--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Reader! To whatever visible church…" description: "\"Reader! To whatever visible church, synagogue, or mosque you may belong! See if you do not find more true religion among the host of the excommunicated..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86f/moses-mendelssohn-24658_books_reader-to-whatever-visible-church-synago_3162573.png" --- # Reader! To whatever visible church, synagogue, or mosque… ![“Reader! To whatever visible church, synagogue, or mosque you may belong! See if you do not find more true religion among the host of the excommunicated than among the far greater host who excommunicated them.” quote by Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86f/moses-mendelssohn-24658_books_reader-to-whatever-visible-church-synago_3162573.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86f/moses-mendelssohn-24658_books_reader-to-whatever-visible-church-synago_3162573.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86f/moses-mendelssohn-24658_books_reader-to-whatever-visible-church-synago_3162573.png) > “Reader! To whatever visible church, synagogue, or mosque you may belong! See if you do not find more true religion among the host of the excommunicated than among the far greater host who excommunicated them.” [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True religion is found among those excluded by institutions, not necessarily within the institutions themselves. **In simple terms:** Spiritual truth can exist outside official religious bodies. Key Takeaway Seek authenticity beyond formal affiliation. Themes religion exclusion authenticity Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - personal faith exploration - interfaith dialogue - community building Key Concepts spirituality institutional critique Questions to Reflect On - How do you define true religion? - Can excommunicated individuals embody deeper faith? A Different Perspective Institutions may still provide valuable guidance despite flaws. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/) [Mosques](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mosques/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Synagogue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/synagogue/) [True religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true-religion/) ## Related quotes > [You can study God through everything and everyone in the universe, because God is not confined in a mosque, synagogue or church. But if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-can-study-god-through-everything-and-everyone-in-the-universe-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The style of God venerated in church, mosque, and synagogue seems completely different from the style of the natural universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-watts/the-style-of-god-venerated-in-church-mosque-and-synagogue-seems/) [Alan Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-watts/) > [We can reject everything else: religion, ideology, all received wisdom. But we cannot escape the necessity of love and compassion. This, then, is my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/we-can-reject-everything-else-religion-ideology-all-received-wisdom-2/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [Certainly the affirmative pursuit of one's convictions about the ultimate mystery of the universe and man's relation to it is placed beyond the reach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-frankfurter/certainly-the-affirmative-pursuit-of-one-s-convictions-about-the/) [Felix Frankfurter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-frankfurter/) > [What happens at the average church or synagogue or mosque is that I don't know many priests or ministers or rabbis who say to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lear/what-happens-at-the-average-church-or-synagogue-or-mosque-is-that-i/) [Norman Lear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lear/) > [It's quite common for a Sufi mystic to cry in ecstasy that he's neither a Jew, a Christian, nor a Muslim. He is at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/it-s-quite-common-for-a-sufi-mystic-to-cry-in-ecstasy-that-he-s/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [There should be no mosque near Ground Zero in New York so long as there are no churches or synagogues in Saudi Arabia,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/newt-gingrich/there-should-be-no-mosque-near-ground-zero-in-new-york-so-long-as/) [Newt Gingrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/newt-gingrich/) > [When "I" and "You" are absent, I've no idea if this is a mosque, synagogue, church or temple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmud-shabistari/when-i-and-you-are-absent-i-ve-no-idea-if-this-is-a-mosque-synagogue/) [Mahmud Shabistari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmud-shabistari/) > [People just sticking names on places, so that no one could see those places properly any more. Every time they looked at them or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-marsden/people-just-sticking-names-on-places-so-that-no-one-could-see-those/) [John Marsden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-marsden/) > [Whenever we encounter the Infinite in man, however imperfectly understood, we treat it with respect. Whether in the synagogue, the mosque, the pagoda, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/whenever-we-encounter-the-infinite-in-man-however-imperfectly/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [It is useless saying that we do not accept the gods of the primitive world. In form, no; in essence, yes. The fact before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chapman-cohen/it-is-useless-saying-that-we-do-not-accept-the-gods-of-the-primitive/) [Chapman Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chapman-cohen/) > [If synagogues are attacked, this would give Jewish extremists an excuse to attack mosques.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-dahlan/if-synagogues-are-attacked-this-would-give-jewish-extremists-an/) [Mohammed Dahlan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-dahlan/) > [Americans practice different faiths in churches, synagogues, mosques and temples. And many good people practice no faith at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/americans-practice-different-faiths-in-churches-synagogues-mosques/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [I leave it to the faithful to burn each other's churches and mosques and synagogues, which they can be always relied upon to do](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-leave-it-to-the-faithful-to-burn-each-other-s-churches-and-mosques/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I know of no religion or sect that has done or is doing without a house of God, variously described as a temple, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-know-of-no-religion-or-sect-that-has-done-or-is-doing-without-a/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) ## More by Moses Mendelssohn > [Socrates didn't care to visit the theater, as a rule, except when the plays of Euripides (which some think, he himself had helped to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/socrates-didn-t-care-to-visit-the-theater-as-a-rule-except-when-the/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [For a game it is too serious, for seriousness too much of a game.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/for-a-game-it-is-too-serious-for-seriousness-too-much-of-a-game/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [The principal axiom in their theory was: Everything can be proved, and everything can be disproved; and in the process, one must profit as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/the-principal-axiom-in-their-theory-was-everything-can-be-proved-and/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [The state has physical power and uses it when necessary; the power of religion is love and beneficence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/the-state-has-physical-power-and-uses-it-when-necessary-the-power-of/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [Revealed religion is one thing, revealed legislation, another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/revealed-religion-is-one-thing-revealed-legislation-another/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [A God is thinkable, therefore a God is also actually present](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/a-god-is-thinkable-therefore-a-god-is-also-actually-present/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [Both state and church have as their object actions as well as convictions, the former insofar as they are based on the relations between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/both-state-and-church-have-as-their-object-actions-as-well-as/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [My religion recognizes no obligation to resolve doubt other than through rational means; and it commands no mere faith in eternal truths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/my-religion-recognizes-no-obligation-to-resolve-doubt-other-than/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [I am, therefore there is a God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/i-am-therefore-there-is-a-god/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [I fear that, in the end, the famous debate among materialists, idealists, and dualists amounts to a merely verbal dispute that is more a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/i-fear-that-in-the-end-the-famous-debate-among-materialists-idealists/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [The analysis of concepts is for the understanding nothing more than what the magnifying glass is for sight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/the-analysis-of-concepts-is-for-the-understanding-nothing-more-than/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [Time is a part of eternity, and of the same piece with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/time-is-a-part-of-eternity-and-of-the-same-piece-with-it/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [We would be able neither to remember nor to reflect nor to compare nor to think, indeed, we would not even be the person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/we-would-be-able-neither-to-remember-nor-to-reflect-nor-to-compare/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [Consciousness of myself, combined with complete ignorance of everything that does not fall within my sphere of thinking, is the most telling proof of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/consciousness-of-myself-combined-with-complete-ignorance-of/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) > [Instead, it appears to be a particular mark of beauty that it is considered with tranquil satisfaction; that it pleases if we also do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses-mendelssohn/instead-it-appears-to-be-a-particular-mark-of-beauty-that-it-is/) [Moses Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) [Explore all 23 Moses Mendelssohn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses-mendelssohn/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. 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Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Reader! To whatever visible church, synagogue, or mosque you may belong! 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