--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: forms of religion, and at the same time…" description: "\"“forms of religion, and at the same time neglect the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith. They are always ready to sacrifice, but ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1b/frederick-douglass-859_christian-church_forms-of-religion-and-at-the-same-time-n_1516379.jpg" --- # forms of religion, and at the same time neglect the… ![“forms of religion, and at the same time neglect the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith. They are always ready to sacrifice, but seldom to show mercy. They are they who are represented as professing to love God whom they have not seen, whilst they hate their brother whom they…” quote by Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1b/frederick-douglass-859_christian-church_forms-of-religion-and-at-the-same-time-n_1516379.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1b/frederick-douglass-859_christian-church_forms-of-religion-and-at-the-same-time-n_1516379.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1b/frederick-douglass-859_christian-church_forms-of-religion-and-at-the-same-time-n_1516379.jpg) > ““forms of religion, and at the same time neglect the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith. They are always ready to sacrifice, but seldom to show mercy. They are they who are represented as professing to love God whom they have not seen, whilst they hate their brother whom they have seen. They love the heathen on the other side of the globe. They can pray for him, pay money to have the Bible put into his hand, and missionaries to instruct him; while they despise and totally neglect the heathen at their own doors. Such is, very briefly, my view of the religion of this land; and to avoid any misunderstanding, growing out of the use of general terms, I mean by the religion of this land, that which is revealed in the words, deeds, and actions, of those bodies, north and south, calling themselves Christian churches, and yet in union with slaveholders.”” [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He critiques religious hypocrisy that prioritizes distant souls over immediate neighbors, urging true mercy. **In simple terms:** Religion should show mercy locally, not just abroad. Key Takeaway Practice compassion toward those nearby. Themes religion hypocrisy mercy justice slavery Mood somber thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - church gatherings - social reform meetings - personal reflection Key Concepts ethics social critique faith community Questions to Reflect On - What does true mercy look like in daily life? - How can we confront religious hypocrisy? A Different Perspective Changing entrenched beliefs is difficult. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Christian church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christian-church/) [Compassion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compassion/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Heathen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heathen/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [It doesn't seem to me that this fantastically marvelous universe, this tremendous range of time and space and different kinds of animals, and all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/it-doesn-t-seem-to-me-that-this-fantastically-marvelous-universe-this/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [We've all been brought up with the view that religion has some kind of special privileged status. 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Everywhere the formed world is the only habitable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/it-is-meritorious-to-insist-on-forms-religion-and-all-else-naturally/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [All outward forms of religion are almost useless, and are the causes of endless strife. 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They are they who are represented as professing to love God whom they have not seen, whilst they hate their brother whom they have seen. They love the heathen on the other side of the globe. They can pray for him, pay money to have the Bible put into his hand, and missionaries to instruct him; while they despise and totally neglect the heathen at their own doors. Such is, very briefly, my view of the religion of this land; and to avoid any misunderstanding, growing out of the use of general terms, I mean by the religion of this land, that which is revealed in the words, deeds, and actions, of those bodies, north and south, calling themselves Christian churches, and yet in union with slaveholders.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Frederick Douglass" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/forms-of-religion-and-at-the-same-time-neglect-the-weightier-matters/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Christian church" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/forms-of-religion-and-at-the-same-time-neglect-the-weightier-matters/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1b/frederick-douglass-859_christian-church_forms-of-religion-and-at-the-same-time-n_1516379.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1b/frederick-douglass-859_christian-church_forms-of-religion-and-at-the-same-time-n_1516379.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1b/frederick-douglass-859_christian-church_forms-of-religion-and-at-the-same-time-n_1516379.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“forms of religion, and at the same time neglect the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and…” — Frederick Douglass", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Frederick Douglass", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“forms of religion, and at the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/forms-of-religion-and-at-the-same-time-neglect-the-weightier-matters/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/forms-of-religion-and-at-the-same-time-neglect-the-weightier-matters/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```