Sixty-Six Arkansas House Members Voted To Commemorate Thomas Paine Day -January 22, 09
"It is not a God, just and good, but a devil, under the name of God, that the Bible describes," Thomas Paine said.
Following are other quotes from Thomas Paine's greatest works, Right of Man and The Age of Reason
I don't know why Arkansas legislators would want to commemorate a day for an atheist man whose views are diametrically opposed to about 90% of Arkansans. I am sure some of those who voted for it were not aware of this aspect of Thomas Paine's life, but I can assure you that the sponsor, Lindsley Smith, was. (See the voting record below)
Lindsley Smith scored a zero percent on American Family Association of Arkansas ratings in 2005. (Lindsley Smith, Joyce Elliot, David Johnson, Sam Ledbeter and Linda Chesterfied were the only ones out of the 100 that scored a zero.) See this link for comparisons of all legislators in 2005 on family issues. http://www.wpaag.org/LegScoreSheetRepresentativesRankings05.htm
Thomas Paine Quotes (See links below where you can find these quotes)
Of all the systems of religion that ever were invented, there is no more derogatory to the Almighty, more unedifying to man, more repugnant to reason and more contradictory to itself than this thing called Christianity. Thomas Paine, The Age of Reason
I feel no need for any other faith than my faith in human beings. Thomas Paine, The Age of Reason
All national institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit. Thomas Paine, The Age of Reason
Belief in a cruel God makes a cruel man. Thomas Paine
Is it not a species of blasphemy to call the New Testament revealed religion, when we see in it such contradictions and absurdities. Thomas Paine
Of all the tyrannies that affect mankind, tyranny in religion is the worst. Thomas Paine
It is not a God, just and good, but a devil, under the name of God, that the
Bible describes. Thomas Paine
There are matters in the Bible, said to be done by the express commandment of God, that are shocking to humanity and to every idea we have of moral justice. Thomas Paine
Whenever we read the obscene stories, the voluptuous debaucheries, the cruel and torturous executions, the unrelenting vindictiveness, with which more than half the bible is filled, it would seem more consistent that we called it the word of a demon than the Word of God. It is a history of wickedness that has served to corrupt and brutalize mankind. Thomas Paine patriot & political philosopher (1737 - 1809) See link below for this quote:
And just why is it important enough for Lindsley Smith to bring this bill to commemorate Thomas Paine day up again this year when it failed in the last legislative session? There are so many more important things to be dealt with. The paper reports Smith as saying Paine wasn't an atheist. I wonder how she interprets Paine's quotes above. One of our most liberal journalists, John Brummett, had this to say on his blog "I’m really into Thomas Paine. More on Rep. Lindsley Smith’s effort to nab him the day he deserves [Saturday]"
This bill is just designed to kick the can along in the war against Christ and Christians that is so common in our world today! Thomas Paine Day is also called Freethinkers Day. http://secularseasons.org/january/thomas_paine.html See this link for Freethinker philosophy: http://en.wikipedia.org:80/wiki/Joseph_Lewis
For the names of legislators who voted for this bill and those who voted against it, see this link: http://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/assembly/2009/R/Pages/Votes.aspx?rcsnum=2257&votechamber=House
You can find these quotes by Thomas Paine at these links: (In order hopefully - more than one on some links.)
1.
2. http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/t/thomas_paine.html
3. http://www.quotationspage.com/quote/22648.html