--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A glorious Church is like a magnificent…" description: "\"A glorious Church is like a magnificent feast; there is all the variety that may be, but every one chooses out a dish or two that he likes, and lets th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d3/john-selden-7457_church_a-glorious-church-is-like-a-magnificent_2959963.jpg" --- # A glorious Church is like a magnificent feast; there is… ![“A glorious Church is like a magnificent feast; there is all the variety that may be, but every one chooses out a dish or two that he likes, and lets the rest alone: how glorious soever the Church is, every one chooses out of it his own religion, by which he governs himself, and lets the rest alone.” quote by John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d3/john-selden-7457_church_a-glorious-church-is-like-a-magnificent_2959963.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d3/john-selden-7457_church_a-glorious-church-is-like-a-magnificent_2959963.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d3/john-selden-7457_church_a-glorious-church-is-like-a-magnificent_2959963.jpg) > “A glorious Church is like a magnificent feast; there is all the variety that may be, but every one chooses out a dish or two that he likes, and lets the rest alone: how glorious soever the Church is, every one chooses out of it his own religion, by which he governs himself, and lets the rest alone.” [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The Church offers many doctrines, but individuals pick only what suits them, ignoring the rest. **In simple terms:** People select parts of religion they like, discarding others. Key Takeaway Recognize personal bias in spiritual choices. Themes religion individualism choice pluralism Mood contemplative critical thoughtful Type observational philosophical When to use this quote - personal worship - interfaith dialogue - religious education - community building Key Concepts theology personal autonomy cultural relativism Questions to Reflect On - Do you limit your faith to comfortable ideas? - How does selective belief affect community unity? A Different Perspective Overlooks the value of communal doctrine and shared belief. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/) [Church Chooses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church-chooses-4502112/) [Dishes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dishes/) [Feast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feast/) [Glorious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/glorious/) [Glorious Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/glorious-church-3570850/) [Likes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/likes/) [Magnificent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magnificent/) [Magnificent Feast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magnificent-feast-4502113/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Religion Governs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion-governs-4502114/) [Two](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two/) [Variety](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/variety/) ## Related quotes > [Yes, He is ris'n who is the First and Last; Who was and is; who liveth and was dead; Beyond the reach of death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horatius-bonar/yes-he-is-ris-n-who-is-the-first-and-last-who-was-and-is-who-liveth/) [Horatius Bonar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horatius-bonar/) > [“My books are a word feast.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-r-lopez/my-books-are-a-word-feast/) [Lori R. Lopez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-r-lopez/) > [Life is not a spectacle or a feast; it is a predicament.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/life-is-not-a-spectacle-or-a-feast-it-is-a-predicament/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) > [A civil guest Will no more talk all, than eat all the feast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-herbert/a-civil-guest-will-no-more-talk-all-than-eat-all-the-feast/) [George Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-herbert/) > [Cheerful looks make every dish a feast, and it is that which crowns a welcome.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-massinger/cheerful-looks-make-every-dish-a-feast-and-it-is-that-which-crowns-a/) [Philip Massinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-massinger/) > [A dinner! How horrible! I am to be made the pretext for killing all those wretched animals and birds, and fish! Thank you for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/a-dinner-how-horrible-i-am-to-be-made-the-pretext-for-killing-all/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“We come to mistake the crumbs of mercy for the feast of love”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/we-come-to-mistake-the-crumbs-of-mercy-for-the-feast-of-love/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [I think I won the Feast or Fired briefcase every time I was in the match.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-drake/i-think-i-won-the-feast-or-fired-briefcase-every-time-i-was-in-the/) [Eli Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-drake/) > [“They lurk in the cold and dark.Hungry and,wicked,they wait for their one chance to devour the weak on Sorry Night.Then the vours feast on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-holt/they-lurk-in-the-cold-and-dark-hungry-and-wicked-they-wait-for-their/) [Simon Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-holt/) > [Bear in mind that you should conduct yourself in life as at a feast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/bear-in-mind-that-you-should-conduct-yourself-in-life-as-at-a-feast/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [An intelligently planned feast is like a summing up of the whole world, where each part is represented by its envoys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-anthelme-brillat-savarin/an-intelligently-planned-feast-is-like-a-summing-up-of-the-whole/) [Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-anthelme-brillat-savarin/) > [“We don't see the New Testament church hoarding the feast for themselves, gorging, getting fatter and fatter and asking for more; more bible studies,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jen-hatmaker/we-don-t-see-the-new-testament-church-hoarding-the-feast-for/) [Jen Hatmaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jen-hatmaker/) > [“One man's famine makes another man's feast.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-kroc/one-man-s-famine-makes-another-man-s-feast/) [Ray Kroc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-kroc/) > [Tears on the mauseoleum floor. Blood stains the coliseum doors. Lies on the lips of a priest. Thanksgiving disguised as a feast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-z/tears-on-the-mauseoleum-floor-blood-stains-the-coliseum-doors-lies-on/) [Jay-Z](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-z/) > [Moderation is a fatal thing. Enough is as bad as a meal. More than enough is as good as a feast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/moderation-is-a-fatal-thing-enough-is-as-bad-as-a-meal-more-than/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) ## More by John Selden > [Marriage is a desperate thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/marriage-is-a-desperate-thing/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [They that govern the most make the least noise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/they-that-govern-the-most-make-the-least-noise/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [We look after religion as the butcher did after his knife, when he had it in his mouth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/we-look-after-religion-as-the-butcher-did-after-his-knife-when-he-had/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Those that govern most make least noise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/those-that-govern-most-make-least-noise/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Idolatry is in a man's own thought, not in the opinion of another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/idolatry-is-in-a-man-s-own-thought-not-in-the-opinion-of-another/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [No man is the wiser for his learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/no-man-is-the-wiser-for-his-learning/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Wise people say nothing in dangerous times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/wise-people-say-nothing-in-dangerous-times/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Old friends are best. King James used to call for his old shoes; they were the easiest for his feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/old-friends-are-best-king-james-used-to-call-for-his-old-shoes-they/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Pleasures are all alike simply considered in themselves: he that hunts, or he that governs the commonwealth, they both please themselves alike, only we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/pleasures-are-all-alike-simply-considered-in-themselves-he-that-hunts/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [We pick out a text here and there to make it serve our turn; whereas , if we take it all together, and considered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/we-pick-out-a-text-here-and-there-to-make-it-serve-our-turn-whereas/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Talk what you will of the Jews,--that they are cursed: they thrive wherever they come; they are able to oblige the prince of their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/talk-what-you-will-of-the-jews-that-they-are-cursed-they-thrive/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [They that are against superstition oftentimes run into it of the wrong side. If I wear all colors but black, then I am superstitious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/they-that-are-against-superstition-oftentimes-run-into-it-of-the/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [The world cannot be governed without juggling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/the-world-cannot-be-governed-without-juggling/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Preaching, in the first sense of the word, ceased as soon as ever the gospel was written.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/preaching-in-the-first-sense-of-the-word-ceased-as-soon-as-ever-the/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Preachers say, "Do as I say, not as I do." But if a physician had the same disease upon him that I have, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/preachers-say-do-as-i-say-not-as-i-do-but-if-a-physician-had-the-same/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) [Explore all 91 John Selden quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) ## More Church quotes > [While the 1963 Birmingham church bombing is the most historic, there also was a series of church burnings in the 1990s. Recognition of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthea-butler/while-the-1963-birmingham-church-bombing-is-the-most-historic-there/) [Anthea Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthea-butler/) > [If I had my brothers I think with just a little bit of the correct marketing, I'd like to be almost exclusively in small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-bozzio/if-i-had-my-brothers-i-think-with-just-a-little-bit-of-the-correct/) [Terry Bozzio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-bozzio/) > [Turn over the pages of history and read the damning record of the church's opposition to every advance in every field of science. . . .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/upton-sinclair/turn-over-the-pages-of-history-and-read-the-damning-record-of-the/) [Upton Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/upton-sinclair/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/) [Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/) > [God is not calling us to go to church; he is calling us to be his church, the hope of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-groeschel/god-is-not-calling-us-to-go-to-church-he-is-calling-us-to-be-his/) [Craig Groeschel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-groeschel/) > [The emerging church movement has come to believe that the ultimate context of the spiritual aspirations of a follower of Jesus Christ is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samir-selmanovic/the-emerging-church-movement-has-come-to-believe-that-the-ultimate/) [Samir Selmanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samir-selmanovic/) > [ T\]he church is not a place. It's not a building. It's not a preaching point. It's not a spiritual service provider. It's a people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/t-he-church-is-not-a-place-it-s-not-a-building-it-s-not-a-preaching/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [There could be no more powerful argument against mixing religion and government than the success of independent African American churches in placing racial segregation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jacoby/there-could-be-no-more-powerful-argument-against-mixing-religion-and/) [Susan Jacoby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jacoby/) > [Worship is not about personality, temperament, personal limitations, church background, or comfort. It is about God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wimber/worship-is-not-about-personality-temperament-personal-limitations/) [John Wimber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wimber/) > [A beggarly people, A church and no steeple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-b-macaulay/a-beggarly-people-a-church-and-no-steeple/) [Thomas B. Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-b-macaulay/) > [Pound St. Paul's Church into atoms, and consider any single atom; it is to be sure, good for nothing; but put all these atoms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/pound-st-paul-s-church-into-atoms-and-consider-any-single-atom-it-is/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [The religion of art, like the religion of politics, was born from the ruins of Christianity. 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