrina-kenison/i-take-the-seashell-from-my-jeans-pocket-and-rub-my-fingers-across/) [Katrina Kenison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katrina-kenison/) > [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/) [Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/) > [Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. Believe in good fortune, divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-murphy/whatever-your-conscious-mind-assumes-and-believes-to-be-true-your/) [Joseph Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-murphy/) > [In recent years my understanding of God had evolved into increasingly remote abstractions. I'd come to think of God in terms like Divine Reality,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/in-recent-years-my-understanding-of-god-had-evolved-into-increasingly/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“Monsters are divine portents.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-davidson/monsters-are-divine-portents/) [Andrew Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-davidson/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [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/) > [Evil may mar the divine image and cloud its brilliance, but it cannot destroy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-c-sproul/evil-may-mar-the-divine-image-and-cloud-its-brilliance-but-it-cannot/) [R. C. Sproul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-c-sproul/) > [Coercion is the basis of every law in the universe,--human or divine. A law is not law without coercion behind it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/coercion-is-the-basis-of-every-law-in-the-universe-human-or-divine-a/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [Silence tells the seeker in us to love, to love himself. It tells us it is wrong to hate ourselves because of our imperfections.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-chinmoy/silence-tells-the-seeker-in-us-to-love-to-love-himself-it-tells-us-it/) [Sri Chinmoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-chinmoy/) > [Friend, you are a divine mingle-mangle of guts and stardust. So hang in there! 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