--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As you know, the Inquisition is an…" description: "\"As you know, the Inquisition is an admirable and wholly Christian invention to make the pope and the monks more powerful and turn a whole kingdom into ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cca/voltaire-173_admirable_as-you-know-the-inquisition-is-an-admira_1871533.png" --- # As you know, the Inquisition is an admirable and wholly… ![“As you know, the Inquisition is an admirable and wholly Christian invention to make the pope and the monks more powerful and turn a whole kingdom into hypocrites.” quote by Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cca/voltaire-173_admirable_as-you-know-the-inquisition-is-an-admira_1871533.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cca/voltaire-173_admirable_as-you-know-the-inquisition-is-an-admira_1871533.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cca/voltaire-173_admirable_as-you-know-the-inquisition-is-an-admira_1871533.png) > “As you know, the Inquisition is an admirable and wholly Christian invention to make the pope and the monks more powerful and turn a whole kingdom into hypocrites.” [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The Inquisition was a tool to concentrate religious power, turning institutions into hypocritical entities. **In simple terms:** Inquisition centralized power, creating hypocrisy. Key Takeaway Question authority and its motives. Themes history religion power Mood critical inquisitive Type historical philosophical When to use this quote - academic study - political analysis - ethical debates - education Key Concepts institutional critique hypocrisy Questions to Reflect On - How does power corrupt institutions? - What modern parallels exist? A Different Perspective Historical context may differ from modern interpretations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Admirable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/admirable/) [Atheism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheism/) [Christian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christian/) [Christian Invention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christian-invention-2585048/) [Hypocrite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hypocrite/) [Inquisition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inquisition/) [Inquisition Admirable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inquisition-admirable-2585046/) [Invention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/invention/) [Kingdoms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kingdoms/) [Know Inquisition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-inquisition-2585047/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Make Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make-pope-2585049/) [Monk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monk/) [Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pope/) [Positive atheism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/positive-atheism/) [Powerful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/powerful/) [Turns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turns/) [Whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole/) ## Related quotes > [When a man is in love, jealous, and just whipped by the Inquisition, he is no longer himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/when-a-man-is-in-love-jealous-and-just-whipped-by-the-inquisition-he/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [All events are linked together in the best of possible worlds; after all, if you had not been driven from a fine castle by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/all-events-are-linked-together-in-the-best-of-possible-worlds-after/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“There is a concatenation of events in this best of all possible worlds: for if you had not been kicked out of a magnificent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/there-is-a-concatenation-of-events-in-this-best-of-all-possible/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“My dear young lady, when you are in love, and jealous, and have been flogged by the Inquisition, there's no knowing what you may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/my-dear-young-lady-when-you-are-in-love-and-jealous-and-have-been/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Fools have a habit of believing that everything written by a famous author is admirable. For my part I read only to please myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/fools-have-a-habit-of-believing-that-everything-written-by-a-famous/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [If God did not exist, He would have to be invented. But all nature cries aloud that he does exist: that there is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/if-god-did-not-exist-he-would-have-to-be-invented-but-all-nature/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [The Christians who engaged in infamous persecutions and shameful inquisitions were not evil men but misguided men. The churchmen who felt they had an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-christians-who-engaged-in-infamous-persecutions-and-shameful/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [After the survivor of the Spanish conquest has told his life's story he is convicted by the Inquisition: He posted no brief in defense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-jennings/after-the-survivor-of-the-spanish-conquest-has-told-his-life-s-story/) [Gary Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-jennings/) > [“pro scienta atque sapienta-Latin- for science and wisdom It's a Darwinian popularity contest. at all times, the question on everyone's mind is, "who's coolest?"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-vizzini/pro-scienta-atque-sapienta-latin-for-science-and-wisdom-it-s-a/) [Ned Vizzini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-vizzini/) > [Institutional psychiatry is a continuation of the Inquisition. All that has really changed is the vocabulary and the social style. The vocabulary conforms to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/institutional-psychiatry-is-a-continuation-of-the-inquisition-all/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [A prisoner in the Inquisition is never allowed to see the face of his accuser, or of the witnesses against him, but every method…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foxe/a-prisoner-in-the-inquisition-is-never-allowed-to-see-the-face-of-his/) [John Foxe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foxe/) > [You find this curious fact, that the more intense has been the religion of any period and more profound has been the dogmatic belief,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/you-find-this-curious-fact-that-the-more-intense-has-been-the/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [Where there is no danger of overt action there is rarely any interference with freedom. That is why there has so often been amazing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/where-there-is-no-danger-of-overt-action-there-is-rarely-any/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [If Galileo had said in verse that the world moved, the inquisition might have let him alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/if-galileo-had-said-in-verse-that-the-world-moved-the-inquisition/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/from-augustine-down-theologians-have-tried-to-compel-people-to-accept/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) ## More by Voltaire > [In every province, the chief occupations, in order of importance, are lovemaking, malicious gossip, and talking nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/in-every-province-the-chief-occupations-in-order-of-importance-are/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Fanaticism, to which men are so much inclined, has always served not only to render them more brutalized but more wicked.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/fanaticism-to-which-men-are-so-much-inclined-has-always-served-not/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [History is the study of the world's crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/history-is-the-study-of-the-world-s-crime/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [We’re neither pure, nor wise, nor good; we do the best we know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/we-re-neither-pure-nor-wise-nor-good-we-do-the-best-we-know/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [It is with books as with men: a very small number play a great part, the rest are lost in the multitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/it-is-with-books-as-with-men-a-very-small-number-play-a-great-part/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Meslier was the most singular phenomenon ever seen among all the meteors fatal to the Christian religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/meslier-was-the-most-singular-phenomenon-ever-seen-among-all-the/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Every sensible man, every honorable man, must hold the Christian sect in horror." "Christianity is the most ridiculous, the most absurd and bloody religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/every-sensible-man-every-honorable-man-must-hold-the-christian-sect/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Being unable to make people more reasonable, I preferred to be happy away from them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/being-unable-to-make-people-more-reasonable-i-preferred-to-be-happy/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [When his highness sends a ship to Egypt, does he trouble his head whether the mice on board are at their ease or not?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/when-his-highness-sends-a-ship-to-egypt-does-he-trouble-his-head/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Madness is to think of too many things in succession too fast, or of one thing too exclusively.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/madness-is-to-think-of-too-many-things-in-succession-too-fast-or-of/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [God gave us the gift of life; it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/god-gave-us-the-gift-of-life-it-is-up-to-us-to-give-ourselves-the/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [It is not inequality which is the real misfortune, it is dependence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/it-is-not-inequality-which-is-the-real-misfortune-it-is-dependence/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Providence has given us hope and sleep as a compensation for the many cares of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/providence-has-given-us-hope-and-sleep-as-a-compensation-for-the-many/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Men use thought only to justify their wrong doings, and employ speech only to conceal their thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/men-use-thought-only-to-justify-their-wrong-doings-and-employ-speech/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Work spares us from three evils: boredom, vice, and need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/work-spares-us-from-three-evils-boredom-vice-and-need/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) [Explore all 934 Voltaire quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) ## More Admirable quotes > [Consumer wants can have bizarre, frivolous, or even immoral origins, and an admirable case can still be made for a society that seeks to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/consumer-wants-can-have-bizarre-frivolous-or-even-immoral-origins-and/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [Education is very admirable but let us not forget that anything worth knowing cannot be taught.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/education-is-very-admirable-but-let-us-not-forget-that-anything-worth/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Happiness is a rare plant that seldom takes root on earth-few ever enjoyed it, except for a brief period; the search after it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marguerite-gardiner-countess-of-blessington/happiness-is-a-rare-plant-that-seldom-takes-root-on-earth-few-ever/) [Marguerite Gardiner, Countess of Blessington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marguerite-gardiner-countess-of-blessington/) > [Worthy is the one who remembers to thank the Lord for all His blessings; but admirable is the one who still thank God in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/worthy-is-the-one-who-remembers-to-thank-the-lord-for-all-his/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [It is admirable to consider how many millions of people come into, and go out of the world, ignorant of themselves and of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-penn/it-is-admirable-to-consider-how-many-millions-of-people-come-into-and/) [William Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-penn/) > [What is pure Bill? Or excellent or admirable? The death of a million people in a flood? God evidently through so. He is incapable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-dekker/what-is-pure-bill-or-excellent-or-admirable-the-death-of-a-million/) [Ted Dekker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-dekker/) > [Mexico is sex and Canada is mind. There is much about Canada that I find admirable - the treatment of immigrants, for example, particularly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/mexico-is-sex-and-canada-is-mind-there-is-much-about-canada-that-i/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [Of what use is it to please the herd? They are simply coarse animals - for all that is admirable in man is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/of-what-use-is-it-to-please-the-herd-they-are-simply-coarse-animals/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [ I didn't get a chance to meet Glen \[Beck\] for this movie. I did meet him a few years ago, coincidentally, before any of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zachary-quinto/i-didn-t-get-a-chance-to-meet-glen-beck-for-this-movie-i-did-meet-him/) [Zachary Quinto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zachary-quinto/) > [No method nor discipline can supersede the necessity of being forever on the alert. What is a course of history, or philosophy, or poetry,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/no-method-nor-discipline-can-supersede-the-necessity-of-being-forever/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I think it's perfectly acceptable and rather admirable to be moderately delusional](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-gray-gubler/i-think-it-s-perfectly-acceptable-and-rather-admirable-to-be/) [Matthew Gray Gubler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-gray-gubler/) > [Charles Darwin made arguably the greatest discovery any human has ever made. He was a man of great persistence. He wasn't probably a natural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/charles-darwin-made-arguably-the-greatest-discovery-any-human-has/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [N. S. Khrushchev established his supremacy in the U.S.S.R. after post-Stalinist alarums and excursions (1958-64). This admirable rough diamond, a believer in reform and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hobsbawm/n-s-khrushchev-established-his-supremacy-in-the-u-s-s-r-after-post/) [Eric Hobsbawm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hobsbawm/) > [There has been a constant struggle on the part of the military element to keep the end- fighting, or readiness to fight-superior to mere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-thayer-mahan/there-has-been-a-constant-struggle-on-the-part-of-the-military/) [Alfred Thayer Mahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-thayer-mahan/) > [But there are people who take salt with their coffee. They say it gives a tang, a savour, which is peculiar and fascinating. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/but-there-are-people-who-take-salt-with-their-coffee-they-say-it/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) [Browse all 398 Admirable quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/admirable/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As you know, the Inquisition is an admirable and wholly Christian invention to make the pope and the monks more powerful and turn a whole kingdom into hypocrites.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Voltaire" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/as-you-know-the-inquisition-is-an-admirable-and-wholly-christian/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Admirable" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/as-you-know-the-inquisition-is-an-admirable-and-wholly-christian/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cca/voltaire-173_admirable_as-you-know-the-inquisition-is-an-admira_1871533.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cca/voltaire-173_admirable_as-you-know-the-inquisition-is-an-admira_1871533.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cca/voltaire-173_admirable_as-you-know-the-inquisition-is-an-admira_1871533.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As you know, the Inquisition is an admirable and wholly Christian invention to make the pope and the monks…” — Voltaire", "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": "Voltaire", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "As you know, the Inquisition is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/as-you-know-the-inquisition-is-an-admirable-and-wholly-christian/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/as-you-know-the-inquisition-is-an-admirable-and-wholly-christian/#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 } } ] } ```