2,194 Quotes by Thomas Jefferson

The value of science to a republican people, the security it gives to liberty by enlightening the minds of its citizens, the protection it affords against foreign power, the virtue it inculcates, the just emulation of the distinction it confers on nations foremost in it; in short, its identification with power, morals, order and happiness (which merits to it premiums of encouragement rather than repressive taxes), are considerations [that should] always [be] present and [bear] with their just weight.

The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.

History teaches the young the virtues of freedom. By apprising them of the past it will enable them to judge the future.

Had the doctrines of Jesus been preached always as pure as they came from his lips, the whole civilized world would now have been Christians.

He who is permitted by law to have no property of his own, can with difficulty conceive that property is founded in anything but force.

It is my principle that the will of the majority should always prevail.

If by religion we are to understand sectarian dogmas, in which no two of them agree, then your exclamation on that hypothesis is just, "that this would be the best of worlds if there were no religion in it.

The idea of creating a national bank I do not concur in, because it seems now decided that Congress has not that power (although I sincerely wish they had it exclusively), and because I think there is already a vast redundancy rather than a scarcity of paper medium.

The dominion which the banking institutions have obtained over the minds of our citizens...must be broken, or it will break us.