Democracy is finding proximate solutions to insoluble problems.

The final wisdom of life requires not the annulment of incongruity but the achievement of serenity within and above it.

I think there ought to be a club in which preachers and journalists could come together and have the sentimentalism of the one matched with the cynicism of the other. That ought to bring them pretty close to the truth.

Nothing which is true or beautiful or good makes complete sense in any immediate context of history; therefore we must be saved by faith.

Goodness, armed with power, is corrupted; and pure love without power is destroyed.

Democracies are indeed slow to make war, but once embarked upon a martial venture are equally slow to make peace and reluctant to make a tolerable, rather than a vindictive, peace.

The sad duty of politics is to establish justice in a sinful world.

Forgiveness is the final form of love.

Life is a battle between faith and reason in which each feeds upon the other, drawing sustenance from it and destroying it.

Man's capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man's inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary.

All human sin seems so much worse in its consequences than in its intentions.

If we survive danger it steels our courage more than anything else.

The tendency to claim God as an ally for our partisan value and ends is the source of all religious fanaticism.

Democracy is finding proximate solutions to insoluble problems.

If we can find God only as he is revealed in nature we have no moral God.

There are historic situations in which refusal to defend the inheritance of a civilization, however imperfect, against tyranny and aggression may result in consequences even worse than war.

The mastery of nature is vainly believed to be an adequate substitute for self mastery.

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Evil is not to be traced back to the individual but to the collective behavior of humanity.

God, give us grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, courage to change the things which should be changed and the wisdom to distinguish the one from the other.

Our age knows nothing but reaction, and leaps from one extreme to another.

Nothing that is worth doing can be achieved in a lifetime; therefore we must be saved by hope.

Original sin is that thing about man which makes him capable of conceiving of his own perfection and incapable of achieving it.

There is no cure for the pride of a virtuous nation but pure religion.

Nothing we do, however virtuous, can be accomplished alone; therefore we are saved by love.

Family life is too intimate to be preserved by the spirit of justice. It can be sustained by a spirit of love which goes beyond justice.

All men are naturally included to obscure the morally ambiguous element in their political cause by investing it with religious sanctity.

The fence and the boundary line are the symbols of the spirit of justice. They set the limits upon each mans interest to prevent one from taking advantage of the other.

The whole art of politics consists in directing rationally the irrationalities of men.

Change is the essence of life; be willing to surrender what you are for what you could become.

Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The real safeguard of democracy, therefore, is education.

The experience of democracy is like the experience of life itself-always changing, infinite in its variety, sometimes turbulent and all the more valuable for having been tested by adversity.

In democracy everyone has the right to be represented, even the jerks.

But democracy isn't a state of perfection. It has to be improved, and that means constant vigilance.

Democracy is stronger than terrorism, and we will not cower to the terrorists' campaign of fear.

Our brave soldiers and support personnel are engaged in a battle as important as any the United States has ever before waged, for the success of democracy in Iraq is a crucial test of the ideals this Nation was founded upon.

American and Israel share a special bond. Our relationship is unique among all nations. Like America, Israel is a strong democracy, a symbol of freedom, and an oasis of liberty, a home to the oppressed and persecuted.

Democracy is also a form of worship. It is the worship of Jackals by Jackasses.

Until the control of the issue of currency and credit is restored to government and recognized as its most conspicuous and sacred responsibility, all talks of the sovereignty of Parliament and of democracy is idle and futile.

And when we draw lines in the sand with regard to certain basic things that are vital to our interest and to the interest of democracy and our friends around the world, we have to be willing to back that up.

While Kuwait is not a democracy, giving only half the population a voice in their government is not a policy this Congress should support and one that I am glad that Kuwait's leaders are changing.

It's true that the war in Iraq opened a distance in relations between part of Europe and the U.S. government, but our basic ties are stronger than that. We share democracy, free markets and a commitment to Western security. We differ on how to guarantee that security.

The best Governments of the World have bin composed of Monarchy, Aristocracy, and Democracy.

If we are to keep our democracy, there must be one commandment: "Thou shalt not ration justice."

One has the right to be wrong in a democracy.

In this possibly terminal phase of human existence, democracy and freedom are more than just ideals to be valued - they may be essential to survival.

There is something inherent in our democracy that tends to want to level. America is a little uncomfortable in the presence of someone who is distinctly superior in whatever way.

Propaganda is to a democracy what the bludgeon is to a totalitarian state.

The Election Assistance Commission represents a major, unprecedented commitment from the federal government to sustained freedom and vibrant democracy. I am humbled by the prospect of being one its charter members.