--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A supreme deity would no more gift us…" description: "\"A supreme deity would no more gift us with intellect and expect us to forsake it in moments of bafflement, than He would fashion us eyes to see and bid..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2df/terryl-l-givens-20241_deities_a-supreme-deity-would-no-more-gift-us-wi_161669.jpg" --- # A supreme deity would no more gift us with intellect and… ![“A supreme deity would no more gift us with intellect and expect us to forsake it in moments of bafflement, than He would fashion us eyes to see and bid us shut them to the stars” quote by Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2df/terryl-l-givens-20241_deities_a-supreme-deity-would-no-more-gift-us-wi_161669.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2df/terryl-l-givens-20241_deities_a-supreme-deity-would-no-more-gift-us-wi_161669.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2df/terryl-l-givens-20241_deities_a-supreme-deity-would-no-more-gift-us-wi_161669.jpg) > “A supreme deity would no more gift us with intellect and expect us to forsake it in moments of bafflement, than He would fashion us eyes to see and bid us shut them to the stars” [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Intellect is a gift meant to be used, not ignored; we should seek knowledge even when it challenges us. **In simple terms:** Use your mind, don’t hide from difficult truths. Key Takeaway Pursue understanding despite discomfort. Themes knowledge curiosity challenge faith reason Mood thoughtful reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - intellectual crises - ethical dilemmas - spiritual questioning - scientific discovery Key Concepts epistemology theology human potential Questions to Reflect On - What drives you to confront confusing ideas? - How do you balance faith and reason? A Different Perspective The quote assumes all will embrace difficulty, which isn’t always realistic. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Deities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deities/) [Deity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deity/) [Fashion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fashion/) [Intellect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellect/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Stars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stars/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [For people raised and programmed on the patriarchal religions of today, religions that affect even the most secular aspects of our society, perhaps there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/merlin-stone/for-people-raised-and-programmed-on-the-patriarchal-religions-of/) [Merlin Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/merlin-stone/) > [A belief in God is vitally important, not just in show business, but stability in life. You know, to recognize deity is the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donny-osmond/a-belief-in-god-is-vitally-important-not-just-in-show-business-but/) [Donny Osmond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donny-osmond/) > [There are many things akin to highest deity that are still obscure. Some may be too subtle for our powers of comprehension, others imperceptible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-are-many-things-akin-to-highest-deity-that-are-still-obscure/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [There Is No God. This negation must be understood solely to affect a creative Deity. The hypothesis of a pervading Spirit co-eternal with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/there-is-no-god-this-negation-must-be-understood-solely-to-affect-a/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [For the alchemist the one primarily in need of redemption is not man, but the deity who is lost and sleeping in matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/for-the-alchemist-the-one-primarily-in-need-of-redemption-is-not-man/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [The world, and whatever that be which we call the heavens, by the vault of which all things are enclosed, we must conceive to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pliny-the-elder/the-world-and-whatever-that-be-which-we-call-the-heavens-by-the-vault/) [Pliny the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pliny-the-elder/) > [Nature is saturated with Deity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/nature-is-saturated-with-deity/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The scientific mind is atrophied, and suffers under inherited cerebral weakness, when it comes in contact with the eternal woman--Astarte, Isis, Demeter, Aphrodite, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/the-scientific-mind-is-atrophied-and-suffers-under-inherited-cerebral/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [Man, like Deity, creates in his own image.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/man-like-deity-creates-in-his-own-image/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [Becoming is the mode of activity of the uncreate deity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/becoming-is-the-mode-of-activity-of-the-uncreate-deity/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [As high as mind stands above nature, so high does the state stand above physical life. Man must therefore venerate the state as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/as-high-as-mind-stands-above-nature-so-high-does-the-state-stand/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [If there's a god, it knows exactly what it would take to convince me and has refused to provide it. In fact, it has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-g-mcafee/if-there-s-a-god-it-knows-exactly-what-it-would-take-to-convince-me/) [David G. McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-g-mcafee/) > [Death is the inseparable antecedent of life; the seed dies in order to produce the plant, and earth itself is rent asunder and dies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-pike/death-is-the-inseparable-antecedent-of-life-the-seed-dies-in-order-to/) [Albert Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-pike/) > [When you enter a grove peopled with ancient trees, higher than the ordinary, and shutting out the sky with their thickly inter-twined branches, do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-enter-a-grove-peopled-with-ancient-trees-higher-than-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) ## More by Terryl L. Givens > [Relationships are the core of our existence because they are the core of God's and we are in His image.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/relationships-are-the-core-of-our-existence-because-they-are-the-core/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [The earliest religious texts in the West ascribe to humankind both a prehistory and a destiny among the gods. M. David Litwa presents a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/the-earliest-religious-texts-in-the-west-ascribe-to-humankind-both-a/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [“In the Garden story, good and evil are found on the same tree, not in separate orchards. Good and evil give meaning and definition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/in-the-garden-story-good-and-evil-are-found-on-the-same-tree-not-in/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [“...God is not exempt from emotional pain...One the contrary, God's pain is as infinite as His love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/god-is-not-exempt-from-emotional-pain-one-the-contrary-god-s-pain-is/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [“The secret of happiness is this: let your interests be as wide as possible,” he said. He then made his point with the simple…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/the-secret-of-happiness-is-this-let-your-interests-be-as-wide-as/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [“The most terrifying specter that haunts the modern psyche is not death or disease or nuclear annihilation. It is loneliness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/the-most-terrifying-specter-that-haunts-the-modern-psyche-is-not/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [“the biblical scholar Richard Elliott Friedman notes that “probably the most remarkable difference of all” in disparate passages “is their different ways of picturing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/the-biblical-scholar-richard-elliott-friedman-notes-that-probably-the/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [“If Joseph initially thought only Mormons had access to truth or goodness, he was abruptly corrected of his misperception a year into the Church's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/if-joseph-initially-thought-only-mormons-had-access-to-truth-or/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [“His desires are set upon the whole human family, not upon a select few. He is not predisposed to just the fast learners, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/his-desires-are-set-upon-the-whole-human-family-not-upon-a-select-few/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [What is always at stake in any decision we make is what that choice turns us into.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/what-is-always-at-stake-in-any-decision-we-make-is-what-that-choice/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [“In the vision of Enoch, we find ourselves drawn to a God who prevents all the pain He can, assumes all the suffering He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/in-the-vision-of-enoch-we-find-ourselves-drawn-to-a-god-who-prevents/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [“As an inmate of a concentration camp, Corrie Ten Boom heard a commotion, and saw a short distance away a prison guard mercilessly beating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/as-an-inmate-of-a-concentration-camp-corrie-ten-boom-heard-a/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [“If we are co-eternal with God, then it is not God's creation of the human out of nothing that defines our essential relationship to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/if-we-are-co-eternal-with-god-then-it-is-not-god-s-creation-of-the/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [“The scriptures, said Paul to Timothy, are given for “correction” and “instruction in righteousness.”3 They are likened by the Psalmist to a lamp that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/the-scriptures-said-paul-to-timothy-are-given-for-correction-and/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) > [“The call to faith, in this light, is not some test of a coy god, waiting to see if we "get it right." It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terryl-l-givens/the-call-to-faith-in-this-light-is-not-some-test-of-a-coy-god-waiting/) [Terryl L. Givens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) [Explore all 31 Terryl L. Givens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terryl-l-givens/) ## More Deities quotes > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [In the interests of everyone the artist had a responsibility to use his medium well. In the Tibetan culture, most of the paintings are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/in-the-interests-of-everyone-the-artist-had-a-responsibility-to-use/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [About 120 million of us place the big bang 2,500 years after the Babylonians and Sumerians learned to brew beer. If our polls are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/about-120-million-of-us-place-the-big-bang-2-500-years-after-the/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [The moral perfections of the Deity, the more attentively, we consider, the more perfectly still shall we know them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/the-moral-perfections-of-the-deity-the-more-attentively-we-consider/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [No parent can consistently teach faith in Christ who profanes the name of Deity. Profanity is never heard in the well-ordered home. Swearing is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-o-mckay/no-parent-can-consistently-teach-faith-in-christ-who-profanes-the/) [David O. McKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-o-mckay/) > [It is by far the most elegant worship, hardly excepting the Greek mythology. What with incense, pictures, statues, altars, shrines, relics, and the real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/it-is-by-far-the-most-elegant-worship-hardly-excepting-the-greek/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) > [If I had to choose between the two ways of approaching the deity, I should prefer the existential relational way, to the abstract philosophical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-moore-cross/if-i-had-to-choose-between-the-two-ways-of-approaching-the-deity-i/) [Frank Moore Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-moore-cross/) > [When you enter a grove peopled with ancient trees, higher than the ordinary, and shutting out the sky with their thickly inter-twined branches, do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-enter-a-grove-peopled-with-ancient-trees-higher-than-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [This is insane," I said blankly. "I'm the instrument of an all-powerful primordial deity's wave of chaos and destruction." "That's kind of extreme" said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-mead/this-is-insane-i-said-blankly-i-m-the-instrument-of-an-all-powerful/) [Richelle Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-mead/) > [The difference of the English and Irish character is nowhere more plainly discerned than in their respective kitchens. With the former, this apartment is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-trollope/the-difference-of-the-english-and-irish-character-is-nowhere-more/) [Anthony Trollope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-trollope/) > [In my personal view, a failure to discover unimagined objects and answer unasked questions, once HST functions properly, would indicate a lack of imagination…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-n-bahcall/in-my-personal-view-a-failure-to-discover-unimagined-objects-and/) [John N. Bahcall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-n-bahcall/) > [Since we have been out of balance so heavily towards the male, it is going to be the feminine energy which will now move…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/since-we-have-been-out-of-balance-so-heavily-towards-the-male-it-is/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [Death is the inseparable antecedent of life; the seed dies in order to produce the plant, and earth itself is rent asunder and dies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-pike/death-is-the-inseparable-antecedent-of-life-the-seed-dies-in-order-to/) [Albert Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-pike/) > [Hubbard set up the Church of Scientology in Hollywood in 1954 for a reason. He understood that celebrity was increasingly a feature of American…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-wright/hubbard-set-up-the-church-of-scientology-in-hollywood-in-1954-for-a/) [Lawrence Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-wright/) > [My days were not days of the week, bearing the stamp of any heathen deity, nor were they minced into hours and fretted by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/my-days-were-not-days-of-the-week-bearing-the-stamp-of-any-heathen/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Browse all 455 Deities quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deities/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A supreme deity would no more gift us with intellect and expect us to forsake it in moments of bafflement, than He would fashion us eyes to see and bid us shut them to the stars", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Terryl L. 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