Every one must act according to the dictates of his own reason, and mine tells me that civil powers alone have been given to the President of the United States, and no authority to direct the religious exercises of his constituents.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes individual reasoning and the separation of church and state in governance.
In this quote, Thomas Jefferson underscores the importance of personal reasoning and the autonomy of individuals in making decisions based on their own beliefs. Jefferson advocates for a clear distinction between civil authority and religious practices, asserting that no governmental figure, including the President, holds the power to dictate religious observance to their constituents, thereby promoting the principle of religious freedom and personal liberty.
In practice
During a discussion on the importance of religious freedom in a democratic society.
The firmness with which the (American) people have withstood the... abuses of the press, the discernment they have manifested between truth and falsehood, show that they may safely be trusted to hear everything true and false and to form a correct judgment between them.
I, place economy among the first & most important republican virtues, & public debt as the greatest of the dangers to be feared
βWe must make our choice between economy and liberty or confusion and servitude...If we run into such debts, we must be taxed in our meat and drink, in our necessities and comforts, in our labor and in our amusements...if we can prevent the government from wasting the labor of the people, under the pretense of caring for them, they will be happy.
Very many and very meritorious were the worthy patriots who assisted in bringing back our government to its republican tack. To preserve it in that, will require unremitting vigilance.
A nation, as a society, forms a moral person, and every member of it is personally responsible for his society.
Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of liberty.
Search men's governing principles, and consider the wise, what they shun and what they cleave to.
This is the one and only firmament; therefore it is the absolute world. There is no other world. The circle is complete. I am living in Eternity. The ways of this world are the ways of Heaven.
Give a thing a name and it will somehow come to be.
If God has given you the world's goods in abundance, it is to help you gain those of Heaven and to be a good example of sound teaching to your sons, servants, and relatives.
The meaning in life is not out there but inbetween our ears. In many ways this makes us the lords of creation.
Every human being is intended to have a character of his own; to be what no others are, and to do what no other can do.
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