June 1 Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude. Thomas Jefferson, 3rd President, 1801-1809-attributed to Jefferson, but not found in any of his papers. It's a great thought, but not really worded in the style of writing or speaking of the 1700's. There is scant writing about mental "attitudes" or goals from any of the founding fathers. According to the site which maintains his papers, Jefferson's Monticello, scholars state "...(this quote)is frequently attributed to W. W. Ziege, and while Ziege did write an article that appeared in Rosicrucian Digest in December 1945, "The Magic Word," in which he essentially makes the same point, he did not use these exact words. No other writings of his in which this quotation may have appeared have yet been located. (www.monticello.org/site/jefferson/nothing-can-stop-man-right-mental-attitude-quotation). What then, would be the connection to Jefferson? He was not a follower or member of The Rosicrucians, nor The Masons, another popular society of his time, both of which endure today. Both groups sought out and espoused "truths" passed down through time. Jefferson was raised in the Angelican faith but did not follow "traditional" religious practices. Although he did believe in the moral teachings of Jesus, it does not appear Jefferson believed in the divinity of Jesus. It time, he became an associate of Richard Price, a minister in the Unitarian church. (www.monticello.org/site/research-and-collections/jeffersons-religious-beliefs") The Unitarians basically believe in God, but not in the concept of "The Holy Trinity", three persons in one God. In short, Jefferson was an independent, eclectic thinker; a product of his times, The Age of Enlightenment. Some of Jefferson's philosophies may have been incorporated into Rosicrucian beliefs and teachings, but Jefferson was not a member of their group. More information can be found about the controversies surrounding Rosicrucians, Masons, and Unitarians through many sources.