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Religious persecution may shield itself under the guise of a mistaken and over-zealous piety.
Edmund Burke
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Religious persecution can masquerade as genuine religious devotion, obscuring its true nature.

In this quote, Edmund Burke highlights the irony that those who persecute others for their beliefs may do so under the pretense of piety. This suggests that zealotry can lead individuals to commit acts of intolerance and injustice while believing they are acting in accordance with a higher moral or spiritual directive, thus warning against the dangers of extreme fervor in any ideology.

Themes

ReligionPersecutionPietyZealotryIntolerance

In practice

Example use cases

This quote can be used in a discussion about the historical context of religious conflicts.

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