--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As for the Devil - that is somebody our…" description: "\"As for the Devil - that is somebody our religion tried to do without for a long time.\" — Kerry Thornley" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/kerry-thornley-42114_devil_as-for-the-devil-that-is-somebody-our-re_1888053.png" --- # As for the Devil - that is somebody our religion tried to… ![“As for the Devil - that is somebody our religion tried to do without for a long time.” quote by Kerry Thornley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/kerry-thornley-42114_devil_as-for-the-devil-that-is-somebody-our-re_1888053.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/kerry-thornley-42114_devil_as-for-the-devil-that-is-somebody-our-re_1888053.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/kerry-thornley-42114_devil_as-for-the-devil-that-is-somebody-our-re_1888053.png) > “As for the Devil - that is somebody our religion tried to do without for a long time.” [Kerry Thornley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-thornley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The Devil is portrayed as a construct that religions have tried to eliminate, suggesting it may be a social invention. **In simple terms:** People create the Devil to explain evil. Key Takeaway Question the origins of moral villains. Themes religion evil mythology Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - cultural critique - moral discussions - historical analysis Key Concepts social construct psychology Questions to Reflect On - Why do societies invent a Devil figure? - What alternatives exist for understanding evil? A Different Perspective May oversimplify complex moral concepts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Devil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) [Devil Somebody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil-somebody-2458501/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Long time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-time/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Religion Tried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion-tried-2708603/) [Somebody Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/somebody-religion-2708602/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [The only way the devil really exists in my opinion... is in interactions with people who don't walk the walk and talk the talk;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-cage/the-only-way-the-devil-really-exists-in-my-opinion-is-in-interactions/) [Nicolas Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-cage/) > [Got no religion. Tried a bunch of different religions. The churches are divided. Can't make up their minds and neither can I.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/got-no-religion-tried-a-bunch-of-different-religions-the-churches-are/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [“We dance past states of saints in somebody else's religion. To m they're just rock shaped into glorified nobodies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/we-dance-past-states-of-saints-in-somebody-else-s-religion-to-m-they/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [My opinion is that somebody certainly has the right to do cartoons that make fun of somebody else's religion. But to reprint them just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-byrne/my-opinion-is-that-somebody-certainly-has-the-right-to-do-cartoons/) [David Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-byrne/) > [I had a pretty public divorce. They're not easy - divorces - and it took me a long time to really get through.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-had-a-pretty-public-divorce-they-re-not-easy-divorces-and-it-took/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [I just decided to take some time off. I've been modeling since '93, '92, and that's a pretty long time. I'm a single mother…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-murphy/i-just-decided-to-take-some-time-off-i-ve-been-modeling-since-93-92/) [Carolyn Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-murphy/) > [I agreed a long time ago, I would not live at any cost. If I am moved or forced away from what I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/i-agreed-a-long-time-ago-i-would-not-live-at-any-cost-if-i-am-moved/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [I have been famous for a long time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-beatty/i-have-been-famous-for-a-long-time/) [Warren Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-beatty/) > [I've been around in public life for a long time. I think people know what I stand for. They know that I have strong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-turnbull/i-ve-been-around-in-public-life-for-a-long-time-i-think-people-know/) [Malcolm Turnbull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-turnbull/) > [Hollywood is so fixated on keeping it that way because it's generating the buzz, but that representation isn't right. I definitely feel like it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-boyega/hollywood-is-so-fixated-on-keeping-it-that-way-because-it-s/) [John Boyega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-boyega/) > [It was only when I started making short films in college and I was looking for girls to play the me-ish parts that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/it-was-only-when-i-started-making-short-films-in-college-and-i-was/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [Well, I've been politically involved for a really long time. Growing up in the segregated South, it was a very painful experience for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cybill-shepherd/well-i-ve-been-politically-involved-for-a-really-long-time-growing-up/) [Cybill Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cybill-shepherd/) > [Our young Marines of today are courageous, willing to make sacrifices, and are marvelous team players. I am confident our Corps, and indeed our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-t-conway/our-young-marines-of-today-are-courageous-willing-to-make-sacrifices/) [James T. Conway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-t-conway/) > [Forever is a really long time, you know? What do you do with forever?" "The same thing you do when you don't have forever."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-hocking/forever-is-a-really-long-time-you-know-what-do-you-do-with-forever/) [Amanda Hocking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-hocking/) > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) ## More by Kerry Thornley > [Intellectual respectability required mental health, and it was becoming evident to me by then that "mental health" consisted of trusting everyone about everything as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-thornley/intellectual-respectability-required-mental-health-and-it-was/) [Kerry Thornley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-thornley/) > [Organized religion preaches Order and Love but spawns Chaos and Fury. Why?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-thornley/organized-religion-preaches-order-and-love-but-spawns-chaos-and-fury/) [Kerry Thornley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-thornley/) > [Although a madman, Norton wrote letters to Abraham Lincoln and Queen Victoria which they took seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-thornley/although-a-madman-norton-wrote-letters-to-abraham-lincoln-and-queen/) [Kerry Thornley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-thornley/) > [If organized religion is the opium of the masses, then disorganized religion is the marijuana of the lunatic fringe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-thornley/if-organized-religion-is-the-opium-of-the-masses-then-disorganized/) [Kerry Thornley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-thornley/) > [ZEN is MEDITATION. ARCHY is Social Order. ZENARCHY is the Social Order which springs from Meditation. As a doctrine, it holds Universal Enlightenment a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-thornley/zen-is-meditation-archy-is-social-order-zenarchy-is-the-social-order/) [Kerry Thornley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-thornley/) > [Safe sex - with a condom, rubber gloves and a wet suit is fine as long as you don't fall in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-thornley/safe-sex-with-a-condom-rubber-gloves-and-a-wet-suit-is-fine-as-long/) [Kerry Thornley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-thornley/) > [What we imagine is order is merely the prevailing form of chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-thornley/what-we-imagine-is-order-is-merely-the-prevailing-form-of-chaos/) [Kerry Thornley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-thornley/) > [Before I was a Discordian, I took life much too seriously. When you take life too seriously you start to wonder what the point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-thornley/before-i-was-a-discordian-i-took-life-much-too-seriously-when-you/) [Kerry Thornley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-thornley/) > [Every few thousand years some shepard inhales smoke from a burning bush and has a vision or eats moldy rye bread in a cave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-thornley/every-few-thousand-years-some-shepard-inhales-smoke-from-a-burning/) [Kerry Thornley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-thornley/) [Explore all 10 Kerry Thornley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-thornley/) ## More Devil quotes > [“The Devil can cite Scripture for his purpose, Sergeant,’ Anthony Payne replied. ‘That is from The Merchant of Venice, but it holds great truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-arnold/the-devil-can-cite-scripture-for-his-purpose-sergeant-anthony-payne/) [Michael Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-arnold/) > [Alimony - the ransom that the happy pay to the devil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/alimony-the-ransom-that-the-happy-pay-to-the-devil/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [“Beauty is not only a terrible thing, it is also a mysterious thing. There God and the Devil strive for mastery, and the battleground…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/beauty-is-not-only-a-terrible-thing-it-is-also-a-mysterious-thing/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [The devil has been defeated, stop trying to defeat him. What we have left is the fight of faith, and it's a good fight!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-oyakhilome/the-devil-has-been-defeated-stop-trying-to-defeat-him-what-we-have/) [Chris Oyakhilome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-oyakhilome/) > [You gonna take the case?" It's not a case. It's a missing person. Sort of." You're gonna have a devil of a time finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/you-gonna-take-the-case-it-s-not-a-case-it-s-a-missing-person-sort-of/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) > [Your head's like mine, like all our heads; big enough to contain every god and devil there ever was. Big enough to hold the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grant-morrison/your-head-s-like-mine-like-all-our-heads-big-enough-to-contain-every/) [Grant Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grant-morrison/) > [And so it is, that both the Devil and the angelic Spirit present us with objects of desire to awaken our power of choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/and-so-it-is-that-both-the-devil-and-the-angelic-spirit-present-us/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Remember that Abraham Lincoln was a Whig far longer than he was a Republican. As a whole, the Whigs looked upon banks and corporations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-c-guelzo/remember-that-abraham-lincoln-was-a-whig-far-longer-than-he-was-a/) [Allen C. Guelzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-c-guelzo/) > [Wine is the first weapon that devils use in attacking the young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-jerome/wine-is-the-first-weapon-that-devils-use-in-attacking-the-young/) [St. Jerome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-jerome/) > [“I tend to agree with that little devil more and more these days.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-casey/i-tend-to-agree-with-that-little-devil-more-and-more-these-days/) [Elle Casey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-casey/) > [This is the gift of your species and this is the danger, because you do not choose to control your imaginings. You imagine wonderful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-crichton/this-is-the-gift-of-your-species-and-this-is-the-danger-because-you/) [Michael Crichton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-crichton/) > [“The devil?” Jason heaved the tick over his shoulder like a collier with his sack. “Satan. The adversary. The enemy of the plan of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/the-devil-jason-heaved-the-tick-over-his-shoulder-like-a-collier-with/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [God never talks. But the devil keeps advertising, Father. The devil does a lot of commercials.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-peter-blatty/god-never-talks-but-the-devil-keeps-advertising-father-the-devil-does/) [William Peter Blatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-peter-blatty/) > [If it was a sin for you to choose me . . . then I would go to the Devil himself and bless him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/if-it-was-a-sin-for-you-to-choose-me-then-i-would-go-to-the-devil/) [Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/) > [“The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist”—Charles Baudelaire “The second greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-baudelaire/the-greatest-trick-the-devil-ever-pulled-was-convincing-the-world-he/) [Charles Baudelaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-baudelaire/) [Browse all 4,283 Devil quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As for the Devil - that is somebody our religion tried to do without for a long time.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kerry Thornley" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-thornley/as-for-the-devil-that-is-somebody-our-religion-tried-to-do-without/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Devil" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-thornley/as-for-the-devil-that-is-somebody-our-religion-tried-to-do-without/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/kerry-thornley-42114_devil_as-for-the-devil-that-is-somebody-our-re_1888053.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/kerry-thornley-42114_devil_as-for-the-devil-that-is-somebody-our-re_1888053.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/kerry-thornley-42114_devil_as-for-the-devil-that-is-somebody-our-re_1888053.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As for the Devil - that is somebody our religion tried to do without for a long time.” — Kerry Thornley", "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": "Kerry Thornley", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-thornley/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "As for the Devil - that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-thornley/as-for-the-devil-that-is-somebody-our-religion-tried-to-do-without/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-thornley/as-for-the-devil-that-is-somebody-our-religion-tried-to-do-without/#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 } } ] } ```