Jesus Christ Poetically Embellished Said Einstein

Jesus Christ poetically embellished in the Bible as according to Albert Einstein when his conversation with Professor William Hermanns in 1943.

So what do think?

Is it true that Jesus Christ is poetically embellished in the Bible?

Albert Einstein did not believe in a personal God who is able to control the lives of each of us.

Einstein found it odd that the so-called God is the one who created humans, and ‘He’ is also the one who punishes the wicked and rewards the righteous.

Many people are still debating over this late twentieth century’s greatest theoretical physicist’s religion.

Einstein referred to his belief as “cosmic religion“.

He hinted at his pantheism; the idea that “God is everything”.

In one of the quotes below, Einstein told a Rabbi,that he believed in Spinoza’s God, who reveals himself in the harmony of all that exists, not in a God who concerns himself with the fate and the doings of mankind.

He also said that he was fascinated by Spinoza’s Pantheism.

The thing is Einstein said a lot of things about God and religion.

In 2018, Albert Einstein’s hand-written letter contains reflections on God, the Bible and Judaism was auctioned for $3m. source

Einstein wrote: “The word God is for me nothing more than the expression and product of human weaknesses, the Bible a collection of honourable, but still primitive, legends which are nevertheless pretty childish.”

You can find the similar quotation below.

Jesus Christ Poetically Embellished In Bible

If you are fascinated and would like to find out more about Albert Einstein views on God and religion, then read through the quotations below:

“I cannot then believe in this concept of an anthropomorphic God who has the powers of interfering with these natural laws.” – Albert Einstein

(The Private Albert Einstein By Peter A. Bucky, In Collaboration With Allen G. Weakland, Kansas City: Andrews And McMeel, 1992, P. 86)

“My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble minds.” – Albert Einstein

“Meine Religion besteht aus einer demütigen Bewunderung des unbegrenzten überlegenen Geistes, der sich in den kleinen Details offenbart, die wir mit unserem schwachen und schwachen Verstand wahrnehmen können.” (German)

(Obituary: Dr. Albert Einstein Dies In Sleep At 76; World Mourns Loss Of Great Scientist, The New York Times, April 19, 1955, P. 1) source

“To sense that behind anything that can be experienced there is a something that our minds cannot grasp, whose beauty and sublimity reaches us only indirectly: this is religiousness. In this sense I am religious.” – Albert Einstein

“Zu empfinden, dass hinter dem Erlebbaren ein für unseren Geist Unerreichbares verborgen sei, dessen Schönheit und Erhabenheit uns nur mittelbar und in schwachem Widerschein erreicht, das ist Religiosität. In diesem Sinne bin ich religiös.” (German)

(The quote both in English and German is found in: My Credo By Albert Einstein, August 1932) source

(The quote in English is also found here.)

Note: Another English translation is:

“To know that what is impenetrable to us really exists, manifesting itself as the highest wisdom and the most radiant beauty which our dull faculties can comprehend only in their most primitive forms — this knowledge, this feeling, is at the center of true religiousness. In this sense, and in this sense only, I belong in the ranks of devoutly religious men.” – Albert Einstein

(What I Believe, Living Philosophies XIII By Albert Einstein, The Forum, October 1930, P. 194) source

(The quote is also found here.)

“We are in the position of a little child entering a huge library, whose walls are covered to the ceiling with books in many different tongues. The child knows that someone must have written those books. It does not know who or how. It does not understand the languages in which they are written. The child notes a definite plan in the arrangement of the books, a mysterious order, which it does not comprehend, but only dimly suspects. That, it seems to me, is the attitude of the human mind, even the greatest and most cultured, toward God.” – Albert Einstein

(Glimpses Of The Great By George Sylvester Viereck, Duckworth, New York: The Macaulay Company 1930, P. 373) source

(The second part is found .)

(The third part is found .)

“…the most beautiful and most profound religious emotion that we can experience is the sensation of the mystical. And this mysticality is the power of all true science. If there is any such concept as a God, it is a subtle spirit, not an image of a man that so many have fixed in their minds.” – Albert Einstein

(The Private Albert Einstein By Peter A. Bucky, In Collaboration With Allen G. Weakland, Kansas:Andrews And McMeel, 1992, P. 86) source

“My position concerning God is that of an agnostic. I am convinced that a vivid consciousness of the primary importance of moral principles for the betterment and ennoblement of life does not need the idea of a law-giver, especially a law-giver who works on the basis of reward and punishment.” – Albert Einstein

(The Ultimate Quotable Einstein Collected And Edited By Alice Calaprice, With A Foreword By Freeman Dyson, Princeton University Press, 2010, On Religion, God, And Philosophy, P. 340) source

Note: From the letter to Morton Berkowitz, October 25, 1950

“I cannot imagine a God who rewards and punishes the objects of his creation, whose purposes are modeled after our own — a God, in short, who is but a reflection of human frailty.” – Albert Einstein

(Living Philosophies By Albert Einstein, Cleveland: World Publishing Company, 1941, P. 6)

(The quote is also found in: Living Philosophies, By Albert Einstein, New York: Simon And Schuster, 1931)

“It was the experience of mystery – even if mixed with fear – that engendered religion.” – Albert Einstein

“Wer es nicht kennt und sich nicht mehr wundern, nicht mehr staunen kann, der ist sozusagen tot und sein Auge erloschen. Das Erlebnis des Geheimnisvollen wenn auch mit Furcht gemischt–hat auch die Religion gezeugt.” (German)

(The World As I See It By Albert Einstein, Translated From The German By Alan Harris, Daly City, California: Book Tree, 2007, Part I, The World As I See It, The World As I See It, P. 5)

(The quote is also found here.)

(The quote in German is found in: Mein Weltbild Von Albert Einstein, Herausgegeben Von Carl Seelig, Ullstein-Taschenbuch-Verlag 2005, I. Wie Ich Die Welt Sehe, P. 10)

(The quote in German is also found .)

“I cannot conceive of a God who rewards and punishes his creatures, or has a will of the type of which we are conscious in ourselves.” – Albert Einstein

“Einen Gott, der die Objekte seines Schaffens belohnt und bestraft, der überhaupt einen Willen hat nach Art desjenigen,den wir an uns selbst erleben, kann ich mir nicht einbilden.” (German)

(The World As I See It By Albert Einstein, Translated From The German By Alan Harris, Daly City, California: The Book Tree, 2007, Part I, The World As I See It, P. 5)

(The quote is also found in: Ideas And Opinions By Albert Einstein, Based On Mein Weltbild, Edited By Carl Seelig, And Other Sources, New Translations And Revisions By Sonja Bargmann, New York: Crown Publishers, Inc., 1954, Part I: Ideas And Opinions, The World As I See It, P. 11) source

(Another source of the quote is also found here.)

(The quote in German is found in: Mein Weltbild Von Albert Einstein, Herausgegeben Von Carl Seelig, Ullstein-Taschenbuch-Verlag 2005, I. Wie Ich Die Welt Sehe, Wie Ich Die Welt Sehe, P. 10)

(The quote in German is also found here.)

“A God who rewards and punishes is for him unthinkable, because man acts in accordance with an inner and outer necessity, and would, in the eyes of God, be as little responsible as an inanimate object is for movements which it makes.” – Albert Einstein

“Ein Gott, der belohnt und bestraft, ist für ihn schon darum undenkbar, weil der Mensch nach äußerer und innerer gesetzlicher Notwendigkeit handelt, vom Standpunkt Gottes aus also nicht verantwortlich wäre, sowenig wie ein lebloser Gegenstand für die von ihm ausgeführten Bewegungen.” (German)

(Religion And Science By Professor Albert Einstein, New York Times Magazine, November 9, 1930) source

(The quote is also found in: Cosmic Religion: With Other Opinions And Aphorisms By Albert Einstein, New York: Covici-Friede, 1931, P. 51) source

(The quote in German is found in: Mein Weltbild Von Albert Einstein, Herausgegeben Von Carl Seelig, Ullstein-Taschenbuch-Verlag 2005, I. Wie Ich Die Welt Sehe, Religion Und Wissenschaft, P. 17) source

(The quote in German is also found here.)

“The only deeply religious people in our largely materialistic age are the earnest men of research.” – Albert Einstein

(Religion And Science By Professor Albert Einstein, New York Times Magazine, November 9, 1930) source

“I do not believe in the God of theology who rewards good and punishes evil…” – Albert Einstein

(Death Of A Genius: His Fourth Dimension, Time Overtakes Einstein By William Miller, Life Magazine, Vol.38, No.18, May 2, 1955, P. 62) source

“I cannot accept any concept of God based on the fear of life or the fear of death, or blind faith.” – Albert Einstein

(Death Of A Genius: His Fourth Dimension, Time Overtakes Einstein By William Miller, Life Magazine, Vol.38, No.18, May 2, 1955, P. 62) source

“Man’s plight would, indeed, be sad if he had to be kept in order through fear of punishment and hope of rewards after death.” – Albert Einstein

(Religion And Science By Professor Albert Einstein, New York Times Magazine, November 9, 1930) source

“Feeling and desire are the motive forces behind all human endeavour and human creation, in however exalted a guise the latter may present itself to us.” – Albert Einstein

“Denn Fühlen und Sehnen sind der Motor alles menschlichen Strebens und Erzeugens, mag sich uns letzteres auch noch so erhaben darstellen.” (German)

(The World As I See It By Albert Einstein, Translated From German By Alan Harris, Daly City, California: The Book Tree, 2007, Part I, The World As I See It, Religion And Science, P. 24)

Note: The word “desire” here is published as “longing“.

(Another source of the quote is also found in: Religion And Science By Albert Einstein, New York Times Magazine, November 9, 1930) source

(The quote in German is also found here.)

“Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind.” – Albert Einstein

“Wissenschaft ohne Religion ist lahm, Religion ohne Wissenschaft ist blind.” (German)

(Ideas And Opinions By Albert Einstein, Based On Mein Weltbild, Edited By Carl Seelig, And Other Sources, New Translations And Revisions By Sonja Bargmann, New York: Crown Publishers, Inc., 1954, Part I: Ideas And Opinions, About Religion, Religion And Science, II, P. 46)

(The quote is also found in: Science, Philosophy, And Religion: A Symposium, Volume 1, the Conference on Science, Philosophy And Religion In Their Relation To The Democratic Way of Life, Inc., New York, 1941, P. 211) source

Note: The full article: “Science, Philosophy And Religion, A Symposium, The Conference On Science, Philosophy And Religion In Their Relation To The Democratic Way Of Life”, Inc., New York, 1941, over here and here.

The article: “Religion And Science” By Professor Albert Einstein, Nov 9, 1930.

“Before God we are all equally wise – and equally foolish.” – Albert Einstein

(Einstein On Cosmic Religion And Other Opinions & Aphorisms, With Appreciation By George Bernard Shaw, New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 2009, Ch. IV. Opinions And Aphorisms, Miscellaneous, P. 53) source

“I, at any rate am convinced that He is not playing at dice.” – Albert Einstein

“Jedenfalls bin ich überzeugt, daß der nicht würfelt.” (German)

(The Born Einstein Letters: Correspondence Between Albert And Max And Hedwig Born From 1916 To 1955 With Commentaries By Max Born, Translated By Irene Bore, London: Macmillan Press Ltd, 1971, Letter # 52, 4 December, 1926; P. 91) source

(The quote is also found .)

(The quote in German is found in: Physics In My Generation By Max Born, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, 2013, Physics And Relativity, P. 113) source

Note: Another English translation is:

“In any case, I am convinced that He does not throw dice.” – Albert Einstein

(Physics In My Generation By Max Born, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, 2013, Physics And Relativity, P. 113) source

Note: The word ‘He‘ means God.

In addition, there is a simplified or condensed version of the quote which reads : “God does not play dice.”

“The word God is for me nothing more than the expression and product of human weaknesses, the Bible a collection of honorable, but still primitive legends which are nevertheless pretty childish.” – Albert Einstein

“Das Wort Gott ist für mich nichts als Ausdruck und Produkt menschlicher Schwächen, die Bibel eine Sammlung ehrwürdiger aber doch reichlich primitiver Legenden.” (German)

(Einstein And Heisenberg: The Controversy Over Quantum Physics By Konrad Kleinknecht, Springer, 2019 , Ch. 6, Social Affinities, Einstein’s Religion, P. 152)

(The quote in German is found in: Jüdisches Denken: Theologie – Philosophie – Mystik: Band 3: Von Der Religions – Kritik Der Renaissance Zu Orthodoxie Und Reform Im 19 Jahrhundert By Karl Erich Grözinger, Campus Verlag GmbH, 2009, P. 161) source

(The transcripts in both German and English are found here.)

Note: From the letter by Einstein sent to Princeton University letterhead, to Eric B. Gutkind, on January 3, 1954, as response to Gutkind’s book “Choose Life: The Biblical Call to Revolt”.

“I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly. If something is in me which can be called religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it.” – Albert Einstein

(Albert Einstein, The Human Side: New Glimpses From His Archives Selected By Helen Dukas And Banesh Hoffmann, Princeton University Press, 1981, P. 43) source

Note: From the letter to Joseph Dispentiere, March 24, 1954.

“God does not care about our mathematical difficulties; He integrates empirically.” – Albert Einstein

“Gott kümmert sich nicht um unsere mathematischen Schwierigkeiten. Er integriert empirisch.” (German)

(Quest: An Autobiography By Leopold Infeld, AMS Chelsea Publishing, 2006, Book Three, Search And Research, P. 279) source

(The quote in German is found in: Albert Einstein wider Vorurteile Und Denkgewohnheiten By Horst Melcher, Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 2013, Ch. 2, 2.1. Erkenntnistheoretische Fragen, P. 36) source

“I believe in Spinoza’s God, who reveals himself in the lawful harmony of all that exists, but not in a God who concerns himself with the fate and the doings of mankind.” – Albert Einstein

“Ich glaube an den Gott Spinozas. An den Gott, der sich in der gesetzmäßigen Harmonie der Welt offenbart, nicht an den Gott, der sich für das Schicksal und die Tätigkeiten der Menschen interessiert.” (German)

(Einstein: His Life and Universe By Walter Isaacson, New York: Simon And Schuster, 2008, Ch. Seventeen, Einstein’s God, P. 388-389) source

Note: Free online copy Of “Einstein: His Life And Universe” By Walter Isaacson in mobi format you can download.

(The quote is also found in: EINSTEIN BELIEVES IN “SPINOZA’S GOD”; Scientist Defines His Faith in Reply, to Cablegram From Rabbi Here. SEES A DIVINE ORDER But Says Its Ruler Is Not Concerned “Wit Fates and Actions of Human Beings.”, The New York Times, April 25, 1929, P. 60) source

(The quote in German is found in: Pop Science: Essays Zur Wissenschaftskultur By Eduard Kaeser, Schwabe AG, 2013, Der Gral Der Physik, Die Gottesperspektive) source

Note: From the telegram reply to New York Rabbi Herbert S. Goldstein’s question “Do you believe in God?”.

Einstein answered Godstein in 25 German words in the telegram.

“I am a deeply religious nonbeliever…. This is a somewhat new kind of religion.” – Albert Einstein

“Man wird zum tief religiösen Ungläubigen…Dies ist eine einigermaßen neue Art von Religion.” (German)

(Einstein: His Life And Universe By Walter Isaacson, New York: Simon And Schuster, 2007, Ch. Twenty-Five, The End 1955, Intimations Of Mortality, P. 536) source

(Another source of the quote is found here.)

(The quote in German is found in: Helle Zeit — Dunkle Zeit: In Memoriam Albert Einstein By Carl Seelig, Mit Einleitenden Bemerkungen Zur Neuausgabe Von Karl Von Meyenn, Springer-Verlag, 2013, P. 58) source

Note: From the letter to Hans Muehsam, March 30, 1954.

“It is quite possible that we can do greater things than Jesus, for what is written in the Bible about him is poetically embellished.” – Albert Einstein

(The Ultimate Quotable Einstein Collected And Edited By Alice Calaprice, With A Foreword By Freeman Dyson, Princeton University Press, 2010, On Religion, God, And Philosophy, P. 377) source

Note: From Professor William Hermanns “A Talk with Einstein” October 1, 1943

“I cannot conceive of a personal God who would directly influence the actions of individuals, or would directly sit in judgment on creatures of his own creation.” – Albert Einstein

“Ich kann mir keinen persönlichen Gott denken der die Handlungen der einzelnen Geschöpfe direkt beeinflusste oder über seine Kreaturen direkt zu Gericht sasse.” (German)

(Albert Einstein, The Human Side: New Glimpses From His Archives Selected By Helen Dukas And Banesh Hoffmann, Princeton University Press, 1981, P. 66) source

(The quote in German is found in: Albert Einstein, The Human Side: New Glimpses From His Archives Selected By Helen Dukas And Banesh Hoffmann, Princeton University Press, 1981, PAGE 66, P. 142) source

“I want to know how God created this world. I am not interested in this or that phenomenon, in the spectrum of this or that element. I want to know His thoughts, the rest are mere details.” – Albert Einstein

“Ich möchte wissen, wie Gott diese Welt erschaffen hat. Mich interessiert nicht dieses oder jenes Phänomen im Aufbau von diesem oder jenem Element. Ich möchte seine Gedanken kennen. Das übrige sind unwichtige Einzelheiten.” (German)

(The Listener, Volume 54, British Broadcasting Corporation, 1955, Biography, “A Talk With Einstein (Father Salaman) , September 8, 1955, P. 371) source

(The quote is also found in: Einstein’s 1912 Manuscript On The Special Theory Of Relativity Edited By Martin J. Klein, George Braziller, In Association With The Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation, 2003, P. 11) source

Note: Recalled by Einstein’s student Esther Salaman.

“A man’s ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties and needs; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death.” – Albert Einstein

“Das ethische Verhalten des Menschen ist wirksam auf Mitgefühl, Erziehung und soziale Bindung zu gründen und bedarf keiner religiösen Grundlage. Es stünde traurig um die Menschen, wenn sie durch Furcht vor Strafe und Hoffnung auf Belohnung nach dem Tode gebändigt werden müssten.” (German)

(Religion and Science By Professor Albert Einstein, New York Times Magazine, November 9, 1930) source

(The quote is also found in: Ideas and Opinions By Albert Einstein, Edited By Carl Seelig, New York: Crown Trade Paperbacks, 1995, P. 39) source

(Another source of the quote is found here.)

(The quote in German is also found here.)

“I just see with great dismay that God punishes so many of His children for their ample folly, for which obviously only He Himself can be held responsible; I think, His nonexistence alone can excuse Him.” – Albert Einstein

“Ich sehe nur mit viel Be- dauern, dass Gott so viele seiner Kinder straft für deren reichliche Thorheit, für die doch nur er selbst verantwortlich gemacht werden kann; ich finde, dass ihn nur die Nichtexistenz entschuldigen kann.” (German)

(The Collected Papers Of Albert Einstein, Volume 8: The Berlin Years: Correspondence, 1914-1918 (English Translation Supplement), Translated By Ann M. Hentschel, Doc. 44,45, To Edgar Meyer, Berlin, 2 January 1915, P. 57) source

(The quote in German is found in: The Collected Papers Of Albert Einstein, Volume 8, Part A: The Berlin Years: Correspondence, 1914-1917, Edited by Robert Schulmann, A. J. Kox, Michel Janssen, and József Illy, Doc. 44, To Edgar Meyer, Berlin, 2.1.15, P. 76) source

Note: From the letter to Edgar Meyer, a Swiss colleague, January 2, 1915.

“Before God we are relatively all equally wise – equally foolish.” – Albert Einstein

(Einstein On Cosmic Religion And Other Opinions And Aphorisms By Albert Einstein, With An Appreciation By George Bernard Shaw, P. 53)

“I do not accept a religion of fear; My God will not hold me responsible for the actions that necessity imposes.” – Albert Einstein

(Einstein And The Poet: In Search Of The Cosmic Man By William Hermanns, Branden Press, 1983, Third Conversation (1948), P. 89) source

“I do not believe in the God of theology who rewards good and punishes evil. My God created laws that take care of that. His universe is not ruled by wishful thinking, but by immutable laws.” – Albert Einstein

(Einstein and the Poet: In Search of the Cosmic Man By William Hermanns, Branden Press, 1983, Fourth Conversation (1954), P. 132) source

(The quote is also found in: Einstein and Religion: Physics and Theology By Max Jammer, Princeton University Press, 2011, Ch. 2, Einstein’s Philosophy Of Religion, P. 123) source

“Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death.” – Albert Einstein

“Es stünde traurig um die Menschen, wenn sie durch Furcht vor Strafe und Hoffnung auf Belohnung nach dem Tode gebändigt werden müssten.” (German)

(Religion and Science By Albert Eisntein, New York Times Magazine, November 9, 1930) source

(The full article “Religion and Science By Professor Albert Einstein” is found here.)

(The quote is also found in: Ideas and Opinions By Albert Einstein, Edited By Carl Seelig, New York: Crown Trade Paperbacks, 1995, P. 39) source

(The full article in French is found here.)

(The quote in German is found in: Mein Weltbild Von Albert Einstein, Herausgegeben Von Carl Seelig, Ullstein-Taschenbuch-Verlag 2005, I. Wie Ich Die Welt Sehe, Religion Und Wissenschaft, PP. 17-18)

(The quote in German is also found here.)

“Whatever there is of God and goodness in the universe, it must work itself out and express itself through us. We cannot stand aside and let God do it.” – Albert Einstein

(The Ultimate Quotable Einstein Collected And Edited By Alice Calaprice, With A Foreword By Freeman Dyson, Princeton University Press, 2010, On God, Religion, And Philosophy, P. 334) source

Note: From a recorded conversation with Algernon Black, Fall 1940.

“… a religious person is devout in the sense that he has no doubt of the significance and loftiness of those superpersonal objects and goals which neither require nor are capable of rational foundation.” – Albert Einstein

“Eine religiöse Person ist in dem Sinn fromm, daß sie an der Existenz jener überpersönlichen Objekte und Ziele nicht zweifelt die keiner rationalen Begründung bedürfen und von ihr auch nicht faßbar sind.” (German)

(The quote is also found in: Science, Philosophy, And Religion: A Symposium, Volume 1, The conference On Science, Philosophy And Religion In Their Relation To The Democratic way of life, Inc., 1941, P. 210) source

(The quote in German is found in: Gott Betet Nicht: Vornehmlich Spinoza: Reiseerzählung By Laurids Anders, Books on Demand, 2015, PP. 230-231) source

(The second part of the quote is found here.)

“Morality is of the highest importance – but for us, not for God.” – Albert Einstein

“Moral ist eine wichtige Sache, aber für uns, nicht für Gott.” (German)

(Albert Einstein, The Human Side: New Glimpses From His Archives Selected And Edited By Helen Dukas And Banesh Hoffman, Princeton University Press, 1981, Glimpses From His Archives, P. 66) source

Note: From the letter to Milton M. Schayer, August 1927.

“…there are the fanatical atheists whose intolerance is of the same kind as the intolerance of the religious fanatics and comes from the same source…They are creatures who… cannot bear the music of the spheres.” – Albert Einstein

(Einstein And Religion: Physics And Theology By Max Jammer, Princeton University Press, 2011, CH. 1, Einstein’s Religiosity Ad The Role Of Religion In His Private Life, P. 97) source

Note: To an unidentified person, August 7, 1941, on the reaction to his symposium contribution, “Science, Philosophy, And Religion”.

“I am not an atheist. I do not know if I can define myself as a pantheist. The problem involved is too vast for our limited minds.” – Albert Einstein

(Glimpses Of The Great By George Sylvester ViereckDuckworth, New York: The Macaulay Company, 1930, PP. 272-273) source

(The second part is found .)

“Ich sehe nur mit viel Bedauern, dass Gott so viele seiner Kinder straft für deren reichliche Thorheit, für die doch nur er selbst verantwortlich gemacht werden kann; ich finde, dass ihn nur die Nichtexistenz entschuldigen kann.” (German)

(The Collected Papers Of Albert Einstein, Volume 8, The Berlin Years: Correspondence, 1914-1918 (English Translation Supplement), Translated By Ann M. Hentschel, Doc. 44, To Edgar Meyer, Berlin, 2, January 1915, P. 57) source

(The German quote is found in: The Collected Papers Of Albert Einstein, Volume 8, Part A: The Berlin Years: Correspondence, January 1914-1917, Edited By Robert Schulmann, A. J. Kox, Michel Janssen, and József Illy, Doc. 44, To Edgar Meyer, Berlin, 2.15, P. 76) source

Note: From the letter to Edgar Meyer, a Swiss colleague, January 2, 1915.

“I have found no better expression than “religious” for confidence in the rational nature of reality, insofar as it is accessible to human reason. Wherever this feeling is absent, science degenerates into uninspired empiricism.” – Albert Einstein

“Ich habe keinen besseren Ausdruck als den Ausdruck “”Ich habe keinen besseren Ausdruck als den Ausdruck “religiös” für dieses Vertrauen inn die vernunftige und der der menaschlichen Vernunft wenigstens einigermassen zugangliche Beschaffenheit der Realitat. Wo dieses Gefuhl fehlt, da artet Wissenechaft in geistlose Empirie aus.” (German)

(Letters To Solovine, 1906–1955 By Albert Einstein, Open Road Media, 2011, January 1, 1951) source

(The second part of the quote is found here.)

(The quote in German is found in: Letters To Solovine, 1906–1955 By Albert Einstein, Open Road Media, 2011, den 1 Januar 1951)

Note: From the letter to Maurice Solovine, January 1, 1951.

“If God created the world, his primary concern was certainly not to make its understanding easy for us.” – Albert Einstein

“Falls Gott die Welt geschaffen hat, war seine Hauptsorge sicher nicht, sie so zu machen, dass wir sie verstehen können.” (German)

(The Ultimate Quotable Einstein Collected And Edited By Alice Calaprice, With A Foreword By Freeman Dyson, Princeton University Press, 2010, On Religion, God, And Philosophy, P. 342) source

Note: From the letter to American physicist David Bohm, February 10, 1954.

“Nature hides her secret because of her essential loftiness, but not by means of ruse.” – Albert Einstein

“Die Natur verbirgt ihr Geheimnis durch die Erhabenheit ihres Wesens, aber nicht durch List.” (German)

(Einstein In America: The Scientist’s Conscience In The Age Of Hitler And Hiroshima By Jamie Sayen, Crown Publishing Group, 1985, P. 51) source

(The quote in German & English is found in: ‘Subtle Is The Lord: The Science And The Life Of Albert Einstein, With A New Foreword By Sir Roger Penrose, By Abraham Pais, Oxford University Press, 2005, P. Vi) source

Note: From the reply to mathematics professor Oscar Veblen, 30 April 1930.

Veblen asked Einstein for permission to inscribe the statement: “Subtle is the Lord, but malicious He is not” (‘Raffiniert ist der Herrgott aber boshaft ist er nicht.’) on the mantle of the fireplace of the common room of a new mathematics building at Princeton.

Einstein replied and explained to Veblon what he meant was: “Nature hides her secret because of her essential loftiness, but not by means of ruse.”

“I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly. If something is in me which can be called religious, then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it.” – Albert Einstein

(Albert Einstein, The Human Side: New Glimpses From His Archives Selected And Edited By Helen Dukas And Banesh Hoffman, Princeton University Press, 1981, Glimpses From His Archives, P. 43) source

Note: From the letter to Joseph Dispentiere, a self-made ma who questioned Einstein about his religious beliefs, March 22, 1954.

“I don’t try to imagine a God; it suffices to stand in awe of the structure of the world, insofar as it allows our inadequate senses to appreciate it.” – Albert Einstein

“”Ich versuche nicht, mir einen persönlichen Gott vorzustellen; es reicht, aus wenn man voller Staunen vor dem Aufbau der welt steht, so weit sie unseren unzureichenden Sinnen gestattet, sie einzuschätzen.” (German)

(The Ultimate Quotable Einstein Collected And Edited By Alice Calaprice, With A Foreword By Freeman Dyson, Princeton University Press, 2010, On Religion, God, And Philosophy, P. 343) source

(The quote in German is found in: Dawkins’ Gotteswahn: 15 Kritische Antworten Auf Seine Atheistische Mission By Rudolf Langthaler, Edited By Rudolf Langthaler, Kurt Appel, Böhlau Verlag Wien, P. 124) source

Note: From the letter to Samuel Flesch, April 16, 1954.

“A man’s moral worth is not measured by what his religious beliefs are, but rather by what emotional impulses he has received from Nature during his lifetime.” – Albert Einstein

“Ich denke, daß der moralische Wert eines Menschen wenig davon abhängt, was er glaubt, sondern davon, was er von der Natur an emotionalen Impulsen auf den Lebensweg mitbekommen hat.” (German)

(Albert Einstein: A Biography By Alice Calaprice, Trevor Lipscombe, Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005, Ch. 11, Final Years Of An Enfant Terrible, P. 128) source

Note: From the letter to Sister Margrit Goehner, February 1955.

“What humanity owes to personalities like Buddha, Moses, and Jesus ranks for me higher than all the achievements of the enquiring and constructive mind.” – Albert Einstein

(Albert Einstein, The Human Side: Glimpses From His Archives, Edited By Helen Dukas & Banesh Hoffmann, Princeton University Press, 1979, P. 70) source

(THe quote is also found in: Einstein’s God Albert Einstein’s Quest As A Scientist And As A Jew To Replace A Forsaken God By Robert N. Goldman, Jason Aronson Inc, 1997, P. 88) source

Note: This quote dated September 1937. It could have been written in response to a personal request from a member of the Princeton Theological Seminary.

“The valuation of life and all its nobler expressions can only come out of the soul’s yearning toward its own destiny.” – Albert Einstein

(Science And God: A German Dialogue By Albert Einstein, James Murphy, And J.W.N. Sullivan, The Forum, June 1930, P. 374) source

(The quote is also found in: Einstein On Politics: His Private Thoughts And Public Stands On Nationalism, Zionism, War, Peace, And Bomb Edited By David E. Rowe And Robert Schulmann, Princeton University Press, 2103, Ch. 5, Articles Of Faith, 1930-1933, P. 230) source

“If one purges the Judaism of the Prophets and Christianity as Jesus Christ taught it of all subsequent additions, especially those of the priests, one is left with a teaching which is capable of curing all the social ills of humanity.” – Albert Einstein

“Wenn man das Judentum der Propheten und das Christentum wie es Jesus Christus gelehrt hat, von allen Zutaten der Späteren insbesondere der Priester, loslöst, so bleibt eine Lehre übrig, die die Menschheit von allen sozialen Krankheiten zu heilen imstande wäre.” (German)

(Ideas And Opinions By Albert Einstein, Based On Mein Weltbild, Edited By Carl Seelig, And Other Sources, New Translations And Revisions By Sonja Bargmann, New York: Crown Publishers, Inc., 1954, Part III: On The Jewish People, Christianity And Judaism, PP. 184-185) source

(The quote in German is found in: Mein Weltbild Von Albert Einstein, Herausgegeben Von Carl Seelig, Ullstein-Taschenbuch-Verlag 2005, IV. Jüdische Probleme, Christentum Und Judentum, P. 91) source

(The quote in German is also found in: Albert Einstein: Mein Weltbild. Hrsg. von Carl Seelig, Europa Verlag, 1953, IV. Jüdische Probleme, Christentum Und Judentum, P. 119) source

Note: From a statement for the Romanian Jewish journal Renasterea Noastra (“Our Revival”), January 1933.

“The question should rather be: How far is it reasonable and justifiable to assume the existence of an unperceivable being? I see no justification for the introduction of such a concept. In any case, it does not facilitate the understanding of the orderliness we find in the perceivable world.” – Albert Einstein

(The original letter written in English by Albert Einstein to Albaugh David Hinson) source

Note: From the letter to David Hinson Albaugh, an Iowa college student, who asked, What is God?, July 21, 1953.

“Jesus is too colossal for the pen of phrasemongers, however artful. No man can dispose of Christianity with a bon mot.” – Albert Einstein

(What Life Means To Einstein: An Interview By George Sylvester Viereck, The Saturday Evening Post, October 26, 1929, The Measles Of Mankind, P. 117) source

(The quote is also found in: Glimpses Of The Great By George Sylvester Viereck, Duckworth, New York: The Macaulay Company 1930, P. 373) source

“No one can read the Gospels without feeling the actual presence of Jesus. His personality pulsates in every word. No myth is filled with such life.” – Albert Einstein

(What Life Means To Einstein: An Interview By George Sylvester Viereck, The Saturday Evening Post, October 26, 1929, The Measles Of Mankind, P. 117) source

(Glimpses Of The Great By George Sylvester Viereck, Duckworth, New York: The Macaulay Company 1930, PP. 373- 374) source

“My comprehension of God comes from the deeply felt conviction of a superior intelligence that reveals itself in the knowable world.” – Albert Einstein

(The Ultimate Quotable Einstein Collected And Edited By Alice Calaprice, With A Foreword By Freeman Dyson, Princeton University Press, 2010, On Religion, God, And Philosophy, P. 324) source

Note: In answer to the question, What is your understanding of God? asked by interviewers for the Japanese magazine Kaizo 5, No. 2 (1923).

“What really interests me is whether God had any choice in the creation of the world.” – Albert Einstein

“Was mich eigentlich interessiert, ist, ob Gott die Welt hätte anders machen können, das heißt, ob die Forderung der logischen Einfachheit überhaupt eine Freiheit läßt.” (German)

(Albert Einstein, Historical And Cultural Perspectives: The Centennial Symposium In Jerusalem Edited By Gerald Holton And Yehuda Elkana, Princeton University Press, 2014, Yehuda Elkana: The Myth Of Simplicity, Could Have God Created A Different World, P. 238) source

(The quote in German is found in: Helle Zeit – Dunkle Zeit: In memoriam Albert Einstein By Carl Seelig, Springer-Verlag, 2013, Ernst Straus: Assistent Bei Albert Einstein, P. 72) source

Note: Einstein remarked to his assistant Ernst Straus

“One strength of the communist system of the East is that it has some of the character of a religion and inspires the emotions of a religion.” – Albert Einstein

(Out Of My Later Years: The Scientist, Philosopher, And Man Portrayed Through His Own Words By Albert Einstein, Open Road Media, 2011, Part Four: Science And Life, 31. Atomic War or Peace, II) source

(The quote is also found here.)

“Scientific research is based on the idea that everything that takes place is determined by laws of Nature, and therefore this holds for the actions of people. For this reason, a research scientist will hardly be inclined to believe that events could be influenced by a prayer, i.e. by a wish addressed to a supernatural Being.” – Albert Einstein

(Albert Einstein, The Human Side: New Glimpses From His Archives Selected And Edited By Helen Dukas And Banesh Hoffmann, Princeton University Press, 1981, P. 32) source

Note: From the Einster wrote to a child in the sixth grade in a Sunday School in New York City, January 24, I936 .

“What I see in Nature is a magnificent structure that we can comprehend only very imperfectly, and that must fill a thinking person with a feeling of “humility.” This is a genuinely religious feeling that has nothing to do with mysticism.” – Albert Einstein

“Was ich in der Natur sehe, ist eine grossartige Struktur, die wir nur sehr unvollkommen zu erfassen Vermögen und die einen vernünftigen Menschen mit einem Gefühl von “Humility” erfüllen muss. Dies ist ein echt religiöses Gefühl, das nichts mit Mystizismus zu schaffen hat.” (German)

(Albert Einstein, The Human Side: New Glimpses From His Archives Selected And Edited By Helen Dukas And Banesh Hoffman, Princeton University Press, 1981, Glimpses From His Archives, P. 39) source

(The quote in German is found in: Albert Einstein, The Human Side: New Glimpses From His Archives Selected And Edited By Helen Dukas And Banesh Hoffman, Princeton University Press, 1981, German Originals, P. 132) source

“What separates me from most so-called atheists is a feeling of utter humility toward the unattainable secrets of the harmony of the cosmos.” – Albert Einstein

(Einstein: His Life And Universe By Walter Isaacson, New York: Simon And Schuster, 2007, Ch. Seventeen, Einsten’s God, P. 389) source

(The quote is also found here.)

Note: From the remark to Joseph Lewis, April 18, 1953.

“My feeling is religious insofar as I am imbued with the consciousness of the insufficiency of the human mind to understand more deeply the harmony of the universe which we try to formulate as “laws of nature.” – Albert Einstein

“Mein religiöses Gefühl liegt in der Bewunderung der Harmonie, die sich in den Naturgesetzen zeigt.” (German)

(The Ultimate Quotable Einstein Collected And Edited By Alice Calaprice, With A Foreword By Freeman Dyson, Princeton University Press, 2010, On Religion, God, And Philosophy, P. 341) source

Note: From the letter to Beatrice Frohlich, December 17, 1952.

“God gave me the stubbornness of a mule and a fairly keen scent.” – Albert Eisntein

“Gott ist unerbittlich darin, wie er seine Gaben verteilt hat. Mir hat er die maultierhafte Starrnackigkeit gegeben und sonst nichts; das heißt, die Nase hat er mir auch gegeben.” (German)

(The Ultimate Quotable Einstein Collected And Edited By Alice Calaprice, With A Foreword By Freeman Dyson, Princeton University Press, 2010, On Enstein Himself, P. 25) source

(The quote in German is found in: Helle Zeit — Dunkle Zeit: In memoriam Albert Einstein, Mit Einleitenden Bemerkungen Zur Neuausgabe Von Karl Von Meyenn, By Carl Seelig, Springer-Verlag, 2013, P. 72) source

Note: As recalled by German-American mathematician Ernst Gabor Straus.

Note: All the above Albert Einstein thoughts on God and religion are quoted from authentic and reliable sources.

*Here is a selection of Albert Einstein views on education and teaching style quoted from various credible sources.