---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Wouldn't it be a great thing if all who…"
description: "\"Wouldn't it be a great thing if all who are well schooled in secular learning could hold fast to the \"iron rod,\" or the word of God, which could lead t..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/48b/harold-b-lee-7452_apostasy_wouldn-t-it-be-a-great-thing-if-all-who_2452325.jpg"
---

#  Wouldn't it be a great thing if all who are well schooled…

![“Wouldn't it be a great thing if all who are well schooled in secular learning could hold fast to the &quot;iron rod,&quot; or the word of God, which could lead them, through faith, to an understanding, rather than to have them stray away into strange paths of man-made theories and be plunged into the murky…” quote by Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/48b/harold-b-lee-7452_apostasy_wouldn-t-it-be-a-great-thing-if-all-who_2452325.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/48b/harold-b-lee-7452_apostasy_wouldn-t-it-be-a-great-thing-if-all-who_2452325.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/48b/harold-b-lee-7452_apostasy_wouldn-t-it-be-a-great-thing-if-all-who_2452325.jpg)

> “Wouldn't it be a great thing if all who are well schooled in secular learning could hold fast to the "iron rod," or the word of God, which could lead them, through faith, to an understanding, rather than to have them stray away into strange paths of man-made theories and be plunged into the murky waters of disbelief and apostasy?”

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The quote urges educated individuals to anchor themselves in religious truth rather than stray into secular theories that could lead to doubt.

**In simple terms:** Hold fast to faith over secular ideas.

Key Takeaway

Prioritize spiritual study alongside secular education.

Themes

faith education truth

Mood

thoughtful inspirational

Type

spiritual educational

When to use this quote

- religious education
- college curricula
- personal study groups
- faith‑based counseling

Key Concepts

theology secularism intellectual humility

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you integrate faith with academic learning?
- What safeguards prevent intellectual rigidity?

A Different Perspective

Balancing faith and critical thinking can be challenging.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Apostasy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apostasy/) [Disbelief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disbelief/) [Disbelief Apostasy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disbelief-apostasy-580445/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Faith Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith-understanding-580447/) [Great things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-things/) [Hold fast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hold-fast/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Iron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iron/) [Lead Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lead-faith-580446/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Murky water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/murky-water-127088/) [Path](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/path/) [Schooled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/schooled/) [Schooled Secular](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/schooled-secular-580444/) [Secular](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secular/) [Secular Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secular-learning-580443/) [Strange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strange/) [Theory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theory/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/) [Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wells/) [Word of god](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/word-of-god/)

## Related quotes

> [“There are many who profess to be religious and speak of themselves as Christians, and, according to one such, “as accepting the scriptures only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/there-are-many-who-profess-to-be-religious-and-speak-of-themselves-as-2/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [To teach in order to lead others to faith is the task of every preacher and of each believer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/to-teach-in-order-to-lead-others-to-faith-is-the-task-of-every/)

[Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/)

> [God is not pleased by blood – and not acting reasonably is contrary to God's nature. Faith is born of the soul, not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-ii-palaiologos/god-is-not-pleased-by-blood-and-not-acting-reasonably-is-contrary-to/)

[Manuel II Palaiologos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-ii-palaiologos/)

> [Two years after my mother died, my father fell in love with a glamorous blonde Ukrainian divorcée. He was eighty-four and she was thirty-six.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-lewycka/two-years-after-my-mother-died-my-father-fell-in-love-with-a/)

[Marina Lewycka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marina-lewycka/)

> [“Mendelssohn was keenly aware of the difference between the respect he received and the disdain shown to other Jews. In a letter to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-goldstein/mendelssohn-was-keenly-aware-of-the-difference-between-the-respect-he/)

[Phyllis Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-goldstein/)

> [“Learning about sacred things should come first, providing a context and need for secular learning. If we want to return to our Heavenly Father’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-tom-perry/learning-about-sacred-things-should-come-first-providing-a-context/)

[L. Tom Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-tom-perry/)

> [“Whoever lacks such experience, however, is often at a loss, being unaware that secular learning is of great help when it acts as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-nikodimos/whoever-lacks-such-experience-however-is-often-at-a-loss-being/)

[Saint Nikodimos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-nikodimos/)

> [When we start making distinctions between soul and spirit, we're in very, very murky waters. There is the whole issue of the English language,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-houston/when-we-start-making-distinctions-between-soul-and-spirit-we-re-in/)

[Jean Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-houston/)

> [Exposed! shines a harsh light on the myriad horrors of modern society and reports back from the fearful frontlines with wicked wit and paranoid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-robert-johnson/exposed-shines-a-harsh-light-on-the-myriad-horrors-of-modern-society/)

[Jeremy Robert Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-robert-johnson/)

> [I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philemon/i-pray-that-you-may-be-active-in-sharing-your-faith-so-that-you-will/)

[Philemon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philemon/)

> [“The path between faith and understanding demands both obedience and inquiry. If Christianity is true, if it goes to the center of the universe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-lee-anderson/the-path-between-faith-and-understanding-demands-both-obedience-and/)

[Matthew Lee Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-lee-anderson/)

> [Does this mean we will always understand our challenges? Won't all of us, sometime, have reason to ask, 'O God, where art thou?' Yes!…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-d-hales/does-this-mean-we-will-always-understand-our-challenges-won-t-all-of/)

[Robert D. Hales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-d-hales/)

> [We should learn and reflect to the best of our capacity, but when we reach a point where we are unable to make sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baal-shem-tov/we-should-learn-and-reflect-to-the-best-of-our-capacity-but-when-we/)

[Baal Shem Tov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baal-shem-tov/)

> [A better world shall emerge based on faith and understanding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-macarthur/a-better-world-shall-emerge-based-on-faith-and-understanding/)

[Douglas MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-macarthur/)

> [What evolution tells us is that we are part of a grand, dynamic, and ever-changing fabric of life that covers our planet. Even to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-r-miller/what-evolution-tells-us-is-that-we-are-part-of-a-grand-dynamic-and/)

[Kenneth R. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-r-miller/)

## More by Harold B. Lee

> [“It was to accomplish this lofty purpose basic to all liberty that God “established the Constitution of this land by the hands of wise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/it-was-to-accomplish-this-lofty-purpose-basic-to-all-liberty-that-god/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [It's all right to pull the cow out of the mud on Sunday, provided that you don't push him in on Saturday night.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/it-s-all-right-to-pull-the-cow-out-of-the-mud-on-sunday-provided-that/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [ \[W\]e declare it is a grievous sin before God to adopt restrictive measures in disobedience to God's divine command from the beginning of time… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/w-e-declare-it-is-a-grievous-sin-before-god-to-adopt-restrictive/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [You must learn to walk to the edge of the light, and then a few steps into the darkness; then the light will appear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/you-must-learn-to-walk-to-the-edge-of-the-light-and-then-a-few-steps/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [“It is good to be faithful. It is better to be faithful and competent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/it-is-good-to-be-faithful-it-is-better-to-be-faithful-and-competent/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [Just as a flood-lighted temple is more beautiful in a severe storm or in a heavy fog, so the gospel of Jesus Christ is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/just-as-a-flood-lighted-temple-is-more-beautiful-in-a-severe-storm-or/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [We can be the best taught people on the face of the earth but the trouble is we don't live as well as we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/we-can-be-the-best-taught-people-on-the-face-of-the-earth-but-the/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [“Whether at home or in church, your thoughts and your conduct should be always in harmony with the spirit and purpose of the Sabbath.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/whether-at-home-or-in-church-your-thoughts-and-your-conduct-should-be/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [The heaviest burden that one has to bear in this life is the burden of sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/the-heaviest-burden-that-one-has-to-bear-in-this-life-is-the-burden/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [“Unless every member of this church gains for himself an unshakable testimony of the divinity of this church, he will be among those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/unless-every-member-of-this-church-gains-for-himself-an-unshakable/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [I only ask to go where the Lord would have me go, and only to receive what the Lord would have me receive, knowing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/i-only-ask-to-go-where-the-lord-would-have-me-go-and-only-to-receive/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [Happiness does not depend on what happens outside of you, but what happens inside of you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/happiness-does-not-depend-on-what-happens-outside-of-you-but-what/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [“Marriage is a partnership. Someone has observed that in the Bible account of the creation woman was not formed from a part of man's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/marriage-is-a-partnership-someone-has-observed-that-in-the-bible/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [Remember that, brethren. You cannot destroy the appointments of the prophets of God. The Lord knows whom He wants to preside in His Church,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/remember-that-brethren-you-cannot-destroy-the-appointments-of-the/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

> [The most important message that I can give to you and to all the world is to keep the commandments of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/the-most-important-message-that-i-can-give-to-you-and-to-all-the/)

[Harold B. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

[Explore all 91 Harold B. Lee quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/)

## More Apostasy quotes

> [“A treacherous President stood in the way; and it can be easily seen how reluctant good men might be to admit an apostasy which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/a-treacherous-president-stood-in-the-way-and-it-can-be-easily-seen/)

[Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/)

> [“The Bible is clear: amnesia produces apostasy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-ralph-davis/the-bible-is-clear-amnesia-produces-apostasy/)

[Dale Ralph Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-ralph-davis/)

> [Conversion and zealotry, just like revelation and apostasy, are flip sides of the same coin, the currency of a political culture having more in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/conversion-and-zealotry-just-like-revelation-and-apostasy-are-flip/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [...the great movement of apostasy being organized in every country for the establishment of a One-World Church which shall have neither dogmas, nor hierarchy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-pius-x/the-great-movement-of-apostasy-being-organized-in-every-country-for/)

[Pope Pius X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-pius-x/)

> [“When apostasy comes, it is because the spirit of revelation departs from us. The wire is broken between us and the source of truth.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-a-widtsoe/when-apostasy-comes-it-is-because-the-spirit-of-revelation-departs/)

[John A. Widtsoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-a-widtsoe/)

> [“As far as concerned the apostasy, indeed, He redeems us righteously from it by His own blood; but as regards us who have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-church-fathers/as-far-as-concerned-the-apostasy-indeed-he-redeems-us-righteously/)

[The Church Fathers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-church-fathers/)

> [There is no broader way to apostasy than to reject God’s sovereignty in all things concerning the revelation of himself and our obedience...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-owen/there-is-no-broader-way-to-apostasy-than-to-reject-god-s-sovereignty/)

[John Owen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-owen/)

> [“Sometimes there is a thin line separating orthodox zeal from apostasy,' said Father Lenar Hoyt”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-simmons/sometimes-there-is-a-thin-line-separating-orthodox-zeal-from-apostasy/)

[Dan Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-simmons/)

> [“And since the apostasy tyrannized over us unjustly, and, though we were by nature the property of the omnipotent God, alienated us contrary to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-church-fathers/and-since-the-apostasy-tyrannized-over-us-unjustly-and-though-we-were/)

[The Church Fathers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-church-fathers/)

> [The Bible says that in the last days, there would be false teachers. And, it also says that in the End Times that... there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-laurie/the-bible-says-that-in-the-last-days-there-would-be-false-teachers/)

[Greg Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-laurie/)

> [The Gates of Hell shall not prevail against it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/the-gates-of-hell-shall-not-prevail-against-it/)

[Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/)

> [Virtue will catch as well as vice by contact; and the public stock of honest manly principle will daily accumulate. We are not too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/virtue-will-catch-as-well-as-vice-by-contact-and-the-public-stock-of/)

[Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/)

> [Look at the Metropolitan Community Church today, the gay church, almost accepted into the World Council of Churches. Almost, the vote was against them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-falwell/look-at-the-metropolitan-community-church-today-the-gay-church-almost/)

[Jerry Falwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-falwell/)

> [Men had made, we believe, fundamental changes in the doctrines, purposes, and practices of the Pristine Gospel and Church. There had been an apostasy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lowell-l-bennion/men-had-made-we-believe-fundamental-changes-in-the-doctrines-purposes/)

[Lowell L. Bennion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lowell-l-bennion/)

> [“In his separation from God in whose light alone man can see the truth, man lost his catholicizing spirit- he no longer (apart from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-r-van-til/in-his-separation-from-god-in-whose-light-alone-man-can-see-the-truth/)

[Henry R. Van Til](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-r-van-til/)

[Browse all 49 Apostasy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apostasy/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Wouldn't it be a great thing if all who are well schooled in secular learning could hold fast to the \"iron rod,\" or the word of God, which could lead them, through faith, to an understanding, rather than to have them stray away into strange paths of man-made theories and be plunged into the murky waters of disbelief and apostasy?",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Harold B. Lee"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/wouldn-t-it-be-a-great-thing-if-all-who-are-well-schooled-in-secular/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Apostasy"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/wouldn-t-it-be-a-great-thing-if-all-who-are-well-schooled-in-secular/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/48b/harold-b-lee-7452_apostasy_wouldn-t-it-be-a-great-thing-if-all-who_2452325.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/48b/harold-b-lee-7452_apostasy_wouldn-t-it-be-a-great-thing-if-all-who_2452325.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/48b/harold-b-lee-7452_apostasy_wouldn-t-it-be-a-great-thing-if-all-who_2452325.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Wouldn't it be a great thing if all who are well schooled in secular learning could hold fast to the \"iron…” — Harold B. Lee",
                "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": "Harold B. Lee",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-b-lee/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Wouldn't it be a great thing...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/wouldn-t-it-be-a-great-thing-if-all-who-are-well-schooled-in-secular/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-b-lee/wouldn-t-it-be-a-great-thing-if-all-who-are-well-schooled-in-secular/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
