In fact men will fight for a superstition quite as quickly as for a living truth – often more so, since a superstition is so intangible you cannot get at it to refute it, but truth is a point of view, and so is changeable.
Meaning of the quote
People are often more willing to fight for beliefs that can't be proven true or false, rather than for things that are actually true. This is because beliefs that can't be proven are hard to argue against, while truths are just different ways of looking at the world, and can change over time.
About Hypatia
Hypatia was a renowned Neoplatonist philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician who lived in ancient Alexandria, Egypt. She was a prominent thinker and teacher, renowned for her wisdom and her influence among the political elite. Despite being a pagan, she was beloved by both pagans and Christians alike, until she was tragically murdered by a mob of Christians in 415 AD, transforming her into a symbol of opposition to Christianity.
More quotes from Hypatia
Life is an unfoldment, and the further we travel the more truth we can comprehend. To understand the things that are at our door is the best preparation for understanding those that lie beyond.
Greek Neoplatonist philosopher
All formal dogmatic religions are fallacious and must never be accepted by self-respecting persons as final.
Greek Neoplatonist philosopher
Fables should be taught as fables, myths as myths, and miracles as poetic fantasies. To teach superstitions as truths is a most terrible thing. The child mind accepts and believes them, and only through great pain and perhaps tragedy can he be in after years relieved of them.
Greek Neoplatonist philosopher
Reserve your right to think, for even to think wrongly is better than not to think at all.
Greek Neoplatonist philosopher
In fact men will fight for a superstition quite as quickly as for a living truth – often more so, since a superstition is so intangible you cannot get at it to refute it, but truth is a point of view, and so is changeable.
Greek Neoplatonist philosopher