--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To be a heretic to-day is almost a human…" description: "\"To be a heretic to-day is almost a human obligation.\" — Jane Ellen Harrison" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b8/jane-ellen-harrison-30732_heretic_to-be-a-heretic-to-day-is-almost-a-human_2340249.jpg" --- # To be a heretic to-day is almost a human obligation. ![“To be a heretic to-day is almost a human obligation.” quote by Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b8/jane-ellen-harrison-30732_heretic_to-be-a-heretic-to-day-is-almost-a-human_2340249.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b8/jane-ellen-harrison-30732_heretic_to-be-a-heretic-to-day-is-almost-a-human_2340249.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b8/jane-ellen-harrison-30732_heretic_to-be-a-heretic-to-day-is-almost-a-human_2340249.jpg) > “To be a heretic to-day is almost a human obligation.” [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Questioning traditional beliefs is a duty; challenging norms drives intellectual progress. **In simple terms:** Being a heretic today is a responsibility. Key Takeaway Embrace critical thinking. Themes philosophy religion critical thinking intellectual freedom history Mood reflective provocative thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - academic research - public discourse - personal belief - social activism Key Concepts skepticism cultural critique ethical inquiry Questions to Reflect On - Why is it important to question long‑standing beliefs? - How can we balance respect for tradition with progress? A Different Perspective Counterpoint: Some traditions provide social cohesion; radical critique can alienate. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Heretic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heretic/) [Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Obligation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obligation/) [Responsibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/responsibility/) ## Related quotes > [“Every man has both a poetic obligation and a human obligation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hassan-blasim/every-man-has-both-a-poetic-obligation-and-a-human-obligation/) [Hassan Blasim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hassan-blasim/) > [Being an atheist is a matter not of moral choice, but of human obligation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/being-an-atheist-is-a-matter-not-of-moral-choice-but-of-human/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [My obligation right now is to do well for myself, my family, my employees, for my companies. And that's what I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/my-obligation-right-now-is-to-do-well-for-myself-my-family-my/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [When God put everybody here, I don't think that he had a master plan of a pecking order. That's not what you see in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-feldman/when-god-put-everybody-here-i-don-t-think-that-he-had-a-master-plan/) [Corey Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-feldman/) > [Intellectual adherence is never owed to anything whatsoever, for it is never in any degree a voluntary thing. Attention alone is voluntary. It alone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/intellectual-adherence-is-never-owed-to-anything-whatsoever-for-it-is/) [Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/) > [We thought that, perhaps," said I, hesitating, "it is right to begin with the obligations of home, sir; and that, perhaps, while those are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/we-thought-that-perhaps-said-i-hesitating-it-is-right-to-begin-with/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [I'm thankful for the ability to share my faith in a lot of different places. It's something that I take as a responsibility and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-tebow/i-m-thankful-for-the-ability-to-share-my-faith-in-a-lot-of-different/) [Tim Tebow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-tebow/) > [The writer’s job is to write with rigor, with commitment, to defend what they believe with all the talent they have. I think that’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/the-writer-s-job-is-to-write-with-rigor-with-commitment-to-defend/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [ The reality is that the media are probably the most powerful of all our institutions today and they, or rather we \[journalists\], too often… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/the-reality-is-that-the-media-are-probably-the-most-powerful-of-all/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [What must be addressed in the most immediate sense is the threat that the emerging police state in the United States poses not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/what-must-be-addressed-in-the-most-immediate-sense-is-the-threat-that/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [My grandfather was a man, when he talked about freedom, his attitude was really interesting. His view was that you had obligations or you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-thomas/my-grandfather-was-a-man-when-he-talked-about-freedom-his-attitude/) [Clarence Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-thomas/) > [Be sure to do your duty today, and let God Take care of the outcome.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/be-sure-to-do-your-duty-today-and-let-god-take-care-of-the-outcome/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Obligation is what's leading us to toward successful, and what keeps us moving towards the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wazim-shaw/obligation-is-what-s-leading-us-to-toward-successful-and-what-keeps/) [Wazim Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wazim-shaw/) > [A heretic can be tolerated. But a heresy cannot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahathir-mohamad/a-heretic-can-be-tolerated-but-a-heresy-cannot/) [Mahathir Mohamad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahathir-mohamad/) > [Wicked sons do not have the Holy Ghost in the same way as do beloved sons, and yet they do have Baptism. So, too,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/wicked-sons-do-not-have-the-holy-ghost-in-the-same-way-as-do-beloved/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) ## More by Jane Ellen Harrison > [“I like to live spaciously, but rather plainly, in large halls with great spaces and quiet libraries. I like to wake in the morning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/i-like-to-live-spaciously-but-rather-plainly-in-large-halls-with/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [“Then Ruskin came. I showed him our small library. He looked at it with disapproving eyes. “ Each book ”, he said gravely, “…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/then-ruskin-came-i-showed-him-our-small-library-he-looked-at-it-with/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [“Life does not cease when you are old, it only suffers a rich change. You go on loving, only your love, instead of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/life-does-not-cease-when-you-are-old-it-only-suffers-a-rich-change/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [“It was worth many hardships to see forty German professors try to mount forty recalcitrant mules. My own horseman¬ ship, as already hinted, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/it-was-worth-many-hardships-to-see-forty-german-professors-try-to/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [Old age, believe me, is a good and pleasant time. It is true that you are quietly shouldered off the stage, but then you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/old-age-believe-me-is-a-good-and-pleasant-time-it-is-true-that-you/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [“Nowadays it seems you learn only what is reasonable and relevant. I went to Rome with a young friend, educated on the latest lines,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/nowadays-it-seems-you-learn-only-what-is-reasonable-and-relevant-i/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [“And then last, but oh, so utterly first, came George Eliot. It was in the days when her cult was at its height—thank heaven…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/and-then-last-but-oh-so-utterly-first-came-george-eliot-it-was-in-the/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [“I mention these ritual dances, this ritual drama, this bridge between art and life, because it is things like these that I was all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/i-mention-these-ritual-dances-this-ritual-drama-this-bridge-between/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [“Greek writers of the fifth century B.C. have a way of speaking of, an attitude towards, religion, as though it were wholly a thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/greek-writers-of-the-fifth-century-b-c-have-a-way-of-speaking-of-an/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [“When I first came to London I became a Life Member of the London Library. London life was costly, but I felt that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/when-i-first-came-to-london-i-became-a-life-member-of-the-london/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [“There was an odd rule throughout the College that no girl might buy a book.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/there-was-an-odd-rule-throughout-the-college-that-no-girl-might-buy-a/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [Paganism is the worship of life itself in its supreme mysteries of ecstasy and love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/paganism-is-the-worship-of-life-itself-in-its-supreme-mysteries-of/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [“At his house I often met Henry James. I liked to watch that ingenious spider weaving his webs, but to me he had no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/at-his-house-i-often-met-henry-james-i-liked-to-watch-that-ingenious/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [“Though I have lived most of my life with educationalists, I have little interest in educa¬ tion. I dislike schools, both for boys and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/though-i-have-lived-most-of-my-life-with-educationalists-i-have/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) > [“If I could have my life over again, I would devote it not to art or literature, but to language. Life itself may hit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/if-i-could-have-my-life-over-again-i-would-devote-it-not-to-art-or/) [Jane Ellen Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) [Explore all 17 Jane Ellen Harrison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/) ## More Heretic quotes > [Wicked sons do not have the Holy Ghost in the same way as do beloved sons, and yet they do have Baptism. So, too,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/wicked-sons-do-not-have-the-holy-ghost-in-the-same-way-as-do-beloved/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [A heretic can be tolerated. But a heresy cannot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahathir-mohamad/a-heretic-can-be-tolerated-but-a-heresy-cannot/) [Mahathir Mohamad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahathir-mohamad/) > [“Every great philosopher, in their own way, questioned the fundamental assumptions that were present in the thinking of their time”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-west/every-great-philosopher-in-their-own-way-questioned-the-fundamental/) Steven West > [... faithfully and strenuously you should resist the heretics in defense of the only true and life-giving faith, which the Church has received -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-clement-i/faithfully-and-strenuously-you-should-resist-the-heretics-in-defense/) [Pope Clement I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-clement-i/) > [The only good thing that we owe to Plato and Aristotle is that they brought forward many arguments which we can use against the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/girolamo-savonarola/the-only-good-thing-that-we-owe-to-plato-and-aristotle-is-that-they/) [Girolamo Savonarola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/girolamo-savonarola/) > ["If any man thirst, let him come and drink from the rivers of living water" (cf. John 7:38). Where shall he who thirsts come?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyprian/if-any-man-thirst-let-him-come-and-drink-from-the-rivers-of-living/) [Cyprian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyprian/) > [Consequently, heretics and schismatics, separated from the unity of this Body, are able to receive the same Sacrament, but with no benefit to themselves;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/consequently-heretics-and-schismatics-separated-from-the-unity-of/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [Flesh is heretic. My body is a witch. I am burning it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eavan-boland/flesh-is-heretic-my-body-is-a-witch-i-am-burning-it/) [Eavan Boland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eavan-boland/) > [Tout re volutionnaire finit en oppresseur ou en he re tique. Every revolutionary ends as an oppressor or a heretic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/tout-re-volutionnaire-finit-en-oppresseur-ou-en-he-re-tique-every/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [I have no expertise of other religious traditions so I'm not going to opine on them, but in Islam the more you know about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haroon-moghul/i-have-no-expertise-of-other-religious-traditions-so-i-m-not-going-to/) [Haroon Moghul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haroon-moghul/) > [“I was born a heretic. I always distrusted people who know so much about what God wants them to do to their fellows.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-b-anthony/i-was-born-a-heretic-i-always-distrusted-people-who-know-so-much/) [Susan B. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-b-anthony/) > [Well, another female child is born into the world! Last Sunday afternoon, Harriot Eaton Stanton - oh! the little heretic thus to desecrate that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-cady-stanton/well-another-female-child-is-born-into-the-world-last-sunday/) [Elizabeth Cady Stanton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-cady-stanton/) > [Dogma demands authority, rather than intelligent thought, as the source of opinion; it requires persecution of heretics and hostility to unbelievers; it asks of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/dogma-demands-authority-rather-than-intelligent-thought-as-the-source/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [Now that they talk about Islam as being a violent faith, when you look at the history of Christendom, the Crusades and the many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/now-that-they-talk-about-islam-as-being-a-violent-faith-when-you-look/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [Here's what I love: when a great writer turns me into a Jew from Chicago, a lesbian out of South Carolina, or a black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/here-s-what-i-love-when-a-great-writer-turns-me-into-a-jew-from/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) [Browse all 242 Heretic quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heretic/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To be a heretic to-day is almost a human obligation.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jane Ellen Harrison" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/to-be-a-heretic-to-day-is-almost-a-human-obligation/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Heretic" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/to-be-a-heretic-to-day-is-almost-a-human-obligation/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b8/jane-ellen-harrison-30732_heretic_to-be-a-heretic-to-day-is-almost-a-human_2340249.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b8/jane-ellen-harrison-30732_heretic_to-be-a-heretic-to-day-is-almost-a-human_2340249.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b8/jane-ellen-harrison-30732_heretic_to-be-a-heretic-to-day-is-almost-a-human_2340249.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To be a heretic to-day is almost a human obligation.” — Jane Ellen Harrison", "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": "Jane Ellen Harrison", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-ellen-harrison/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "To be a heretic to-day is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/to-be-a-heretic-to-day-is-almost-a-human-obligation/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-ellen-harrison/to-be-a-heretic-to-day-is-almost-a-human-obligation/#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 } } ] } ```