Bible Quote by Richard Dawkins
“I hope nobody is seriously suggesting that we get our morals from scripture because if we did we'd be stoning people for working on the Sabbath or switching on a light on the Sabbath. So the point is that you can find good bits of the Bible but you have to cherry-pick, you have reject the nasty bits and pick the nice bits.”
About This Quote
Source Book: The God Del Delusion, 2006, Chapter 12
Moral guidance should not be derived from scripture; one must discard harmful doctrines and keep beneficial teachings.
In simple terms: Don’t take morals from the Bible wholesale; keep the good, discard the bad.
Key Takeaway
Separate ethical value from religious texts.
Themes
religion
ethics
critical thinking
secularism
biblical interpretation
Mood
skeptical
inquisitive
Type
ethical
philosophical
When to use this quote
- personal ethics
- education curricula
- public policy
- interfaith dialogue
Key Concepts
moral relativism
textual criticism
cultural adaptation
Questions to Reflect On
- Which biblical teachings align with modern human rights?
- How do we decide which parts to keep?
A Different Perspective
Over‑reliance on scripture can legitimize outdated or harmful practices.
![“Jesus was not content to derive his ethics from the scriptures of his upbringing. He explicitly departed from them. [...] Since a principal thesis of this chapter is that we do not, and should not, derive our morals from scripture, Jesus has to be honoured as a model for that very thesis.” quote by Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/caa/richard-dawkins-115_chapters_jesus-was-not-content-to-derive-his-ethi_1062044.jpg)
