Quotes from Hugh Nibley

The unique value of Christianity lies in those things which would never in a million years occur to men if left to themselves.

Man's dominion is a call to service, not a license to to exterminate.

Things that appear unlikely, impossible, or paradoxical from one point of view often make perfectly good sense from another.

The Book of Mormon is an inexhaustible encyclopedia of knowledge.

As knowledge increases, the verdict of yesterday must be reversed today, and in the long run the most positive authority is the least to be trusted.

At UCLA I quickly learned the knack of getting grades, a craven surrender to custom, since grades had little to do with learning.

Every way of life produces its own environment and in turn is influenced by that environment.

It is throwing our life away, to think of the wrong things.

Competitiveness always rests on the assumption of a life-and-death struggle.

Nobody loves the rat race, but nobody can think of anything else—Satan has us just where he wants us.

[Eve] sees through Satan's disquise of clever hypocrisy, identifies him, and exposes him for what he is...[ever since Satan has] had it in for women.

Don't be like anybody else. Be different. Then you can make a contribution. Otherwise, you just echo something; you're just a reflection.

Indolent and unworthy the beggar may be—but that is not your concern: It is better, said Joseph Smith, to feed ten impostors than to run the risk of turning away one honest petition.

No matter where we begin, if we pursue knowledge diligently and honestly, our quest will inevitably lead us from the things of the earth to the things of heaven.

True knowledge never shuts the door on more knowledge, but zeal often does.

Man's dominion is a call to service, not a license to to exterminate.

Being self-taught is no disgrace; but being self-certified is another matter.

God's command to have dominion over every living thing is a call to service, a test of responsibility, a rule of love, a cooperation with nature, whereas Satan's use of force for the sake of getting gain renders the earth uninhabitable. Brigham Young's views on the environment direct attention to man's responsibility to beautify the earth, to eradicate the influences of harmful substances, and to use restraint, that the earth may return to its paradisiacal glory.

All scholarship, like all science, is an ongoing, open-ended discussion in which all conclusions are tentative forever, the principal value and charm of the game being the discovery of the totally unexpected.

Every way of life produces its own environment and in turn is influenced by that environment.

Beauty is whatever gives joy.

Knowledge can be heady stuff, but it easily leads to an excess of zeal! -- to illusions of grandeur and a desire to impress others and achieve eminence . . . Our search for knowledge should be ceaseless, which means that it is open-ended, never resting on laurels, degrees, or past achievements.

The very helplessness of the public which makes it necessary for them to consult the experts also makes it impossible for them to judge how expert they are.

I would rather be a doorkeeper in the House of the Lord than mingle with the top brass in the tents of the wicked.