--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Suggesting I hate people with religion…" description: "\"Suggesting I hate people with religion because I hate religion is like suggesting I hate people with cancer because I hate cancer.\" — Ricky Gervais" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37e/ricky-gervais-851_cancer_suggesting-i-hate-people-with-religion-b_3145621.png" --- # Suggesting I hate people with religion because I hate… ![“Suggesting I hate people with religion because I hate religion is like suggesting I hate people with cancer because I hate cancer.” quote by Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37e/ricky-gervais-851_cancer_suggesting-i-hate-people-with-religion-b_3145621.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37e/ricky-gervais-851_cancer_suggesting-i-hate-people-with-religion-b_3145621.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37e/ricky-gervais-851_cancer_suggesting-i-hate-people-with-religion-b_3145621.png) > “Suggesting I hate people with religion because I hate religion is like suggesting I hate people with cancer because I hate cancer.” [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Equating dislike of a belief system with hatred of its followers is a false analogy that ignores individual agency and moral responsibility. **In simple terms:** Disliking a religion isn’t the same as hating its believers. Key Takeaway Separate ideas from people. Themes religion prejudice responsibility Mood thoughtful critical Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - debates about faith - social media arguments - interfaith dialogues Key Concepts analogy moral reasoning Questions to Reflect On - How do you distinguish criticism of ideas from prejudice against people? - Can empathy reduce such false equivalences? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cancer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cancer/) [Hate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hate/) [Hate religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hate-religion/) [I hate people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-hate-people/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People with cancer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-with-cancer/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) ## Related quotes > [I don't hate religion, I try not to hate religion. I hate the terrible things that religion makes people do, and I hate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hutch-harris/i-don-t-hate-religion-i-try-not-to-hate-religion-i-hate-the-terrible/) [Hutch Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hutch-harris/) > [Hate is just as injurious to the hater as it is to the hated. Like an unchecked cancer, hate corrodes the personality and eats…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/hate-is-just-as-injurious-to-the-hater-as-it-is-to-the-hated-like-an/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Like an unchecked cancer, hate corrodes the personality and eats away its vital unity. Hate destroys a man's sense of values and his objectivity.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/like-an-unchecked-cancer-hate-corrodes-the-personality-and-eats-away/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Like an unchecked cancer, hate corrodes the personality and eats away its vital unity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/like-an-unchecked-cancer-hate-corrodes-the-personality-and-eats-away-2/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Hate is a cancer that spreads one cell at a time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-pelzer/hate-is-a-cancer-that-spreads-one-cell-at-a-time/) [Dave Pelzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-pelzer/) > [I will be as callous and uncaring as you can imagine, I have no interest in paying for your health care. I'd hate to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-lonegan/i-will-be-as-callous-and-uncaring-as-you-can-imagine-i-have-no/) Steve Lonegan > [hate is cancer of the soul!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-jerome-dickey/hate-is-cancer-of-the-soul/) [Eric Jerome Dickey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-jerome-dickey/) > [I'd hate to see you get cancer, but that's your problem, not mine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-lonegan/i-d-hate-to-see-you-get-cancer-but-that-s-your-problem-not-mine/) Steve Lonegan > [I have tried to teach my siblings not to detest insult or berate, but I cannot follow my own advice when I am filled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiana-webb/i-have-tried-to-teach-my-siblings-not-to-detest-insult-or-berate-but/) [Tiana Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiana-webb/) > [If someone doesn't have a reason to not like you in America, they talk politics or religion. Then they get to hate you and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wale/if-someone-doesn-t-have-a-reason-to-not-like-you-in-america-they-talk/) [Wale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wale/) > [Why do they kill people of other religions because of religion? Why do they hate the Israelis and despise their right to exist? Why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trent-lott/why-do-they-kill-people-of-other-religions-because-of-religion-why-do/) [Trent Lott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trent-lott/) > [Men despise religion. They hate it and are afraid it may be true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/men-despise-religion-they-hate-it-and-are-afraid-it-may-be-true/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Communists disavow the existence of God and religion. They hate it, because it's a competitor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/communists-disavow-the-existence-of-god-and-religion-they-hate-it/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [“I hate organized religion. I hate that people use it to justify their crappy, bigoted beliefs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-harrington/i-hate-organized-religion-i-hate-that-people-use-it-to-justify-their/) [Hannah Harrington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-harrington/) > [Men despise religion. They hate it and are afraid it may be true. The cure for this is first to show that religion is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/men-despise-religion-they-hate-it-and-are-afraid-it-may-be-true-the/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) ## More by Ricky Gervais > [I was David Bowie-thin up to about 28, and then I discovered food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/i-was-david-bowie-thin-up-to-about-28-and-then-i-discovered-food/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [I don't like it when I see a racist comedian go up and say, 'What are we gonna do about all these immigrants?' and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/i-don-t-like-it-when-i-see-a-racist-comedian-go-up-and-say-what-are/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [The truth doesn't hurt. Whatever it is, it doesn't hurt. It's better to know the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/the-truth-doesn-t-hurt-whatever-it-is-it-doesn-t-hurt-it-s-better-to/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [If all the Atheists & Agnostics left America, they'd lose 93% of The National Academy of Sciences & less than 1% of the prison population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/if-all-the-atheists-agnostics-left-america-they-d-lose-93-of-the/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [There are so many films now where you know the story is a supporting role to the visual effects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/there-are-so-many-films-now-where-you-know-the-story-is-a-supporting/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [When I was about to be famous, I feared it on a few levels. I feared it because I didn't want people to lump…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/when-i-was-about-to-be-famous-i-feared-it-on-a-few-levels-i-feared-it/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [It will be great to play a short, fat sweaty loser for a change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/it-will-be-great-to-play-a-short-fat-sweaty-loser-for-a-change/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [I went to university with no money. I can't understand a society that wouldn't give a poor person the same opportunity as a rich…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/i-went-to-university-with-no-money-i-can-t-understand-a-society-that/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [I'm a failed pop star. I always sneak a song into everything I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/i-m-a-failed-pop-star-i-always-sneak-a-song-into-everything-i-do/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [The grass isn't always greener on the other side!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/the-grass-isn-t-always-greener-on-the-other-side/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [I am myself sometimes, and I do state my opinions, but not in a comedy routine and not in my character. There always has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/i-am-myself-sometimes-and-i-do-state-my-opinions-but-not-in-a-comedy/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [Wearing cosmetics that were tested on animals makes you ugly on the inside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/wearing-cosmetics-that-were-tested-on-animals-makes-you-ugly-on-the/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [There's a difference between a job and a career - if you're the boss you don't stop at six o'clock, you have to worry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/there-s-a-difference-between-a-job-and-a-career-if-you-re-the-boss/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [Stupidity without malice isn't horrible; some people can't help it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/stupidity-without-malice-isn-t-horrible-some-people-can-t-help-it/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [It's interesting that music in this country... we sort of sold something to America with The Beatles and they sold something back. And we've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/it-s-interesting-that-music-in-this-country-we-sort-of-sold-something/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) [Explore all 351 Ricky Gervais quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) ## More Cancer quotes > [Women still, when they have breast cancer, go to work; they still lead their lives. They have to. I just did what I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-potter/women-still-when-they-have-breast-cancer-go-to-work-they-still-lead/) [Monica Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-potter/) > [If one truly has lost hope, one would not be on hand to say so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bentley/if-one-truly-has-lost-hope-one-would-not-be-on-hand-to-say-so/) [Eric Bentley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bentley/) > [Racism is a cancer. You cannot ignore it and it'll go away. If you ignore cancer, it simply metastasizes and consumes the whole body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daryl-davis/racism-is-a-cancer-you-cannot-ignore-it-and-it-ll-go-away-if-you/) [Daryl Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daryl-davis/) > [Historically, more people have died of religion than cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-francis/historically-more-people-have-died-of-religion-than-cancer/) [Dick Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-francis/) > [“Our kind of love can go into remission, but it's always waiting to return. Like the world sweetest cancer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/our-kind-of-love-can-go-into-remission-but-it-s-always-waiting-to/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [Bollywood is a cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-banerjee/bollywood-is-a-cancer/) [Victor Banerjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-banerjee/) > [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. It doesn't do anything to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/you-should-be-angry-you-must-not-be-bitter-bitterness-is-like-cancer/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [When people go get chemo, they're not injecting themselves with will - I have lost various loved ones to cancer, and I certainly don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-c-hall/when-people-go-get-chemo-they-re-not-injecting-themselves-with-will-i/) [Michael C. Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-c-hall/) > [“the doctor hesitated before breaking the news to her. "those aren't stars. it's cancer." - forty years a smoker”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-lovelace/the-doctor-hesitated-before-breaking-the-news-to-her-those-aren-t/) [Amanda Lovelace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-lovelace/) > [I loved you to the moon and back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-swift/i-loved-you-to-the-moon-and-back/) [Taylor Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-swift/) > [The risk of developing carcinoma of the lung increases steadily as the amount smoked increases. If the risk among non-smokers is taken as unity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-doll/the-risk-of-developing-carcinoma-of-the-lung-increases-steadily-as/) Richard Doll > [I would do away with super PACs. I think it's a cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-conrad/i-would-do-away-with-super-pacs-i-think-it-s-a-cancer/) [Kent Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-conrad/) > [Aging is like enlightenment at gunpoint. Before I had cancer, I lived my life for my art. After I had cancer, I lived my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-halprin/aging-is-like-enlightenment-at-gunpoint-before-i-had-cancer-i-lived/) [Anna Halprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-halprin/) > [If you are a white male, you don't deserve to live. You are a cancer, you're a disease, white males have never contributed anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-ignatiev/if-you-are-a-white-male-you-don-t-deserve-to-live-you-are-a-cancer/) [Noel Ignatiev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-ignatiev/) > [The way I look at it is, cancer research is absolutely nonpartisan. Cancer is very democratic in the sense that it attacks people regardless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-h-koch/the-way-i-look-at-it-is-cancer-research-is-absolutely-nonpartisan/) [David H. Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-h-koch/) [Browse all 3,177 Cancer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cancer/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Suggesting I hate people with religion because I hate religion is like suggesting I hate people with cancer because I hate cancer.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ricky Gervais" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/suggesting-i-hate-people-with-religion-because-i-hate-religion-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cancer" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/suggesting-i-hate-people-with-religion-because-i-hate-religion-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37e/ricky-gervais-851_cancer_suggesting-i-hate-people-with-religion-b_3145621.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37e/ricky-gervais-851_cancer_suggesting-i-hate-people-with-religion-b_3145621.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37e/ricky-gervais-851_cancer_suggesting-i-hate-people-with-religion-b_3145621.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Suggesting I hate people with religion because I hate religion is like suggesting I hate people with cancer…” — Ricky Gervais", "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": "Ricky Gervais", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Suggesting I hate people with religion...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/suggesting-i-hate-people-with-religion-because-i-hate-religion-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/suggesting-i-hate-people-with-religion-because-i-hate-religion-is/#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 } } ] } ```