Who said “Our goodness comes solely from thinking on goodness; our wickedness from thinking on…”?

Verified

John Jay Chapman. A published source records them saying or writing it.

SourcePractical Agitation (1900), Chapter 7

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Cite this quote

For academic work, cite the original where you can: Practical Agitation (1900), Chapter 7.

APA

Chapman, J. J. (n.d.). Our goodness comes solely from thinking on goodness; our wickedness from thinking on wickedness. We too are the victims of our own contemplation. [Quotation]. Famous Quotations Network. Retrieved October 24, 2026, from https://www.famous-quotations.com/quotes/37480-our-goodness-comes-solely-from-thinking-on-goodness/

MLA

Chapman, John Jay. “Our goodness comes solely from thinking on goodness; our wickedness from thinking on wickedness. We too are the victims of our own contemplation.” Famous Quotations Network, https://www.famous-quotations.com/quotes/37480-our-goodness-comes-solely-from-thinking-on-goodness/. Accessed 24 Oct. 2026.

Chicago

Chapman, John Jay. “Our goodness comes solely from thinking on goodness; our wickedness from thinking on wickedness. We too are the victims of our own contemplation.” Famous Quotations Network. Accessed October 24, 2026. https://www.famous-quotations.com/quotes/37480-our-goodness-comes-solely-from-thinking-on-goodness/.

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“People who love soft methods and hate iniquity forget this, -- that reform consists in taking a bone from a dog. Philosophy will not do it.”
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“Everybody in America is soft, and hates conflict. The cure for this, both in politics and social life, is the same -- hardihood. Give them raw truth.”
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“It is just as impossible to help reform by conciliating prejudice as it is by buying votes. Prejudice is the enemy. Whoever is not for you is against you.”
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“A political organization is a transferable commodity. You could not find a better way of killing virtue than by packing it into one of these contraptions which some gang of thieves is sure to find useful.”
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“All progress is experimental.”
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