“A Mason is a person who is a free thinker, who does not accept anything without examination, who tests everything by his own reason, and who follows the dictates of his own conscience.”

“The true Mason is not the one who is the most learned, but the one who is the most virtuous.”

“Freemasonry is an ancient science of morality, veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols.”

“To be humble to superiors is a duty, to equals courtesy, to inferiors nobleness.”

“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.”

“The more we can get a man to do things by a combination of skill and enterprise, the better.”

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”

“In the field of world policy I would dedicate this nation to the policy of the good neighbor—the neighbor who resolutely respects himself and, because he does so, respects the rights of others.”

“The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little.”

“The Grand Architect of the Universe, the Great Creator, is always at work in the world. Freemasonry, by its teachings, helps us to understand and appreciate His handiwork.”

“I am persuaded that it will always be my duty, as it has been my wish, to promote and encourage the principles of Freemasonry, which are founded on the noblest and most benevolent precepts.”

“Nothing in life can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. The slogan ‘Press On’ has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.”

“The secret of happiness is the achievement of one’s own personal goals.”

“The more I study, the more I am amazed at the work of the Creator.”

“I do not know what I may appear to the world, but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the sea-shore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, while the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.”

“Success is not measured by what you accomplish, but the opposition you have encountered, and the courage with which you have maintained the struggle against overwhelming odds.”

“I am always ready to learn although I do not always like being taught.”

“I am not a great believer in the philosophy that says that a nation is not able to face its problems because it has not had a period of time of great change. In the course of our history we have had many great changes and we have learned how to adapt to them.”

“I have always considered that my chief merit lay in having had the good fortune to have had good teachers and to have had the opportunity to observe the working of the best engines.”

“I’m very proud to be a Mason. It’s a brotherhood that’s concerned with truth and respect for each other.”

“The things that make you a man are the things that make you uncomfortable.”

“Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.”

“I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”

“It is not enough to possess a knowledge of the truth; it is necessary to act upon it.”

“To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often.”

“Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.”

“To each, there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour.”

“The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”

“I am not one of those who think that an unworthy piece of work can be transformed into a worthy one by a title.”

“The greatest composer does not sit down to write a piece of music without having an idea of the whole.”

“The divine is in the details.”

“Music, even in situations of the greatest gloom, will always help us to remember the divine.”