It is necessary to the happiness of man that he be mentally faithful to himself. Infidelity does not consist in believing, or in disbelieving, it consists in professing to believe what he does not believe.

Thomas Paine

Thomas Paine

belief disbelief happiness infidelity lie self-respect

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It is necessary to the happiness of a man that he be mentally faithful to himself.

— Thomas Paine

It is necessary to the happiness of man that he be mentally faithful to himself. Infidelity does not consist in believing or in disbelieving; it consists in professing to believe what he does not believe.

— Thomas Paine

For my own part, my belief in the perfection of the Deity will not permit me to believe that a book so manifestly obscure, disorderly, and contradictory can be His work

— Thomas Paine

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Belief in a cruel God makes a cruel man.

— Thomas Paine

There is only one real misfortune: to forfeit one's own good opinion of oneself. Lose your complacency, once betray your own self-contempt and the world will unhesitatingly endorse it.

— Thomas Mann