Benjamin Franklin Quote - Liberty Quotes Blog

"The longer I live,
the more convincing proofs I see of this truth:
'that God governs in the affairs of men.'
And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice,
is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid?"

by:	Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) US Founding Father
Source:	June 28, 1787, in a plea to the delegates of a deadlocked Constitutional Convention
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Categories:	Government, Religion, Republic, Tyranny, God
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Reader comments about this quote:

If all Americans would see and accept "this truth" about which Mr. Franklin spoke we would be assured of God's continued protection of our Nation. "Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people" (Proverbs 14:34). -- Derrel Shaw, Houston, TX 3
As "god" was created in our own image, to meet our own needs, one could follow a line of thought to the above quote, but the more direct line is that men govern the affairs of men, and that the sparrow falls to the ground due to pure physics, unnoticed by any but those physical beings present to watch physics in action... -- Anonymous, Reston, VA US 3
Excellent Reston - It's my experience the older I get the less convinced I am of devine intervention and more convinced of man's inhumanity towards himself. It has also been my experience that religion leans towards intolerance based, not on the simple test of compashion but rather, on some ancient writing that has no baring on reality. -- Robert, Sarasota
-- Anonymous
It is sad that man have lost their connection with the heart of God. As such, they have lost their connection with the heart of America! -- Logan, Memphis, TN 2
This would be a very depressing world if a Being greater than it did not have control (we must remember that since His circle of knowledge is much larger than ours, we cannot possibly understand everything going on around us to our satisfaction).... -- SK, Oklahoma City
-- twillis, cleveland, GA
I think that old Ben was right on the money with this quote! -- Gabriel Burak, Colorado Springs
It would be great if christians practiced what they preach, or just read a history book. How about just not killing people? -- RMB, Desert Hot Springs, CA
Do people not understand that these principles embraced by our founding fathers are the very principles that made AMERICA GREAT? It worked! And now there are those seeking to undo this great and wonderful accomplishment out of pure ignorance and/or selfishness and/or laziness. Ben was right on the money, alright, and we need to support those traditions that those wonderful men understood so well. -- John, Marysville, OH
-- Anonymous
John, America was "Great" because it was a largely empty continent which was fresh for being populated at the right time by industrialisation by people coming from countries in a more advanced state than the natives were in. This is not because of some innate superiority but simply by the accident that is history. and SK The World is a depressing place in the end. We die and that is the end. Cheer up and be brave and make the best of it while you can. Stop believing in fairies. In short, grow up and be strong all you people of religion. Whichever deluded childishness you follow. -- Atheist, Humanity, Texas
The amazing thing is not that people err and sin, for they always have. The amazing thing is the amount of goodness that slips through in spite of that fact- and THAT is where the divine intervention comes in. Prayer hurts no one and gives many peace . At the most, it is calling upon heaven, at the least it's the voicing of heartfelt emotion and concern. This is what I live by and perhaps more should, because it meets everyone's criteria- "Pray as if everything depended on God and work as if everthing depended on you." -- KLB, Plattsburgh 2
-- Anonymous
In reading these quotes, I see a great difference in attitudes. Those believing in God are positive and kind. Those who are non-believers are short,snippy and disrespectful. Ben did have it right. We are watching our country lose it standing in the world daily. It scares me what my child will face in this country as it becomes more Godless! -- Lou, Benton 2
I think those who are free to criticize the very umbrella from which they find liberty are very small minded and cannot possibly fathom a supreme being. Do you think we would find them so outspoken in a Communist society where humanism reigns supreme? It is so sad to see such lost individuals. -- Dan, West Palm Beach
I completely agree with Benjamin Franklin. The founding fathers of the United States and the citizens of the United States for many generations placed their faith in the God of the Bible and His Son, Jesus Christ and so this country was richly blessed. I also agree with Dan of West Palm Beach. It is VERY SAD to see some LOST individuals here who seem to think that they do not need God in their lives. When they die, they will realize, unfortunately, too late, that God exist and that there is a heaven, and unfortunately for them a HELL! -- EC, Franklin Park
With as many planets and solar systems that exist, why would there be a god that cared for/about humans. Think about all the information that we understand exists. About a googol pieces of information. Then imagine all the information that humans have no idea can even exist. That would be about a googol-plex pieces of information that exist that a god would have to memorize before it took into consideration the earth. Especially the political trends of the humans that inhabited it for a very small fraction of its existence. Imagine all the systems and processes that occur due to natural physics in space . Everything from gravtational forces, to the formation of black holes and function of different cells, quarks, and atoms on other planets. Some sort of deity being capable of understanding all that information, storing it, and then using it to make educated decisions/judgments about some organic creatures on earth, is not as probable as the existence of a series of operations and processes that occurred to form organic life. Who, happened to form brains with electro-chemical functions allowing them to think critically about subjects such as deities, and then forming their own opinions which form religions and god-heads. While understanding that simple processes and catalysts create everything, one also recognized that for anything to exist now there must have been something to create it and something to create the something that created the earth. This is means that for anything to exist, there must have always been existence. We humans have seen how natural equilibrium takes hold. Animal eats grass, animal gets eaten by tiger, tiger dies and provides fertilizer for the grass to grow and be eaten again. The world functions through death just as much as birth, for they create each other. Therefor, reincarnation with the complete absence of any deity is most probable. But i suppose bowing down to a flase god is easier than attempting to understanding the concept of infinity. Ignorance is bliss as they say. -- MustacheMan, Albany 1
I believe we still have "hope" and a great chance to see our great country continue to grow and prosper. Americans make up less than 5% of the world's population, yet the U.S. leads the world in Nobel Prize-winners (296), the number of billionaires (371), and the number of gold medals (36) and total medals (102) earned in the 2004 summer Olympics. We grant the most patents and produce the most energy and electricity. We have the most Internet users (205,327,000) and the most roads (3.98 million miles), airports (14,858) and railway tracks (140,805 miles). Did I mention we invented the internet? We are the most creative and inventive people on the planet. Try seeing the world through the eyes of someone who believes. When you believe in God and believe His only son died for our sins, America and our great planet become a whole lot brighter. -- Matthew, Billings
I think the God/Jesus Haters should pack up and move to North Korea or any of those other lovely Communist "There is no God but Man' "ISM" spots in the world , where they refuse to acknowlegde The God of creation, Jesus Christ, and see how that works out for you! You have the freedom here to hate the one that gave freedom to you, You are either for Him or against Him obviously you are against God, Good Luck with that! -- Dave, Spokane WA
-- Ronw13, Yachats OR
It is amazing how much we need this now even though this quote was said so long ago. -- Cooper houston, Las Vegas 1
You're missing the whole meaning of this quote it is nothing about why the sparrow falls it is about how something no one would care about God cares about showing that no matter how insignificant something or someone is God cares. -- Cooper houston, Las Vegas 1
The "A" from Reston, WHAT? It would be good to stay on point whether or not you believe in an extra human experience. Even though your god (the occupying statist theocracy infesting this land) would accomplish the actual meaning of the statement, the concept is most accurate when attributing it to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel. Also, in fact, if / when a god does or does not exist solely on the merits of a carnal man's theoretical / philosophical determining definition (you statement for example), the conclusion can only be taken to be as credible as the uninformed shallow author. My knowledge (as differs from a simple data collection) and evidence (seen and unseen) of a super-human existence (the King and Progenitor of the specie) differs greatly from your conclusion(s). -- Mike, Norwalk 1
Robert, what is your thought or understanding of divine intervention (and its ultimate application as would compare to the actual teachings of Jesus — not those claiming to follow Him)? AND; what does divine intervention have to do with man's inhumanity towards man? Robert, give us an example of your perceived reality. How does your carnal religion's compassion, morals and ethics differ from your translation and interpretation of ancient writings? -- Mike, Norwalk
God governing our social arrangement has left it illegitimate and fraught with illness, for God does not exist. -- Fredrick William Sillik, Anytown 1

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