Our deeds disguise us. People need endless time to try on their deeds, until each knows the proper deeds for him to do. But every day, every hour, rushes by. There is no time.
Interpretation
Our actions define us, and people need time to understand the right actions to take amidst the fleeting nature of time.
In this quote, John Locke suggests that our actions are a reflection of our true selves, and it takes considerable time for individuals to figure out the appropriate actions or 'deeds' to engage in that align with their identity and values. He emphasizes the urgency of time, indicating that life is fleeting and encourages us to be mindful of how we choose to act, as we may not have the luxury of endless time to make these choices.
In practice
During a motivational speech on personal development.
For where is the man that has incontestable evidence of the truth of all that he holds, or of the falsehood of all he condemns; or can say that he has examined to the bottom all his own, or other men's opinions? The necessity of believing without knowledge, nay often upon very slight grounds, in this fleeting state of action and blindness we are in, should make us more busy and careful to inform ourselves than constrain others.
There is frequently more to be learned from the unexpected questions of a child than the discourses of men.
Reading furnishes the mind only with materials of knowledge; it is thinking that makes what we read ours.
New opinions are always suspected, and usually opposed, without any other reason but because they are not already common.
I have always thought the actions of men the best interpreters of their thoughts.
One unerring mark of the love of truth is not entertaining any proposition with greater assurance than the proofs it is built upon will warrant.
It is only in the shadows, when some fresh wave, truly original, truly creative, breaks upon the shore, that there will be a rediscovery of the West.
By committing the scientific method to religious claims you're committing a logical fallacy
Exact knowledge is the enemy of vitalism.
Faith, if it is ever right about anything, is right by accident
He appeared before me and departed. We were not able to speak to or touch each other. But in that short interval, he transformed many things inside me. He literally stirred my mind and body the way a spoon stirs a cup of cocoa, down to the depths of my internal organs and my womb.
The story of Mary of Magdalene reminds us all of a fundamental truth...A disciple of Christ is one who, in the experience of human weakness, has had the humility to ask for his help, has been healed by him and has set out following closely after him, becoming a witness of the power of his merciful love that is stronger than sin and death.
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