 Bertrand Russell Quotes 366 |
To ensure that people should have good feelings is extremely desirable, but it cannot be achieved by preaching. On the contrary, one of the effects of a belief in sin is to justify malevolence towards the sinner under the guise of a wish to bring him to repentance. When we get rid of the belief in sin, it becomes much harder to disguise our unkind feelings, under a cloak of morality.
Source: Bertrand Russell: Human Society in Ethics and Politics, (1954), chapter 10：Is there ethical knowledge ?
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‘Happiness in childhood’is important for people to have good feelings (happiness) without having to work hard, according to Russell. namely,
‘Happiness in childhood is absolutely necessary for the production of the best type of human being.’
Source: Bertrand Russell; On Education, Chapter 1,
One of the factors that contribute to the excessive blaming of people we don't like through jealousy and envy is piled-up frustration. Quite a few people are looking for an outlet for their frustration, and the opportunity to ‘disguise their ruthless feelings towards the guilty by using morality as a shield’ is a great ‘outlet’. (Of course, it is good to condemn injustice through ‘righteous indignation’.)