--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Bertrand Russell declared that, in case…" description: "\"“Bertrand Russell declared that, in case he met God, he would say to Him, \"Sir, you did not give us enough information.\" I would add to that, \"All the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/361/kurt-vonnegut-41_atheist_bertrand-russell-declared-that-in-case-h_725550.jpg" --- # Bertrand Russell declared that, in case he met God, he… ![“Bertrand Russell declared that, in case he met God, he would say to Him, "Sir, you did not give us enough information." I would add to that, "All the same, Sir, I'm not persuaded that we did the best we could with the information we had. Toward the end there, anyway, we had tons of information.” quote by Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/361/kurt-vonnegut-41_atheist_bertrand-russell-declared-that-in-case-h_725550.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/361/kurt-vonnegut-41_atheist_bertrand-russell-declared-that-in-case-h_725550.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/361/kurt-vonnegut-41_atheist_bertrand-russell-declared-that-in-case-h_725550.jpg) > ““Bertrand Russell declared that, in case he met God, he would say to Him, "Sir, you did not give us enough information." I would add to that, "All the same, Sir, I'm not persuaded that we did the best we could with the information we had. Toward the end there, anyway, we had tons of information.”” [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We lack sufficient data to judge divine intent, and even with abundant data we may still fall short of optimal decisions. **In simple terms:** We don’t know enough, and even with much info we may not act best. Key Takeaway Accept uncertainty and strive for better use of information. Themes knowledge uncertainty human limitation faith Mood reflective skeptical Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - scientific research - policy making - personal belief - ethical dilemmas Key Concepts epistemology information theory theology Questions to Reflect On - How do we balance humility with confidence in decision‑making? - What role should faith play when evidence is incomplete? A Different Perspective Human cognition is limited; data overload can mislead. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Atheist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheist/) [Bertrand Russel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bertrand-russel/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bertrand-russell/) [Did Information](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/did-information-5693532/) [Freethinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freethinker/) [Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) [Information End](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/information-end-5693533/) [Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/russell/) [Russell Declared](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/russell-declared-5693531/) [Skeptic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skeptic/) ## Related quotes > [“As Bertrand Russell is often reported to have said, “The mark of a civilized man is the capacity to read a column of numbers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-simler/as-bertrand-russell-is-often-reported-to-have-said-the-mark-of-a/) [Kevin Simler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-simler/) > [“War does not determine who is right - only who is left.  Bertrand Russell”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-dandridge/war-does-not-determine-who-is-right-only-who-is-left-bertrand-russell/) [Doug Dandridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-dandridge/) > [Bertrand Russell would not have wished to be called a saint of any description; but he was a great and good man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-j-ayer/bertrand-russell-would-not-have-wished-to-be-called-a-saint-of-any/) [A.J. Ayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-j-ayer/) > [As Bertrand Russell once wrote, two plus two is four even in the interior of the sun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-gardner/as-bertrand-russell-once-wrote-two-plus-two-is-four-even-in-the/) [Martin Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-gardner/) > [“I've spent a life-time attacking religious beliefs and have not wavered from a view of the universe that many would regard as bleak. Namely,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phillip-adams/i-ve-spent-a-life-time-attacking-religious-beliefs-and-have-not/) [Phillip Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phillip-adams/) > [“In his school, Bertrand Russell thought it was better if they had the sex, so they could give their undivided attention to mathematics, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-goodman/in-his-school-bertrand-russell-thought-it-was-better-if-they-had-the/) [Paul Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-goodman/) > [“Bertrand Russell touches on this point in his book The Conquest of Happiness”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-disalvo/bertrand-russell-touches-on-this-point-in-his-book-the-conquest-of/) [David DiSalvo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-disalvo/) > [My ancestors were all Freethinkers, formerly Catholics. It was science and Darwin, in particular, that made them decide, as educated people, which they were,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/my-ancestors-were-all-freethinkers-formerly-catholics-it-was-science/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [My ancestors were Freethinkers - and that's what I am, except we're called secular humanists now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/my-ancestors-were-freethinkers-and-that-s-what-i-am-except-we-re/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [People stopped calling themselves Freethinkers because it was so specifically German and anything German was terribly unpopular because of the two world wars. My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/people-stopped-calling-themselves-freethinkers-because-it-was-so/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Be aware of this truth that the people on this earth could be joyous, if only they would live rationally and if they would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/be-aware-of-this-truth-that-the-people-on-this-earth-could-be-joyous/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [The way to stop feeling guilty is to read stuff - I'm not saying my book, but works by Bertrand Russell or Oscar Wilde,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hodgkinson/the-way-to-stop-feeling-guilty-is-to-read-stuff-i-m-not-saying-my/) [Tom Hodgkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hodgkinson/) > [“McGrath briefly notes Bertrand Russell's Why I am not a Christian, and J. J. C. Smart gets a single mention, as does Adolf Grünbaum,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-parsons/mcgrath-briefly-notes-bertrand-russell-s-why-i-am-not-a-christian-and/) [Keith Parsons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-parsons/) > [ “The Sexual plight of these children \[those adolescents experimenting sexually\] is officially not mentioned. The revolutionary attack on hypocrisy by Ibsen, Freud, Ellis, Dreiser,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-goodman/the-sexual-plight-of-these-children-those-adolescents-experimenting/) [Paul Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-goodman/) > [“Bertrand Russell:   The expression “free thought” is often used as if it meant merely opposition to the prevailing orthodoxy. But this is only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-m-s-pearce/bertrand-russell-the-expression-free-thought-is-often-used-as-if-it/) [Jonathan M.S. Pearce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-m-s-pearce/) ## More by Kurt Vonnegut > [“You must bloom as a writer and I must bloom as a painter. Everything else about us is uninteresting.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/you-must-bloom-as-a-writer-and-i-must-bloom-as-a-painter-everything/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“People aren't supposed to look back.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/people-aren-t-supposed-to-look-back/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Have a good nap, did you?” said the porter. “Yes,” said Billy. “Man,” said the porter, “you sure had a hard-on.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/have-a-good-nap-did-you-said-the-porter-yes-said-billy-man-said-the/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“I told him that if we doubted that we are demons in Hell, he should read The Mysterious Stranger, which Mark Twain wrote in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-told-him-that-if-we-doubted-that-we-are-demons-in-hell-he-should/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [ “Thomas Jefferson High School \[..\] His high school was named after a slave owner who was also one of the world’s greatest theoreticians on… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/thomas-jefferson-high-school-his-high-school-was-named-after-a-slave/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“I had a certain amount of skill as a dramatist, and Dr. Goebbels wanted me to use it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-had-a-certain-amount-of-skill-as-a-dramatist-and-dr-goebbels-wanted/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [I was some of the mud that got to sit up and look around. Lucky me, lucky mud.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-was-some-of-the-mud-that-got-to-sit-up-and-look-around-lucky-me/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“The town was Newport, Rhode Island, U.S.A., Earth, Solar System, Milky Way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/the-town-was-newport-rhode-island-u-s-a-earth-solar-system-milky-way/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Her face was one of a kind, a surprising variation that made observers think, Yes--that would be another very nice way for people to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/her-face-was-one-of-a-kind-a-surprising-variation-that-made-observers/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“You finally fell in love, I see,” said Salo. “Only an Earthling year ago,” said Constant. “It took us that long to realize that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/you-finally-fell-in-love-i-see-said-salo-only-an-earthling-year-ago/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Like all Earthlings at the point of death, Mary Young sent faint reminders of herself to those who had known her. She released a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/like-all-earthlings-at-the-point-of-death-mary-young-sent-faint/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“And contrast Mary Kathleen, if you will, with my wife Ruth, the Ophelia of the death camps, who believed that even the most intelligent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/and-contrast-mary-kathleen-if-you-will-with-my-wife-ruth-the-ophelia/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [Someday, someday, this crazy world will have to end, And our God will take things back that He to us did lend. And if,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/someday-someday-this-crazy-world-will-have-to-end-and-our-god-will/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“They were going back to the slaughterhouse for souvenirs of the war.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/they-were-going-back-to-the-slaughterhouse-for-souvenirs-of-the-war/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“There are plenty of good reasons for fighting," I said, "but no good reason ever to hate without reservation, to imagine that God Almighty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/there-are-plenty-of-good-reasons-for-fighting-i-said-but-no-good/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) [Explore all 2,089 Kurt Vonnegut quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) ## More Atheist quotes > [From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/from-augustine-down-theologians-have-tried-to-compel-people-to-accept/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) > [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/) > [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/) > [That the world is in a bad shape is undeniable, but there is not the faintest reason in history to suppose that Christianity offers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/that-the-world-is-in-a-bad-shape-is-undeniable-but-there-is-not-the/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [“I felt like praying or something, when I was in bed, but I couldn't do it. I can't always pray when I feel like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/i-felt-like-praying-or-something-when-i-was-in-bed-but-i-couldn-t-do/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [Atheist’s denial of God’s existence needs just as much substantiation as does the theist’s claim; the atheist must give plausible reasons for rejecting God’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-copan/atheist-s-denial-of-god-s-existence-needs-just-as-much-substantiation/) [Paul Copan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-copan/) > [“The atheist joined his hands. It wasn't against the Gods. He smiled, with his hands folded, saw his daughter's in-laws approaching near.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bhavik-sarkhedi/the-atheist-joined-his-hands-it-wasn-t-against-the-gods-he-smiled/) [Bhavik Sarkhedi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bhavik-sarkhedi/) > [I am surprised that anyone can profess to be an atheist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-comfort/i-am-surprised-that-anyone-can-profess-to-be-an-atheist/) [Ray Comfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-comfort/) > [“I have found it an amusing strategy, when asked whether I am an atheist, to point out that the questioner is also an atheist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-have-found-it-an-amusing-strategy-when-asked-whether-i-am-an/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [An Atheist wandering down a road where he meets up a four road junction , he asks a passer by hey !, where does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-rambharack/an-atheist-wandering-down-a-road-where-he-meets-up-a-four-road/) [Glen Rambharack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-rambharack/) > [Good churches are not built by bad men; at least, there must be probity and enthusiasm somewhere in the society. These minsters were neither…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/good-churches-are-not-built-by-bad-men-at-least-there-must-be-probity/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [An ineffably holy God, who has the utmost abhorrence of sin, was never invented by any of Adam's descendents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-w-pink/an-ineffably-holy-god-who-has-the-utmost-abhorrence-of-sin-was-never/) [Arthur W. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-w-pink/) > [If all the Atheists & Agnostics left America, they'd lose 93% of The National Academy of Sciences & less than 1% of the prison population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/if-all-the-atheists-agnostics-left-america-they-d-lose-93-of-the/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [I am an atheist. I don't think there's anything divine. Beautiful, impressive, awe-inspiring - sure, but not divine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nomy-arpaly/i-am-an-atheist-i-don-t-think-there-s-anything-divine-beautiful/) [Nomy Arpaly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nomy-arpaly/) > [I am like all other atheists only in that I do not believe there are any gods. Beyond that, I may differ dramatically in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-carrier/i-am-like-all-other-atheists-only-in-that-i-do-not-believe-there-are/) [Richard Carrier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-carrier/) [Browse all 2,434 Atheist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Bertrand Russell declared that, in case he met God, he would say to Him, \"Sir, you did not give us enough information.\" I would add to that, \"All the same, Sir, I'm not persuaded that we did the best we could with the information we had. 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