--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If a state should pass laws forbidding…" description: "\"If a state should pass laws forbidding its citizens to become wise and holy, it would be made a byword for all time. But this, in effect, is what our c..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/007/john-lancaster-spalding-3115_all-time_if-a-state-should-pass-laws-forbidding-i_2358714.png" --- # If a state should pass laws forbidding its citizens to… ![“If a state should pass laws forbidding its citizens to become wise and holy, it would be made a byword for all time. But this, in effect, is what our commercial, social, and political systems do. They compel the sacrifice of mental and moral power to money and dissipation.” quote by John Lancaster Spalding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/007/john-lancaster-spalding-3115_all-time_if-a-state-should-pass-laws-forbidding-i_2358714.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/007/john-lancaster-spalding-3115_all-time_if-a-state-should-pass-laws-forbidding-i_2358714.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/007/john-lancaster-spalding-3115_all-time_if-a-state-should-pass-laws-forbidding-i_2358714.png) > “If a state should pass laws forbidding its citizens to become wise and holy, it would be made a byword for all time. But this, in effect, is what our commercial, social, and political systems do. They compel the sacrifice of mental and moral power to money and dissipation.” [John Lancaster Spalding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lancaster-spalding/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Societies often prioritize wealth over wisdom, diminishing collective moral and intellectual growth. **In simple terms:** We prioritize money over wisdom. Key Takeaway Value wisdom over profit. Themes society morality economics education power Mood critical reflective Type philosophical social commentary When to use this quote - policy making - education reform - personal development - community activism Key Concepts materialism cognitive sacrifice ethical decay Questions to Reflect On - How can individuals resist materialistic pressures? - What policies could protect intellectual growth? A Different Perspective Economic pressures can make change difficult. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Holy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holy/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Political systems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-systems/) [Sacrifice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sacrifice/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wise/) ## Related quotes > [The essence of fascism is to make laws forbidding everything and then enforce them selectively against your enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lescroart/the-essence-of-fascism-is-to-make-laws-forbidding-everything-and-then/) [John Lescroart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lescroart/) > [“There was a town where everything was forbidden. Now, since the only thing that wasn’t forbidden was the game tip-cat, the town’s subjects used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/there-was-a-town-where-everything-was-forbidden-now-since-the-only/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [SAGE. A wise and Holy man who died a long time ago. No one modern qualifies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-wynne-jones/sage-a-wise-and-holy-man-who-died-a-long-time-ago-no-one-modern/) [Diana Wynne Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-wynne-jones/) > [God is an ever-present spirit guiding all that happens to a wise and holy end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/god-is-an-ever-present-spirit-guiding-all-that-happens-to-a-wise-and/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [“For (such is our innate pride) we always seem to ourselves just, and upright, and wise, and holy, until we are convinced, by clear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calvin/for-such-is-our-innate-pride-we-always-seem-to-ourselves-just-and/) [John Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calvin/) > [Authority is mainly a moral power; therefore, it must first call upon the conscience, that is, upon the duty that each person has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-john-xxiii/authority-is-mainly-a-moral-power-therefore-it-must-first-call-upon/) [Pope John XXIII](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-john-xxiii/) > [Woman is the companion of man, gifted with equal mental capacity...If by strength is meant moral power, then woman is immeasurably man's superior...If non-violence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/woman-is-the-companion-of-man-gifted-with-equal-mental-capacity-if-by/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Humankind has the science and technology to destroy itself or to provide prosperity for all. But while science offers us these opportunities, science will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-beckett/humankind-has-the-science-and-technology-to-destroy-itself-or-to/) [Margaret Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-beckett/) > [The Declaration has a moral power which is of enormous weight and influence. The statement of the rights represent a goal, or a standard,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-v-evatt/the-declaration-has-a-moral-power-which-is-of-enormous-weight-and/) H. V. Evatt > [Economic and military power can be developed under the spur of laws and appropriations. 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