William Robertson Smith

“The circle of kindred, united by the bond of blood, is the primary social unit.”

“Religion did not exist for the saving of souls but for the preservation and welfare of society.”

“A man's religion is the expression of his ultimate attitude to the universe, the summed-up meaning and purport of his whole consciousness of things.”

“In ancient society, law is not distinct from religion.”

“The one great point in the Semitic theory of sacrifice is the idea of communion between the god and his worshippers by joint participation in the flesh of the victim.”

“In the oldest and most primitive religions, the gods are not abstractions, but beings with a definite, and for the most part, a local habitation and a name.”

“The anointing of a king is a religious ceremony, which gives to his authority a sacred and inviolable character.”

“It is a consequence of the inspiration of the Bible that it is a book which is not behind, but before the age in which it was written.”

“The history of the Old Testament is the history of a gradual and progressive revelation.”

“The original and indestructible piety of the human heart is the foundation of all religion.”