--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: That great political idea, sanctifying…" description: "\"That great political idea, sanctifying freedom and consecrating it to God, teaching men to treasure the liberties of others as their own and to defend ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e2/lord-acton-3040_charity_that-great-political-idea-sanctifying-fr_1108364.png" --- # That great political idea, sanctifying freedom and… ![“That great political idea, sanctifying freedom and consecrating it to God, teaching men to treasure the liberties of others as their own and to defend them for the love of justice and charity more than as a claim of right, has been the soul of what is great and good in the progress of the last two…” quote by Lord Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e2/lord-acton-3040_charity_that-great-political-idea-sanctifying-fr_1108364.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e2/lord-acton-3040_charity_that-great-political-idea-sanctifying-fr_1108364.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e2/lord-acton-3040_charity_that-great-political-idea-sanctifying-fr_1108364.png) > “That great political idea, sanctifying freedom and consecrating it to God, teaching men to treasure the liberties of others as their own and to defend them for the love of justice and charity more than as a claim of right, has been the soul of what is great and good in the progress of the last two hundred years.” [Lord Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-acton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The idea that true liberty is grounded in moral responsibility to others, not just personal rights, has driven progressive social change. **In simple terms:** Freedom means caring for others' rights. Key Takeaway Protect others' freedoms as your own. Themes justice charity freedom responsibility Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical political When to use this quote - civil rights movements - community service - policy advocacy - education reform Key Concepts social contract ethical liberty human rights Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance individual rights with collective responsibility? - What actions embody this principle today? A Different Perspective Idealism may overlook practical constraints of governance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Charity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/charity/) [Claims](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/claims/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Freedom Consecrating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom-consecrating-2940600/) [Great political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-political/) [Has beens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/has-beens/) [Hundred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hundred/) [Idea Sanctifying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idea-sanctifying-2940601/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) [Lasts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lasts/) [Liberties Defend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberties-defend-2940602/) [Liberty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberty/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Political Idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-idea-1598128/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Progress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/progress/) [Sanctifying Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sanctifying-freedom-2940599/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) [Teaching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teaching/) [Treasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/treasure/) [Two](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [I have one great political idea. . . . That idea is an old one. It is widely and generally assented to; nevertheless, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-one-great-political-idea-that-idea-is-an-old-one-it-is-widely/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [“In a way he was lucky. He was a member of a generation that thought it was a good, even joyous, political idea to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-paley/in-a-way-he-was-lucky-he-was-a-member-of-a-generation-that-thought-it/) [Grace Paley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-paley/) > [“the skin of her naked throat was as perfect as a political idea. She”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/the-skin-of-her-naked-throat-was-as-perfect-as-a-political-idea-she/) [William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/) > [“The Levantine political idea, which grew naturally among the communities of the eastern Mediterranean, was an original way of dealing with diverse tribal, village,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-l-friedman/the-levantine-political-idea-which-grew-naturally-among-the/) [Thomas L. Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-l-friedman/) > [I hate to express political ideas directly in a book. I don't want my books to be seen as an expression of this or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdellah-taia/i-hate-to-express-political-ideas-directly-in-a-book-i-don-t-want-my/) [Abdellah Taia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdellah-taia/) > [Remember, the political idea being expressed a year ago was that because the GOP interpreted its 1994 mandate as a call to budget-balancing austerity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jude-wanniski/remember-the-political-idea-being-expressed-a-year-ago-was-that/) [Jude Wanniski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jude-wanniski/) > [If you want to explore a political idea in the highest possible way, you embody it in the personal, because that's something that no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/if-you-want-to-explore-a-political-idea-in-the-highest-possible-way/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [The core idea that underlies all of our democratic states, the core political idea, is this idea that it's not that one person is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-feldman/the-core-idea-that-underlies-all-of-our-democratic-states-the-core/) [Noah Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-feldman/) > [The average educated man in America has about as much knowledge of what a political idea is as he has of the principles of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-jay-chapman/the-average-educated-man-in-america-has-about-as-much-knowledge-of/) [John Jay Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-jay-chapman/) > [I have always moved by intuition alone. I have no system, literary or political. I have no guiding political idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-s-naipaul/i-have-always-moved-by-intuition-alone-i-have-no-system-literary-or/) [V. S. Naipaul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-s-naipaul/) > [I continue to believe when I said in Hanover, that the E.U. remains one of the world's great political and economic achievements, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-continue-to-believe-when-i-said-in-hanover-that-the-e-u-remains-one/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I can remember certain Manchester United defeats the way most people remember family bereavements or great political events. The four-nil drubbing by Barcelona, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-dunne/i-can-remember-certain-manchester-united-defeats-the-way-most-people/) [Tom Dunne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-dunne/) > [Upon my arrival in the United States the religious aspect of the country was the first thing that struck my attention; and the longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/upon-my-arrival-in-the-united-states-the-religious-aspect-of-the/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [There was great political uncertainty in South Asia at the time of the Buddha. The older small tribal societies were cracking up and gave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/there-was-great-political-uncertainty-in-south-asia-at-the-time-of/) [Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/) > [The prime minister of Israel is welcome to speak in the United States, obviously. 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A man is seldom better than his word.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-acton/character-is-tested-by-true-sentiments-more-than-by-conduct-a-man-is/) [Lord Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-acton/) > [Liberty and good government do not exclude each other; and there are excellent reasons why they should go together. Liberty is not a means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-acton/liberty-and-good-government-do-not-exclude-each-other-and-there-are/) [Lord Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-acton/) > [The test of liberty is the position and security of minorities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-acton/the-test-of-liberty-is-the-position-and-security-of-minorities/) [Lord Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-acton/) > [The common vice of democracy is disregard for morality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-acton/the-common-vice-of-democracy-is-disregard-for-morality/) [Lord Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-acton/) > [Feudalism made land the measure and the master of all things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-acton/feudalism-made-land-the-measure-and-the-master-of-all-things/) [Lord Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-acton/) > [“power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutley”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-acton/power-corrupts-absolute-power-corrupts-absolutley/) [Lord Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-acton/) > [There are many things the government cant do, many good purposes it must renounce. 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Ask about the scale of their dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-next-time-you-re-looking-at-a-charity-don-t-ask-about-the-rate-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Both fact and logic seem to me to support the view that savings invested in privately owned economic tools of production amount to an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-a-harper/both-fact-and-logic-seem-to-me-to-support-the-view-that-savings/) [F. A. Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-a-harper/) > [I shall pray God to send charity into this hideous world, and sympathy for the weak, and love for the unhappy and unfortunate. 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