--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Now, religion professes a special role in…" description: "\"“Now, religion professes a special role in the protection and instruction of children. \"Woe to him,\" says the Grand Inquisitor in Dostoyevsky's The Bro..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b34/christopher-hitchens-117_brothers-karamazov_now-religion-professes-a-special-role-in_2236182.jpg" --- # Now, religion professes a special role in the protection… ![“Now, religion professes a special role in the protection and instruction of children. "Woe to him," says the Grand Inquisitor in Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov, "who harms a child." The New Testament has Jesus informing us that one so guilty would be better off at the bottom of the sea, and…” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b34/christopher-hitchens-117_brothers-karamazov_now-religion-professes-a-special-role-in_2236182.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b34/christopher-hitchens-117_brothers-karamazov_now-religion-professes-a-special-role-in_2236182.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b34/christopher-hitchens-117_brothers-karamazov_now-religion-professes-a-special-role-in_2236182.jpg) > ““Now, religion professes a special role in the protection and instruction of children. "Woe to him," says the Grand Inquisitor in Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov, "who harms a child." The New Testament has Jesus informing us that one so guilty would be better off at the bottom of the sea, and with a millstone around his neck at that. But both in theory and in practice, religion uses the innocent and the defenseless for the purposes of experiment. By all means let an observant Jewish adult male have his raw-cut penis placed in the mouth of a rabbi. (That would be legal, at least in New York.) By all means let grown women who distrust their clitoris or their labia have them sawn away by some other wretched adult female. By all means let Abraham offer to commit filicide to prove his devotion to the Lord or his belief in the voices he was hearing in his head. By all means let devout parents deny themselves the succor of medicine when in acute pain and distress. By all means - for all I care - let a priest sworn to celibacy be a promiscuous homosexual. By all means let a congregation that believes in whipping out the devil choose a new grown-up sinner each week and lash him until he or she bleeds. By all means let anyone who believes in creationism instruct his fellows during lunch breaks. But the conscription of the unprotected child for these purposes is something that even the most dedicated secularist can safely describe as sin.”” [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 passage condemns the exploitation of children and the vulnerable by religious institutions, arguing such practices are sinful despite doctrinal justifications. **In simple terms:** Religion can misuse power to harm the innocent. Key Takeaway Critique religious abuse of authority. Themes ethics religion abuse vulnerability Mood critical somber Type philosophical social commentary When to use this quote - policy reform - advocacy - legal protection - education - public awareness Key Concepts moral philosophy human rights institutional critique Questions to Reflect On - How can societies protect the vulnerable from institutional abuse? - What role should faith play in ethical decision‑making? A Different Perspective May overlook positive aspects of faith communities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Brothers karamazov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brothers-karamazov/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Devout Parents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devout-parents-5049276/) [Harms Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harms-child-3086535/) [Judaism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judaism/) [Lunch break](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lunch-break/) [New testament](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-testament/) [Practice Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/practice-religion-646765/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Religion Professes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion-professes-3020643/) [Religion Uses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion-uses-5049277/) ## Related quotes > [There is an essential difference between someone who harms a child on purpose and someone who harms a child by accident during combat in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tzipi-livni/there-is-an-essential-difference-between-someone-who-harms-a-child-on/) [Tzipi Livni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tzipi-livni/) > [A religion true to its nature must also be concerned about man's social conditions…A ny religion that professes to be concerned with the souls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/a-religion-true-to-its-nature-must-also-be-concerned-about-man-s/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Billions of people don't practice a religion at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-gere/billions-of-people-don-t-practice-a-religion-at-all/) [Richard Gere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-gere/) > [My position is that you do not have to practice a religion in order to have a religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noa-ben-artzi-pelossof/my-position-is-that-you-do-not-have-to-practice-a-religion-in-order/) [Noa Ben Artzi-Pelossof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noa-ben-artzi-pelossof/) > [Mountains are not stadiums where I satisfy my ambition to achieve, they are the cathedrals where I practice my religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatoli-boukreev/mountains-are-not-stadiums-where-i-satisfy-my-ambition-to-achieve/) [Anatoli Boukreev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatoli-boukreev/) > [“Those who practice religion practice division...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-g-ortiz/those-who-practice-religion-practice-division/) [Kenneth G. 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I have not attended a service for many years. But I do believe in God. My own practice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/i-am-not-a-religious-man-i-have-not-attended-a-service-for-many-years/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“In conclusion, those who, like myself, consider themselves to be followers of Buddha, should practice as much as we can. To followers of other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/his-holiness-the-dalai-lama/in-conclusion-those-who-like-myself-consider-themselves-to-be/) [His Holiness the Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/his-holiness-the-dalai-lama/) > [“In the camp we saw our own people kill each other over a crust of bread. 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(That would be legal, at least in New York.) By all means let grown women who distrust their clitoris or their labia have them sawn away by some other wretched adult female. By all means let Abraham offer to commit filicide to prove his devotion to the Lord or his belief in the voices he was hearing in his head. By all means let devout parents deny themselves the succor of medicine when in acute pain and distress. By all means - for all I care - let a priest sworn to celibacy be a promiscuous homosexual. By all means let a congregation that believes in whipping out the devil choose a new grown-up sinner each week and lash him until he or she bleeds. By all means let anyone who believes in creationism instruct his fellows during lunch breaks. 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