--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ordinary human laws are the means…" description: "\"Ordinary human laws are the means - however imperfect - by which we express our understanding of the enduring moral law.\" — Russell Kirk" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/668/russell-kirk-6909_endure_ordinary-human-laws-are-the-means-howeve_2128763.jpg" --- # Ordinary human laws are the means - however imperfect - by… ![“Ordinary human laws are the means - however imperfect - by which we express our understanding of the enduring moral law.” quote by Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/668/russell-kirk-6909_endure_ordinary-human-laws-are-the-means-howeve_2128763.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/668/russell-kirk-6909_endure_ordinary-human-laws-are-the-means-howeve_2128763.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/668/russell-kirk-6909_endure_ordinary-human-laws-are-the-means-howeve_2128763.jpg) > “Ordinary human laws are the means - however imperfect - by which we express our understanding of the enduring moral law.” [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human laws are imperfect tools we use to approximate a higher, timeless moral law. **In simple terms:** Laws imperfectly reflect eternal morality. Key Takeaway Improve laws, aim for moral consistency. Themes law morality philosophy Mood contemplative serious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - legislative drafting - court rulings - ethical debates - public policy Key Concepts natural law jurisprudence Questions to Reflect On - What is an example of law diverging from moral truth? - How can societies reconcile this gap? A Different Perspective Human laws may conflict with higher moral ideals, causing tension. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Moral law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral-law/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/) ## Related quotes > [Upon these two foundations, the law of nature and the law of revelation, depend all human laws.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blackstone/upon-these-two-foundations-the-law-of-nature-and-the-law-of/) [William Blackstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blackstone/) > [Human laws made to direct the will ought to give precepts, and not counsels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baron-de-montesquieu/human-laws-made-to-direct-the-will-ought-to-give-precepts-and-not/) [Baron de Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baron-de-montesquieu/) > [ \[Christianity\] existed and flourishes, not only without the support of human laws, but in spite of every opposition from them. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/christianity-existed-and-flourishes-not-only-without-the-support-of/) [James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/) > [Man must necessarily be subject to the laws of his Creator. This will of his Maker is called the Law of Nature. This Law…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blackstone/man-must-necessarily-be-subject-to-the-laws-of-his-creator-this-will/) [William Blackstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blackstone/) > [The law... dictated by God Himself is, of course, superior in obligation to any other. It is binding over all the globe, in all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/the-law-dictated-by-god-himself-is-of-course-superior-in-obligation/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [The guilty are allowed, by human laws, bloody as they are, to speak in their own defence before they are condemned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-guilty-are-allowed-by-human-laws-bloody-as-they-are-to-speak-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God's laws are just few, while the human's laws are thousands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-s-laws-are-just-few-while-the-human-s-laws-are-thousands/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“In reality there are two, and only two, foundations of law; and they are both of them conditions without which nothing can give it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-reality-there-are-two-and-only-two-foundations-of-law-and-they-are/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [When human laws contradict or discountenance the means, which are necessary to preserve the essential rights of any society, they defeat the proper end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/when-human-laws-contradict-or-discountenance-the-means-which-are/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [“Human laws pattern divine laws, but divine laws use only originals.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mamie-smith/human-laws-pattern-divine-laws-but-divine-laws-use-only-originals/) Mamie Smith > [Maternity is a glorious thing, since all mankind has been conceived, born, and nourished of women. All human laws should encourage the multiplication of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/maternity-is-a-glorious-thing-since-all-mankind-has-been-conceived/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [“From a caprice of nature, not from the ignorance of man. Not a mistake has been made in the working. But we cannot prevent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-verne/from-a-caprice-of-nature-not-from-the-ignorance-of-man-not-a-mistake/) [Jules Verne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jules-verne/) > [All human laws are, properly speaking, only declaratory; they have no power over the substance of original justice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/all-human-laws-are-properly-speaking-only-declaratory-they-have-no/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [Those rights, then, which God and nature have established, and are therefore called natural rights, such as life and liberty, need not the aid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blackstone/those-rights-then-which-god-and-nature-have-established-and-are/) [William Blackstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blackstone/) > [The laws of Nature take precedence of all human laws. The purpose of all human laws is one - to defeat the laws of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-laws-of-nature-take-precedence-of-all-human-laws-the-purpose-of/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) ## More by Russell Kirk > [“Only portions of the globe still enslaved by the enemies of the people refrained from congratulating President Zingu and Premier Villiers-Kolama upon the astounding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/only-portions-of-the-globe-still-enslaved-by-the-enemies-of-the/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [“Manfredo -- Your Excellency -- how can you, even you, hope...?" "Life is a jest, and all things show it, my dear," I replied;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/manfredo-your-excellency-how-can-you-even-you-hope-life-is-a-jest-and/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [“Today, as in the past, we ought to remind ourselves that the true natural law is not a mere congeries of appetites, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/today-as-in-the-past-we-ought-to-remind-ourselves-that-the-true/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [Moral decay first hampers and then strangles honest government, regular commerce, and even the ability to take genuine pleasure in the goods of this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/moral-decay-first-hampers-and-then-strangles-honest-government/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [ “Men are put into this world, he \[the enlightened conservative\] realizes, to struggle, to suffer, to contend against the evil that is in their… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/men-are-put-into-this-world-he-the-enlightened-conservative-realizes/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [Mine was not an Enlightened mind, I now was aware: it was a Gothic mind, medieval in its temper and structure. I did not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/mine-was-not-an-enlightened-mind-i-now-was-aware-it-was-a-gothic-mind/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [Humility, which Burke ranked high among the virtues, is the only effectual restraint upon this congenital vanity; yet our world has nearly forgotten the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/humility-which-burke-ranked-high-among-the-virtues-is-the-only/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [Rousseau and his disciples were resolved to force men to be free; in most of the world, they triumphed; men are set free from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/rousseau-and-his-disciples-were-resolved-to-force-men-to-be-free-in/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [Politics moves upward into ethics, and ethics ascends to theology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/politics-moves-upward-into-ethics-and-ethics-ascends-to-theology/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [If men are discharged of reverence for ancient usage, they will treat this world, almost certainly, as if it were their private property, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/if-men-are-discharged-of-reverence-for-ancient-usage-they-will-treat/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [“The Conservative Mind describes a cast of intellect or a type of character, an inclination to cherish the permanent things in human existence. On…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/the-conservative-mind-describes-a-cast-of-intellect-or-a-type-of/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [Privilege, in any society, is the reward of duties performed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/privilege-in-any-society-is-the-reward-of-duties-performed/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [“There are six canons of conservative thought: 1) Belief in a transcendent order, or body of natural law, which rules society as well as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/there-are-six-canons-of-conservative-thought-1-belief-in-a/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [The Secular City, having legislated and litigated itself out of any entanglement with the City of God, would be a hell upon earth .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/the-secular-city-having-legislated-and-litigated-itself-out-of-any/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) > [Why do we not exhaust the heritage of the ages, spiritual and material for our immediate pleasure, and let posterity go hang? So far…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/why-do-we-not-exhaust-the-heritage-of-the-ages-spiritual-and-material/) [Russell Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) [Explore all 96 Russell Kirk quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/) ## More Endure quotes > [So many things beat upon us in a lifetime that simply enduring may seem almost beyond us… But the test a loving God has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-b-eyring/so-many-things-beat-upon-us-in-a-lifetime-that-simply-enduring-may/) [Henry B. Eyring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-b-eyring/) > [This is no time for ease and comfort. It is time to dare and endure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/this-is-no-time-for-ease-and-comfort-it-is-time-to-dare-and-endure/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked "What is a hero?" ...My answer was that a hero is someone who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/when-the-first-superman-movie-came-out-i-was-frequently-asked-what-is/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > [There is a spirit which I feel that delights to do no evil, nor to revenge any wrong, but delights to endure all things,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nayler/there-is-a-spirit-which-i-feel-that-delights-to-do-no-evil-nor-to/) James Nayler > [A great read; an exciting, frightening account of organized crime today. But like all important works of nonfiction, it goes further… This book is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/le-ly-hayslip/a-great-read-an-exciting-frightening-account-of-organized-crime-today/) [Le Ly Hayslip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/le-ly-hayslip/) > [It is easy enough to say that man is immortal simply because he will endure: that when the last ding-dong of doom has clanged…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/it-is-easy-enough-to-say-that-man-is-immortal-simply-because-he-will/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) > [It is well for a man when he has learned to endure what he cannot change, and to give up with dignity what he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-schiller/it-is-well-for-a-man-when-he-has-learned-to-endure-what-he-cannot/) [Friedrich Schiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-schiller/) > [The art of life is to know how to enjoy a little and to endure very much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/the-art-of-life-is-to-know-how-to-enjoy-a-little-and-to-endure-very/) [William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/) > [Life is not a PG feel-good movie. Real life often ends badly. Literature tries to document this reality, while showing us it is still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/life-is-not-a-pg-feel-good-movie-real-life-often-ends-badly/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [It is impossible to build enduring institutions without solid values. For us, the fundamental value is that associated with democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-henrique-cardoso/it-is-impossible-to-build-enduring-institutions-without-solid-values/) [Fernando Henrique Cardoso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-henrique-cardoso/) > [I will love the light for it shows me the way, yet I will endure the darkness because it shows me the stars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/og-mandino/i-will-love-the-light-for-it-shows-me-the-way-yet-i-will-endure-the/) [Og Mandino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/og-mandino/) > [“This is how they are able to continue and endure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/this-is-how-they-are-able-to-continue-and-endure/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [There are many who say they want to be victorious Christians, but few are willing to endure the discipline necessary to make one a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vance-havner/there-are-many-who-say-they-want-to-be-victorious-christians-but-few/) [Vance Havner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vance-havner/) > [“Whatever befalls us, we will endure it together. I clutch my longbow and dagger close to my side. My last thoughts linger on my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-noce/whatever-befalls-us-we-will-endure-it-together-i-clutch-my-longbow/) [Mark Noce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-noce/) > [“One by one, I'll face the tasks before me and complete them as best I can. Focusing on each stride forward, but at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/one-by-one-i-ll-face-the-tasks-before-me-and-complete-them-as-best-i/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) Browse all 2,549 Endure quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Ordinary human laws are the means - however imperfect - by which we express our understanding of the enduring moral law.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Russell Kirk" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/ordinary-human-laws-are-the-means-however-imperfect-by-which-we/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Endure" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/ordinary-human-laws-are-the-means-however-imperfect-by-which-we/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/668/russell-kirk-6909_endure_ordinary-human-laws-are-the-means-howeve_2128763.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/668/russell-kirk-6909_endure_ordinary-human-laws-are-the-means-howeve_2128763.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/668/russell-kirk-6909_endure_ordinary-human-laws-are-the-means-howeve_2128763.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Ordinary human laws are the means - however imperfect - by which we express our understanding of the…” — Russell Kirk", "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": "Russell Kirk", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-kirk/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Ordinary human laws are the means...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/ordinary-human-laws-are-the-means-however-imperfect-by-which-we/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-kirk/ordinary-human-laws-are-the-means-however-imperfect-by-which-we/#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 } } ] } ```