"I believe there is one Supreme most perfect being. [...] I believe He is pleased and delights in the happiness of those He has created; and since without virtue man can have no happiness in this world, I firmly believe He delights to see me virtuous." -- Benjamin Franklin (b. 1706-01-17, d. 1790-04-17), "Articles of Belief and Acts of Religion", 1728
[I got this from Wikiquote, as shown above. But note that the elision there, the ellipsis, is like thirteen paragraphs. The sense is preserved but a lot of nuance about what he believes the nature of the deity is, is skipped over. I've linked to the full text.]
(no subject)