--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If a human creature is composed of two…" description: "\"“If a human creature is composed of two beings, and if the acknowledgment of the necessity of preserving their union is the chief mark of submission to..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/184/montesquieu-19593_necessity_if-a-human-creature-is-composed-of-two-b_2298684.jpg" --- # If a human creature is composed of two beings, and if the… ![“If a human creature is composed of two beings, and if the acknowledgment of the necessity of preserving their union is the chief mark of submission to the decrees of our Creator, that necessity should be made a religious law; and if the enforced preservation of this union will make men more…” quote by Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/184/montesquieu-19593_necessity_if-a-human-creature-is-composed-of-two-b_2298684.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/184/montesquieu-19593_necessity_if-a-human-creature-is-composed-of-two-b_2298684.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/184/montesquieu-19593_necessity_if-a-human-creature-is-composed-of-two-b_2298684.jpg) > ““If a human creature is composed of two beings, and if the acknowledgment of the necessity of preserving their union is the chief mark of submission to the decrees of our Creator, that necessity should be made a religious law; and if the enforced preservation of this union will make men more responsible for their actions, it should be made a civil law.”” [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Union of partners should be protected both religiously and civically to promote responsibility. **In simple terms:** Protecting unions encourages responsible behavior. Key Takeaway Support laws that uphold partnership stability. Themes law morality responsibility Mood thoughtful analytical Type political philosophical When to use this quote - marriage counseling - policy debates - family law reforms Key Concepts social contract civil law Questions to Reflect On - How do laws influence personal responsibility? - What balance between religious and civil law is ideal? A Different Perspective Cultural differences may affect acceptance of such laws. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Necessity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/necessity/) ## Related quotes > [And yet the true creator is necessity, which is the mother of invention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/and-yet-the-true-creator-is-necessity-which-is-the-mother-of-invention/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [I cannot now evaluate the events that, at the end of those thirty years, made me discover the necessity of religious belief. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/igor-stravinsky/i-cannot-now-evaluate-the-events-that-at-the-end-of-those-thirty/) [Igor Stravinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/igor-stravinsky/) > [Religious law is like the grammar of language. Any language isgoverned by such rules; otherwise it ceases to be a language. But within them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/religious-law-is-like-the-grammar-of-language-any-language-isgoverned/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [Only greatly insolent people establish a religious law which is to be taken for granted by others, which should be accepted by everyone on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/only-greatly-insolent-people-establish-a-religious-law-which-is-to-be/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [All men, among themselves, are by nature equal. The inequality we now discern hath its spring from the civil law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/all-men-among-themselves-are-by-nature-equal-the-inequality-we-now/) [Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/) > [Civil law, as well as nature herself, has always recognized a wide difference in the respective spheres and destinies of man and woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-p-bradley/civil-law-as-well-as-nature-herself-has-always-recognized-a-wide/) [Joseph P. Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-p-bradley/) > [“Almost all modern legal practice is derived from one of two distinct traditions. The first, the so-called civil law tradition, is a direct successor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-rosen/almost-all-modern-legal-practice-is-derived-from-one-of-two-distinct/) [William Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-rosen/) > [“While the Christian and civic traditions were intrinsically suspicious of commerce, the Roman civil law was not. Rediscovered in the revival of learning in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-z-muller/while-the-christian-and-civic-traditions-were-intrinsically/) [Jerry Z. Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-z-muller/) > [We have so much discrimination in this world - colour, race, creed, all of these things - and there is an issue here that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enda-kenny/we-have-so-much-discrimination-in-this-world-colour-race-creed-all-of/) [Enda Kenny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enda-kenny/) > [A false worship will not hurt the civil state if the worshipper breaks no civil law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-williams/a-false-worship-will-not-hurt-the-civil-state-if-the-worshipper/) [Roger Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-williams/) > [Regardless of whether or not you belong to a majority religion, in the United States you may not impose your theology on civil law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-lipman-brown/regardless-of-whether-or-not-you-belong-to-a-majority-religion-in-the/) Lori Lipman Brown > [It is one of the maxims of the civil law, that definitions are hazardous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/it-is-one-of-the-maxims-of-the-civil-law-that-definitions-are/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Just what is the civil law? What neither influence can affect, nor power break, nor money corrupt: were it to be suppressed or even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/just-what-is-the-civil-law-what-neither-influence-can-affect-nor/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [“For there is no true equivalence between languages, and English law differs from civil law in both its genesis and its practice.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jovan-autonoma-evi/for-there-is-no-true-equivalence-between-languages-and-english-law/) [Jovan Autonomašević](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jovan-autonoma-evi/) > [Being of service is not an option, it is a biological necessity. Every kind of action we do for someone is a reanimation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-myss/being-of-service-is-not-an-option-it-is-a-biological-necessity-every/) [Caroline Myss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-myss/) ## More by Montesquieu > [“Every man is capable of doing good to another, but to contribute to the happiness of an entire society is to become akin to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/every-man-is-capable-of-doing-good-to-another-but-to-contribute-to/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [“We are so blind that we know neither when to mourn, nor when to rejoice; our mirth and our sadness are nearly always false.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/we-are-so-blind-that-we-know-neither-when-to-mourn-nor-when-to/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [“The desire for glory is no different from that instinct for preservation that is common to all creatures. It is as if we enhance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/the-desire-for-glory-is-no-different-from-that-instinct-for/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [“The public revenues are a portion that each subject gives of his property, in order to secure or enjoy the remainder.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/the-public-revenues-are-a-portion-that-each-subject-gives-of-his/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [“The right of conquest is not a right. A society can be founded only with the consent of its members. If it is destroyed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/the-right-of-conquest-is-not-a-right-a-society-can-be-founded-only/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [“Nature repairs everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/nature-repairs-everything/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [“One of them said to me once, “I believe in the immortality of the soul for six months at a time; my opinions depend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/one-of-them-said-to-me-once-i-believe-in-the-immortality-of-the-soul/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [“History is full of religious wars; but, we must take care to observe, it was not the multiplicity of religions that produced these wars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/history-is-full-of-religious-wars-but-we-must-take-care-to-observe-it/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [ “\[92\] Plato, in his fourth book of Laws, says that the præfectures of music and gymnic exercises are the most important employments in the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/92-plato-in-his-fourth-book-of-laws-says-that-the-pr-fectures-of/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [“As with their fashions, so is it with their customs and style of living: French manners change with the age of the king. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/as-with-their-fashions-so-is-it-with-their-customs-and-style-of/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [“MOST legislators have been men of inferior capacity whom chance exalted over their fellows, and who took counsel almost exclusively of their own prejudices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/most-legislators-have-been-men-of-inferior-capacity-whom-chance/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [“Democratic and aristocratic states are not in their own nature free. Political liberty is to be found only in moderate governments; and even in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/democratic-and-aristocratic-states-are-not-in-their-own-nature-free/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [“I can assure you that no kingdom has ever had as many civil wars as the kingdom of Christ.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/i-can-assure-you-that-no-kingdom-has-ever-had-as-many-civil-wars-as/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [“I have seen descriptions of Paradise sufficient to make all sensible people give up their hopes of it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/i-have-seen-descriptions-of-paradise-sufficient-to-make-all-sensible/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) > [“I believe it to be true that if men were virtuous, they would have no friends.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/i-believe-it-to-be-true-that-if-men-were-virtuous-they-would-have-no/) [Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) [Explore all 23 Montesquieu quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/) ## More Necessity quotes > [Being of service is not an option, it is a biological necessity. Every kind of action we do for someone is a reanimation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-myss/being-of-service-is-not-an-option-it-is-a-biological-necessity-every/) [Caroline Myss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-myss/) > [pragmatist that I am, I always meet necessity with enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-fonda/pragmatist-that-i-am-i-always-meet-necessity-with-enthusiasm/) [Jane Fonda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-fonda/) > [“We could not be fulfilled if we weren't inauthentic some of the time—inauthentic, that is, in relation to such things as our passing desires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/we-could-not-be-fulfilled-if-we-weren-t-inauthentic-some-of-the-time/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [And upon this act, sincerely believed to be an act of justice, warranted by the Constitution, upon military necessity, I invoke the considerate judgment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salmon-p-chase/and-upon-this-act-sincerely-believed-to-be-an-act-of-justice/) [Salmon P. Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salmon-p-chase/) > [Pluralitas non est ponenda sine necessitate. A plurality (of reasons) should not be posited without necessity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-of-ockham/pluralitas-non-est-ponenda-sine-necessitate-a-plurality-of-reasons/) [William of Ockham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-of-ockham/) > [Causes of Civil War are also, that the Wealth of the Nation is in too few mens hands, and that no certain means are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-petty/causes-of-civil-war-are-also-that-the-wealth-of-the-nation-is-in-too/) [William Petty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-petty/) > [He who is required by the necessity of his position to speak the highest things is compelled by the same necessity to exemplify the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-gregory-i/he-who-is-required-by-the-necessity-of-his-position-to-speak-the/) [Pope Gregory I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-gregory-i/) > [Pardon is granted to necessity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/pardon-is-granted-to-necessity/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [And the commencement of atonement is the sense of its necessity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/and-the-commencement-of-atonement-is-the-sense-of-its-necessity/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) > [It is a misfortune that necessity has induced men to accord greater license to this formidable engine, in order to obtain liberty, than can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-f-cooper/it-is-a-misfortune-that-necessity-has-induced-men-to-accord-greater/) [James F. Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-f-cooper/) > [“The value of a sacrifice lies in its necessity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/the-value-of-a-sacrifice-lies-in-its-necessity/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [The things I do outside of playing the piano are done out of an inner necessity, not just because I want to try my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/the-things-i-do-outside-of-playing-the-piano-are-done-out-of-an-inner/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [I think that this necessity to travel, to see, it's part of human nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-perez/i-think-that-this-necessity-to-travel-to-see-it-s-part-of-human-nature/) [Fernando Perez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-perez/) > [Necessity is a guardian in Nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/necessity-is-a-guardian-in-nature/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [Men only act in a state of necessity and usually only recognise necessity in a situation of crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-monnet/men-only-act-in-a-state-of-necessity-and-usually-only-recognise/) [Jean Monnet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-monnet/) [Browse all 777 Necessity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/necessity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“If a human creature is composed of two beings, and if the acknowledgment of the necessity of preserving their union is the chief mark of submission to the decrees of our Creator, that necessity should be made a religious law; and if the enforced preservation of this union will make men more responsible for their actions, it should be made a civil law.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Montesquieu" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/if-a-human-creature-is-composed-of-two-beings-and-if-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Necessity" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/if-a-human-creature-is-composed-of-two-beings-and-if-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/184/montesquieu-19593_necessity_if-a-human-creature-is-composed-of-two-b_2298684.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/184/montesquieu-19593_necessity_if-a-human-creature-is-composed-of-two-b_2298684.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/184/montesquieu-19593_necessity_if-a-human-creature-is-composed-of-two-b_2298684.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If a human creature is composed of two beings, and if the acknowledgment of the necessity of preserving…” — Montesquieu", "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": "Montesquieu", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montesquieu/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“If a human creature is composed...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/if-a-human-creature-is-composed-of-two-beings-and-if-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montesquieu/if-a-human-creature-is-composed-of-two-beings-and-if-the/#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 } } ] } ```