The general interest of the masses might take the place of the insight of genius if it were allowed freedom of action. – Denis Diderot
Patriotism is an ephemeral motive that scarcely ever outlasts the particular threat to society that aroused it. – Denis Diderot
Morals are in all countries the result of legislation and government they are not African or Asian or European: they are good or bad. – Denis Diderot
Genius is present in every age, but the men carrying it within them remain benumbed unless extraordinary events occur to heat up and melt the mass so that it flows forth. – Denis Diderot
The Jewish festival of freedom is the oldest continuously observed religious ritual in the world. Across the centuries, Passover has never lost its power to inspire the imagination of successive generations of Jews with its annually re-enacted drama of slavery and liberation. – Jonathan Sacks