The principle of the Inquisition was murderous. . . . The popes were not only murderers in the great style, but they also made murder a legal basis of the Christian Church and a condition of salvation.
LORD ACTONThe principle of the Inquisition was murderous. . . . The popes were not only murderers in the great style, but they also made murder a legal basis of the Christian Church and a condition of salvation.
LORD ACTONDo not turn yourself from an end into a means-one does not justify the other.
LORD ACTONThe danger is not that a particular class is unfit to govern. ~ Every class is unfit to govern … Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men.
LORD ACTON. It is the delicate fruit of a mature civilization; and scarcely a century has passed since nations, that knew the meaning of the term, resolved to be free.
LORD ACTONLiberty, next to religion has been the motive of good deeds and the common pretext of crime, from the sowing of the seed at Athens, 2,460 years ago, until the ripened harvest was gathered by men of our race
LORD ACTONWhen you perceive a truth, look for the balancing truth.
LORD ACTONA public man has no right to let his actions be determined by particular interests. He does the same thing as a judge who accepts a bribe. Like a judge he must consider what is right, not what is advantageous to a party or class.
LORD ACTONFor centuries it was never discovered that education was a function of the State, and the State never attempted to educate.
LORD ACTONThe passion for power over others can never cease to threaten mankind, and is always sure of finding new and unforseen allies in continuing its martyrology.
LORD ACTONIf there is any presumption, it is the other way against holders of power…power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
LORD ACTONThere is no error so monstrous that it fails to find defenders among the ablest men.
LORD ACTONThere are many things the government cant do, many good purposes it must renounce. It must leave them to the enterprise of others. It cannot feed the people. It cannot enrich the people. It cannot teach the people. It cannot convert the people.
LORD ACTONIn England Parliament is above the law. In America the law is above Congress.
LORD ACTONGovernment rules the present. Literature rules the future.
LORD ACTONIf the past has been an obstacle and a burden, knowledge of the past is the safest and the surest emancipation.
LORD ACTONJudge talent at its best and character at its worst.
LORD ACTON