---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To prove religious faith by human reason…"
description: "\"To prove religious faith by human reason is rationalistic claptrap.\" — Jostein Gaarder"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52f/jostein-gaarder-676_faith_to-prove-religious-faith-by-human-reason_3082923.png"
---

#  To prove religious faith by human reason is rationalistic…

![“To prove religious faith by human reason is rationalistic claptrap.” quote by Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52f/jostein-gaarder-676_faith_to-prove-religious-faith-by-human-reason_3082923.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52f/jostein-gaarder-676_faith_to-prove-religious-faith-by-human-reason_3082923.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52f/jostein-gaarder-676_faith_to-prove-religious-faith-by-human-reason_3082923.png)

> “To prove religious faith by human reason is rationalistic claptrap.”

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

## About This Quote

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

He argues that using pure human reason to prove faith is misguided and reduces belief to intellectual trickery.

**In simple terms:** Reason alone can't prove faith.

Key Takeaway

Seek faith beyond logical proof.

Themes

faith reason philosophy

Mood

skeptical thoughtful

Type

philosophical critical

When to use this quote

- theological debate
- personal belief formation
- academic discourse
- interfaith dialogue

Key Concepts

rationalism existential doubt

Questions to Reflect On

- Can faith exist without reason?
- What role does emotion play in belief?

A Different Perspective

Faith may require emotional or experiential grounding beyond logic.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Human reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-reason/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Religious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religious/) [Religious faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religious-faith/)

## Related quotes

> [Hegel said that 'truth' is subjective, thus rejecting the existence of any 'truth' above or beyond human reason. All knowledge is human knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/hegel-said-that-truth-is-subjective-thus-rejecting-the-existence-of/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [The idea, therefore, that religious faith is somehow a sacred human convention—distinguished, as it is, both by the extravagance of its claims and by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-idea-therefore-that-religious-faith-is-somehow-a-sacred-human/)

[Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/)

> [The idea of God implies the abdication of human reason and justice; it is the most decisive negation of human liberty and necessarily ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bakunin/the-idea-of-god-implies-the-abdication-of-human-reason-and-justice-it/)

[Mikhail Bakunin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bakunin/)

> [If we could, and we must, establish a deep long abiding relationship with nature, with the actual trees, the bushes, the flowers, the grass…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/if-we-could-and-we-must-establish-a-deep-long-abiding-relationship/)

[Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/)

> [There is no great harm in the theorist who makes up a new theory to fit a new event. But the theorist who starts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/there-is-no-great-harm-in-the-theorist-who-makes-up-a-new-theory-to/)

[Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/)

> [Abstract reason, formerly the servant of practical human reasons, has everywhere become its master, and denies poetry any excuse for existence. Though philosophers like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-graves/abstract-reason-formerly-the-servant-of-practical-human-reasons-has/)

[Robert Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-graves/)

> [Do not walk in the path of human reason, and resist the pressures that would project you into conjectures about the future. Live one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-j-roberts/do-not-walk-in-the-path-of-human-reason-and-resist-the-pressures-that/)

[Frances J Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-j-roberts/)

> [God has sometimes converted wickedness into madness; and it is to the credit of human reason that men who are not in some degree…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/god-has-sometimes-converted-wickedness-into-madness-and-it-is-to-the/)

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

> [If man is reduced to being nothing but a character in history, he has no other choice but to subside into the sound and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/if-man-is-reduced-to-being-nothing-but-a-character-in-history-he-has/)

[Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/)

> [I have learned to be less confident in the conclusions of human reason, and give more credit to the honesty of contrary opinions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/i-have-learned-to-be-less-confident-in-the-conclusions-of-human/)

[Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/)

> [Let us become thoroughly sensible of the weakness, blindness, and narrow limits of human reason: Let us duly consider its uncertainty and endless contrarieties,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/let-us-become-thoroughly-sensible-of-the-weakness-blindness-and/)

[David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/)

> [Catholicism is not ritualism; it may in the future be fighting some sort of superstitious and idolatrous exaggeration of ritual. Catholicism is not asceticism;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/catholicism-is-not-ritualism-it-may-in-the-future-be-fighting-some/)

[Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/)

> [Human reason can excuse any evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/human-reason-can-excuse-any-evil/)

[Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/)

> [The science of the church is neglected for the study of geometry, and they lose sight of Heaven while they are employed in measuring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-gibbon/the-science-of-the-church-is-neglected-for-the-study-of-geometry-and/)

[Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-gibbon/)

> [To deprecate human reason by saying that none of us is or can be omniscient is absurd, for it takes an impossible standard as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-rothbard/to-deprecate-human-reason-by-saying-that-none-of-us-is-or-can-be/)

[Murray Rothbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-rothbard/)

## More by Jostein Gaarder

> [“I no longer feel the need to see and sense more than I've already experienced. I just want so desperately to hang on what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/i-no-longer-feel-the-need-to-see-and-sense-more-than-i-ve-already/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [The most subversive people are those who ask questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/the-most-subversive-people-are-those-who-ask-questions/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [The sophists were as a rule men who had traveled widely and seen different forms of government. Both conventions and local laws in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/the-sophists-were-as-a-rule-men-who-had-traveled-widely-and-seen/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [Where did the world come from? The question has an answer, even though I cannot get to it. It is a good question. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/where-did-the-world-come-from-the-question-has-an-answer-even-though/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [“As soon as she concentrated on being alive now, the thought of dying also came into her mind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/as-soon-as-she-concentrated-on-being-alive-now-the-thought-of-dying/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [“Po haljini sam mogao da vidim kako njeno telo diše, jer se haljina dizala i spuštala, dizala i spuštala, skoro kao da morski talasi…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/po-haljini-sam-mogao-da-vidim-kako-njeno-telo-di-e-jer-se-haljina/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [Since the Renaissance, people have had to get used to living their life on a random planet in the vast galaxy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/since-the-renaissance-people-have-had-to-get-used-to-living-their/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [“without imagination, nothing really new will ever be created.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/without-imagination-nothing-really-new-will-ever-be-created/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [“The German poet Goethe once said that "he who cannot draw on three thousand years is living from hand to mouth." I don't want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/the-german-poet-goethe-once-said-that-he-who-cannot-draw-on-three/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [“Sophie left the den and wandered about in the large garden. She tried to forget what she had learned at school, especially in science…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/sophie-left-the-den-and-wandered-about-in-the-large-garden-she-tried/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [...long before the child learns to talk properly-and long before it learns to think philosophically-the world will have become a habit. A pity, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/long-before-the-child-learns-to-talk-properly-and-long-before-it/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [“any one question can be more explosive than a thousand answers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/any-one-question-can-be-more-explosive-than-a-thousand-answers/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [“We can't own each other's past. The question is whether we have a future together.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/we-can-t-own-each-other-s-past-the-question-is-whether-we-have-a/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [“Uno no muere en medio del quinto acto.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/uno-no-muere-en-medio-del-quinto-acto/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

> [“Wer das Schicksal durchschauen will, muss es überleben.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/wer-das-schicksal-durchschauen-will-muss-es-berleben/)

[Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

[Explore all 305 Jostein Gaarder quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/)

## More Faith quotes

> [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/)

[Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/)

> [Eternal Trinity... mystery deep as the sea, You could give me no greater gift than the gift of Yourself. For You are a fire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-catherine-of-siena/eternal-trinity-mystery-deep-as-the-sea-you-could-give-me-no-greater/)

[St. Catherine of Siena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-catherine-of-siena/)

> [Keep the faith, and keep going strong!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doreen-virtue/keep-the-faith-and-keep-going-strong/)

[Doreen Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doreen-virtue/)

> [It’s so important to create in your own voice, to hold onto what makes you unique, and have faith in your vision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lasseter/it-s-so-important-to-create-in-your-own-voice-to-hold-onto-what-makes/)

[John Lasseter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lasseter/)

> [Faith gives you a certain structure and meaning to your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riffat-hassan/faith-gives-you-a-certain-structure-and-meaning-to-your-life/)

Riffat Hassan

> [Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/democracy-is-based-on-the-conviction-that-man-has-the-moral-and/)

[Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/)

> [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/)

[Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/)

> [“No man is prejudiced in favour of a thing, knowing it to be wrong. He is attached to it on the belief of its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/no-man-is-prejudiced-in-favour-of-a-thing-knowing-it-to-be-wrong-he/)

[Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/)

> [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/)

[John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/)

> [Holiness sincerity, and faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/holiness-sincerity-and-faith/)

[Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/)

> [“The only limitations for your life are the limiting beliefs in your mind. —Matt Morris”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-morris-1/the-only-limitations-for-your-life-are-the-limiting-beliefs-in-your/)

Matt Morris (1

> [“Just because your faith is shaken doesn’t mean the faith is shaken. The eternal truths of the Kingdom aren’t altered or affected by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-arthur/just-because-your-faith-is-shaken-doesn-t-mean-the-faith-is-shaken/)

[Sarah Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-arthur/)

> [Grit, determination, the right amount of crazy, self belief - everything it takes to be a champion. I have that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dustin-poirier/grit-determination-the-right-amount-of-crazy-self-belief-everything/)

[Dustin Poirier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dustin-poirier/)

> [We only enter into the full life if our faith gives thanks. Because how else do we accept His free gift of salvation if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/we-only-enter-into-the-full-life-if-our-faith-gives-thanks-because/)

[Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/)

> [Once you pull the trigger, you've got to throw balls aggressively and with conviction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/once-you-pull-the-trigger-you-ve-got-to-throw-balls-aggressively-and/)

[Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/)

[Browse all 37,796 Faith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "To prove religious faith by human reason is rationalistic claptrap.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Jostein Gaarder"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/to-prove-religious-faith-by-human-reason-is-rationalistic-claptrap/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Faith"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/to-prove-religious-faith-by-human-reason-is-rationalistic-claptrap/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52f/jostein-gaarder-676_faith_to-prove-religious-faith-by-human-reason_3082923.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52f/jostein-gaarder-676_faith_to-prove-religious-faith-by-human-reason_3082923.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52f/jostein-gaarder-676_faith_to-prove-religious-faith-by-human-reason_3082923.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“To prove religious faith by human reason is rationalistic claptrap.” — Jostein Gaarder",
                "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": "Jostein Gaarder",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "To prove religious faith by human...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/to-prove-religious-faith-by-human-reason-is-rationalistic-claptrap/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/to-prove-religious-faith-by-human-reason-is-rationalistic-claptrap/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```