--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you decide to do without a personal…" description: "\"“If you decide to do without a personal god it's illogical to saddle yourself with a legacy of JudeoChristian sin. That way you suffer the psychologica..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bac/p-d-james-7898_guilt_if-you-decide-to-do-without-a-personal-g_930374.jpg" --- # If you decide to do without a personal god it's illogical… ![“If you decide to do without a personal god it's illogical to saddle yourself with a legacy of JudeoChristian sin. That way you suffer the psychological inconveniences of guilt without the consolation of absolution. Oliver had plenty to feel guilty about, as indeed have we all.” quote by P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bac/p-d-james-7898_guilt_if-you-decide-to-do-without-a-personal-g_930374.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bac/p-d-james-7898_guilt_if-you-decide-to-do-without-a-personal-g_930374.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bac/p-d-james-7898_guilt_if-you-decide-to-do-without-a-personal-g_930374.jpg) > ““If you decide to do without a personal god it's illogical to saddle yourself with a legacy of JudeoChristian sin. That way you suffer the psychological inconveniences of guilt without the consolation of absolution. Oliver had plenty to feel guilty about, as indeed have we all.”” [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Rejecting a personal deity leads to guilt without redemption, creating psychological strain. **In simple terms:** Without belief, guilt persists without comfort. Key Takeaway Seek meaning beyond traditional religion. Themes faith guilt existentialism Mood reflective somber Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - moral decision making - spiritual crisis - mental health counseling - philosophical debate Key Concepts psychology theology Questions to Reflect On - Can morality exist without religion? - What gives you personal absolution? A Different Perspective Alternative worldviews can provide comfort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Guilt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guilt/) [Regret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regret/) ## Related quotes > [“Dalgliesh was too experienced to assume that fear implied guilt; it was often the most innocent who were the most terrified.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/dalgliesh-was-too-experienced-to-assume-that-fear-implied-guilt-it/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [The concept of God can be very interfering for some and very opening for others. There are many people who say it's not God,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-b-newberg/the-concept-of-god-can-be-very-interfering-for-some-and-very-opening/) [Andrew B. Newberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-b-newberg/) > [The core of all religions is a belief in a supreme personal god.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-tipler/the-core-of-all-religions-is-a-belief-in-a-supreme-personal-god/) [Frank Tipler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-tipler/) > [“... The witness is frequent and insistent that God is inherently relational and personal. So God cannot be either received or understood apart from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-peterson/the-witness-is-frequent-and-insistent-that-god-is-inherently/) [Eugene Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-peterson/) > [The idea of a personal God is an anthropological concept which I am unable to take seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/the-idea-of-a-personal-god-is-an-anthropological-concept-which-i-am/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [“I have a religion, my own religion, and I even have more religion than all of them, with their mummery and hocus-pocus. I adore…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/i-have-a-religion-my-own-religion-and-i-even-have-more-religion-than/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [I do not believe in a personal God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/i-do-not-believe-in-a-personal-god/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [I cannot conceive of a personal God who would directly influence the actions of individuals, or would directly sit in judgment on creatures of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/i-cannot-conceive-of-a-personal-god-who-would-directly-influence-the/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I don't believe in a personal God, no. And I don't believe in resurrection as it is in the New Testament.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvyn-bragg/i-don-t-believe-in-a-personal-god-no-and-i-don-t-believe-in/) [Melvyn Bragg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvyn-bragg/) > [About God, I cannot accept any concept based on the authority of the Church... As long as I can remember. I have resented mass…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/about-god-i-cannot-accept-any-concept-based-on-the-authority-of-the/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [To be sure, the doctrine of a personal God interfering with natural events could never be refuted, in the real sense, by science, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/to-be-sure-the-doctrine-of-a-personal-god-interfering-with-natural/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [In the end, worship can never be a performance, something you're pretending or putting on. It's got to be an overflow of your heart...Worship…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-redman/in-the-end-worship-can-never-be-a-performance-something-you-re/) [Matt Redman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-redman/) > [“This universe is shot through with mystery. The very fact of its being, and of our own, is a mystery absolute, and the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/this-universe-is-shot-through-with-mystery-the-very-fact-of-its-being/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [Yet a personal God can become a grave liability. He can be a mere idol carved in our own image, a projection of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/yet-a-personal-god-can-become-a-grave-liability-he-can-be-a-mere-idol/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [“Because of … this concentration of all that is universal and real in one personal being, God is a deeply moving object, enrapturing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-feuerbach/because-of-this-concentration-of-all-that-is-universal-and-real-in/) [Ludwig Feuerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-feuerbach/) ## More by P.D. James > [“I was like a little boy showing off my toys, desperate to win approval.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/i-was-like-a-little-boy-showing-off-my-toys-desperate-to-win-approval/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“Pleasure need not be less keen because there will be centuries of springs to come, their blossom unseen by human eyes, the walls will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/pleasure-need-not-be-less-keen-because-there-will-be-centuries-of/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“What do you mean by sound government?' Good public order, no corruption in high places, freedom from fear and war and crime, a reasonably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/what-do-you-mean-by-sound-government-good-public-order-no-corruption/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“I have enough trouble living with my own neurosis without coping with other people’s.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/i-have-enough-trouble-living-with-my-own-neurosis-without-coping-with/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“(A murderer about their victim:) "He was an expert in vicarious death. I should like to have been there to see how he enjoyed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/a-murderer-about-their-victim-he-was-an-expert-in-vicarious-death-i/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“had found it difficult to sleep since my husband had been killed, and now I lay rigid under the canopy of the four-poster re-living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/had-found-it-difficult-to-sleep-since-my-husband-had-been-killed-and/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“It had always been a part of his job which he found difficult, the total lack of privacy for the victim. Murder stripped away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/it-had-always-been-a-part-of-his-job-which-he-found-difficult-the/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“On the whole I’m glad; you can’t mourn for unborn grandchildren when there never was a hope of them. This planet is doomed anyway.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/on-the-whole-i-m-glad-you-can-t-mourn-for-unborn-grandchildren-when/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“Dalgliesh was too experienced to assume that fear implied guilt; it was often the most innocent who were the most terrified.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/dalgliesh-was-too-experienced-to-assume-that-fear-implied-guilt-it/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“The young seldom lie convincingly. They haven’t had time to practise like the rest of us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/the-young-seldom-lie-convincingly-they-haven-t-had-time-to-practise/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“It is doubtful whether Mrs Bennet missed the company of her second daughter, but her husband certainly did. Elizabeth had always been his favourite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/it-is-doubtful-whether-mrs-bennet-missed-the-company-of-her-second/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“She had quickly learned that to show unhappiness was to risk the loss of love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/she-had-quickly-learned-that-to-show-unhappiness-was-to-risk-the-loss/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“You won't get love from a child if you don't give love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/you-won-t-get-love-from-a-child-if-you-don-t-give-love/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“Beauty is intellectually confusing; it sabotages common sense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/beauty-is-intellectually-confusing-it-sabotages-common-sense/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) > [“It is never so difficult to congratulate a friend on her good fortune than when that fortune appears undeserved.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james-2/it-is-never-so-difficult-to-congratulate-a-friend-on-her-good-fortune/) [P.D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) [Explore all 79 P.D. James quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james-2/) ## More Guilt quotes > [Never fight on the wrong side; you might win but the burden of guilt is more than a loss.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lilian-salan/never-fight-on-the-wrong-side-you-might-win-but-the-burden-of-guilt/) [Lilian Salan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lilian-salan/) > [“As parents who make every effort we can to raise our children in loving security, we do not need to feel more guilt than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/as-parents-who-make-every-effort-we-can-to-raise-our-children-in/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [When the Lord Jesus Christ became my surety . . . He went to Calvary's cross, and all my guilt was charged against Him.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-allen-ironside/when-the-lord-jesus-christ-became-my-surety-he-went-to-calvary-s/) [Henry Allen Ironside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-allen-ironside/) > [“Even in the miserable guilt we feel over our beastlike insensitivity, the glory of God shines. If God were not gloriously desirable, why would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/even-in-the-miserable-guilt-we-feel-over-our-beastlike-insensitivity/) [John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/) > [“The sole reason I stand to open it up now is that lots of people who are in pain just like I was, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-dsouza/the-sole-reason-i-stand-to-open-it-up-now-is-that-lots-of-people-who/) [Patricia Dsouza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-dsouza/) > [But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. Fear would be transmuted into weary resignation; failure would no longer generate guilt but,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/but-victimhood-was-seductive-a-release-from-responsibility-and-caring/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [Regrets are just a way for the foolish and the guilty to pass the time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gensoumaden-saiyuki/regrets-are-just-a-way-for-the-foolish-and-the-guilty-to-pass-the-time/) Gensoumaden Saiyuki > [(I)f we are going to be kind, let it be out of simple generosity, not because we fear guilt or retribution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-f-we-are-going-to-be-kind-let-it-be-out-of-simple-generosity-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Money should not be in the hands of individuals; otherwise it will create this problem of being burdened with guilt. And money can make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/money-should-not-be-in-the-hands-of-individuals-otherwise-it-will/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [Food ... love ... mother ... career ... Live every day to the fullest. Partake of the four basic guilt groups.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathy-guisewite/food-love-mother-career-live-every-day-to-the-fullest-partake-of-the/) [Cathy Guisewite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathy-guisewite/) > [Anger was better than tears, better than grief, better than guilt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/anger-was-better-than-tears-better-than-grief-better-than-guilt/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Phil and Hannah had decided that Christian guilt was better than bad math”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhoda-janzen/phil-and-hannah-had-decided-that-christian-guilt-was-better-than-bad/) [rhoda janzen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhoda-janzen/) > [No amount of guilt can solve the past & No amount of anxiety can change the future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ananymous/no-amount-of-guilt-can-solve-the-past-no-amount-of-anxiety-can-change/) [Ananymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ananymous/) > [The essence of having fun is enjoying without guilt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-essence-of-having-fun-is-enjoying-without-guilt/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If all the world hated you and believed you wicked, while your own conscience approved of you and absolved you from guilt, you would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/if-all-the-world-hated-you-and-believed-you-wicked-while-your-own/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) [Browse all 2,943 Guilt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guilt/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“If you decide to do without a personal god it's illogical to saddle yourself with a legacy of JudeoChristian sin. 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