" ….that witches should not be suffered to live; that those who violate the Sabbath should be killed; that women should not be permitted to speak in church; that slavery is to be condoned; perhaps the very existence of hell. Let it pass that all these things have now become embarrassing only because of the advance of secular knowledge; the true question is whether this kind of procedure – picking and choosing which parts of the Bible to believe in, and brushing the loathsome or embarrassing parts under the rug and hoping no one will notice – has any legitimacy beyond that of practical expediency. "
― S.T. Joshi , Atheism: A Reader