A Quote by Thomas Paine on books, god, good, history, independence, lies, men, and words

And no less preeminent a champion of American independence than Thomas Paine had the following words of reproach for the Good Book: "As to the book called the Bible, it is blasphemy to call it the Word of God. It is a book of lies and contradictions, and a history of bad times and bad men. There are but a few good characters in the whole book."