--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: [His research into biblical criticism had…" description: "\"“[His research into biblical criticism had lead him to the conclusion that most of what was contained in traditional religion simply wasn't true] Was I..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/felix-adler-10212_autobiography_his-research-into-biblical-criticism-had_165818.png" --- # \[His research into biblical criticism had lead him to the… ![“[His research into biblical criticism had lead him to the conclusion that most of what was contained in traditional religion simply wasn't true] Was I to lie in order to teach the truth? ...Was I to repeat these words? It was impossible. It was certain they would stick in my throat. On these…” quote by Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/felix-adler-10212_autobiography_his-research-into-biblical-criticism-had_165818.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/felix-adler-10212_autobiography_his-research-into-biblical-criticism-had_165818.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/felix-adler-10212_autobiography_his-research-into-biblical-criticism-had_165818.png) > ““\[His research into biblical criticism had lead him to the conclusion that most of what was contained in traditional religion simply wasn't true\] Was I to lie in order to teach the truth? ...Was I to repeat these words? It was impossible. It was certain they would stick in my throat. On these grounds the separation was decided by me.”” [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He struggled with whether to lie to teach truth, feeling the words would choke him, leading to his separation. **In simple terms:** He faced a moral dilemma about truth and teaching. Key Takeaway Choose honesty even when uncomfortable. Themes truth ethics education personal integrity conflict Mood conflicted determined Type ethical personal When to use this quote - teaching - public speaking - personal decision-making - religious debate Key Concepts moral philosophy cognitive dissonance Questions to Reflect On - When is it acceptable to with truth for a greater good? - How do you handle internal conflict about honesty? A Different Perspective He may have believed that truth could be conveyed without deception. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Autobiography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autobiography/) [Biblical Criticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biblical-criticism-1807124/) [Criticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism/) [Falsehood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/falsehood/) [Lie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lie/) [Rabbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rabbi/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Research Biblical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/research-biblical-1807125/) [Teach Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teach-truth-386192/) [True Lie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true-lie-276675/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Truth Repeat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-repeat-1807126/) ## Related quotes > [“My generation was born into a world where those with a heart as well as a brain couldn’t find any support. The destructive work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/my-generation-was-born-into-a-world-where-those-with-a-heart-as-well/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [Conservative New Testament studies could also provide an intellectually satisfying alternative to German biblical criticism and to the liberal theology that accompanied it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gresham-machen/conservative-new-testament-studies-could-also-provide-an/) [John Gresham Machen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gresham-machen/) > [I remember when I heard the words "Biblical criticism" in my town, it was with disdain: "Biblical criticism? How dare you?".](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-remember-when-i-heard-the-words-biblical-criticism-in-my-town-it/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [ I became one of \[Moses Mendelssohn\] defenders. But then I heard the words "Biblical criticism" again. And, of course, afterward, I studied it more… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-became-one-of-moses-mendelssohn-defenders-but-then-i-heard-the/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [There is not one particular moment that can account for the shift from the social issue concerns of 19th-century evangelicals into the state of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthea-butler/there-is-not-one-particular-moment-that-can-account-for-the-shift/) [Anthea Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthea-butler/) > [Unbind the charms that in slight fables lie and teach that truth is truest poesy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cowley/unbind-the-charms-that-in-slight-fables-lie-and-teach-that-truth-is/) [Abraham Cowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cowley/) > [There are great scholars and wonderful teachers all over the world. Many of them humbly and effectively teach truth, but others do not. God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-h-groberg/there-are-great-scholars-and-wonderful-teachers-all-over-the-world/) [John H. Groberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-h-groberg/) > [It came to me that I should teach this truth for it is real happiness and joy. The cessation of suffering is possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/it-came-to-me-that-i-should-teach-this-truth-for-it-is-real-happiness/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [He who wishes to teach us a truth should not tell it to us, but simply suggest it with a brief gesture, a gesture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/he-who-wishes-to-teach-us-a-truth-should-not-tell-it-to-us-but-simply/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [To disarm a zealot, teach him truth by precept, and mildness by example.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-kindi/to-disarm-a-zealot-teach-him-truth-by-precept-and-mildness-by-example/) [Al-Kindi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-kindi/) > [There are men and women who make the world better just by being the kind of people they are. They have the gift of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/there-are-men-and-women-who-make-the-world-better-just-by-being-the/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [The experiences of life teach truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-klemp/the-experiences-of-life-teach-truth/) [Harold Klemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-klemp/) > [“The theatre can teach us some truth, but it is the truth of the illusory nature of our existence. It can alert us to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/the-theatre-can-teach-us-some-truth-but-it-is-the-truth-of-the/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) > [“If you teach your children, teach them the Truth of God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/if-you-teach-your-children-teach-them-the-truth-of-god/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“When this was over, he'd have time to teach her the truth. He was always crazy when it came to her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kit-rocha/when-this-was-over-he-d-have-time-to-teach-her-the-truth-he-was/) [Kit Rocha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kit-rocha/) ## More by Felix Adler > [Love is the expansion of two natures in such fashion that each include the other, each is enriched by the other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/love-is-the-expansion-of-two-natures-in-such-fashion-that-each/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [Act so as to elicit the best in others and thereby in thyself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/act-so-as-to-elicit-the-best-in-others-and-thereby-in-thyself/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [May the humanity that is within every human being be held precious. The vice that underlies all vices is that we are held cheap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/may-the-humanity-that-is-within-every-human-being-be-held-precious/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [It is the moral element contained in it that alone gives value and dignity to a religion, and only in so far as its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/it-is-the-moral-element-contained-in-it-that-alone-gives-value-and/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [It is written that the last enemy to be vanquished is death. We should begin early in life to vanquish this enemy by obliterating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/it-is-written-that-the-last-enemy-to-be-vanquished-is-death-we-should/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [The human race may be compared to a writer. At the outset a writer has often only a vague general notion of the plan…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/the-human-race-may-be-compared-to-a-writer-at-the-outset-a-writer-has/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [We measure our enjoyments by the sum expended.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/we-measure-our-enjoyments-by-the-sum-expended/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [An anxious unrest, a fierce craving desire for gain has taken possession of the commercial world, and in instances no longer rare the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/an-anxious-unrest-a-fierce-craving-desire-for-gain-has-taken/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [The conception of worth, that each person is an end per se, is not a mere abstraction. Our interest in it is not merely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/the-conception-of-worth-that-each-person-is-an-end-per-se-is-not-a/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [Few are there that will leave the secure seclusion of the scholar's life, the peaceful walks of literature and learning, to stand out a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/few-are-there-that-will-leave-the-secure-seclusion-of-the-scholar-s/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [The right for the right's sake is the motto which everyone should take for his own life. With that as a standard of value…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/the-right-for-the-right-s-sake-is-the-motto-which-everyone-should/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [FOR a long time the conviction has been dimly felt in the community that, without prejudice to existing institutions, the legal day of weekly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/for-a-long-time-the-conviction-has-been-dimly-felt-in-the-community/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [Admitting the force of these contentions, nevertheless, the custom of meeting together in public assembly for the consideration of the most serious, the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/admitting-the-force-of-these-contentions-nevertheless-the-custom-of/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [The office of the public teacher is an unenviable and thankless one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/the-office-of-the-public-teacher-is-an-unenviable-and-thankless-one/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [An optimist is a person who sees only the lights in the picture, whereas a pessimist sees only the shadows. An idealist, however, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/an-optimist-is-a-person-who-sees-only-the-lights-in-the-picture/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) [Explore all 67 Felix Adler quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) ## More Autobiography quotes > [I think anything that anyone writes thats any good is going to have a lot of autobiography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-adly-guirgis/i-think-anything-that-anyone-writes-thats-any-good-is-going-to-have-a/) [Stephen Adly Guirgis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-adly-guirgis/) > [“I am not and autobiographical writer--one can't be without a solid and explicable self--and read all autobiographical writers with the same curiosity. What kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yiyun-li/i-am-not-and-autobiographical-writer-one-can-t-be-without-a-solid-and/) [Yiyun Li](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yiyun-li/) > [“Someday, I want to write an unauthorized autobiography of myself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mcmullen-sullivan/someday-i-want-to-write-an-unauthorized-autobiography-of-myself/) [David McMullen-Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mcmullen-sullivan/) > [“As well as writing, 2004 saw my first attempt at wine making: the elixir of life. Unfortunately, my effort tasted more like the elixir…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-briggs/as-well-as-writing-2004-saw-my-first-attempt-at-wine-making-the/) [Craig Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-briggs/) > [I caught a cold and didn't have time to work on my autobiography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-doucet/i-caught-a-cold-and-didn-t-have-time-to-work-on-my-autobiography/) [Julie Doucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-doucet/) > [Who ever heard, indeed, of an autobiography that was not (interesting)? I can recall none in all the literature of the world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/who-ever-heard-indeed-of-an-autobiography-that-was-not-interesting-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't really think of my essays as being about myself. I know it sounds insane, but I just don't think of them as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sloane-crosley/i-don-t-really-think-of-my-essays-as-being-about-myself-i-know-it/) [Sloane Crosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sloane-crosley/) > [The way I would live my life is: never do something in real life that I would not want to write about in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siddharth-katragadda/the-way-i-would-live-my-life-is-never-do-something-in-real-life-that/) [Siddharth Katragadda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siddharth-katragadda/) > [biography cannot be separated from autobiography: that is, the life written about is inextricably entangled with the life of the biographer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-simon/biography-cannot-be-separated-from-autobiography-that-is-the-life/) [Linda Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-simon/) > [I think I'm like most novelists in that my books have gotten farther and farther away from autobiography the longer I've been writing them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-i-m-like-most-novelists-in-that-my-books-have-gotten-farther/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [If you wish to understand me at all (and to write an autobiography is only to open a window into one's heart) you must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nellie-melba/if-you-wish-to-understand-me-at-all-and-to-write-an-autobiography-is/) [Nellie Melba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nellie-melba/) > [I want an autobiography without revealing any personal information.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-ross/i-want-an-autobiography-without-revealing-any-personal-information/) [Diana Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-ross/) > [I don't like the word 'autobiography.' I rather like the term 'autofiction.' The second you make a script out of the story of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-don-t-like-the-word-autobiography-i-rather-like-the-term/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [Because I write fiction, I don't write autobiography, and to me they are very different things. The first-person narrative is a very intimate thing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-atkinson/because-i-write-fiction-i-don-t-write-autobiography-and-to-me-they/) [Kate Atkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-atkinson/) > [“I don't think anyone could write a completely honest autobiography. I am sure no one could bear to read it: My Past Was An…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/i-don-t-think-anyone-could-write-a-completely-honest-autobiography-i/) [William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/) [Browse all 642 Autobiography quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autobiography/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“[His research into biblical criticism had lead him to the conclusion that most of what was contained in traditional religion simply wasn't true] Was I to lie in order to teach the truth? ...Was I to repeat these words? It was impossible. It was certain they would stick in my throat. 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