No creed can be stretched to the size of truth; no church can be made as large as man.

Washburn contrasts the expansiveness of “truth” and “man” with the necessarily limited, human-made structures of creeds and churches. A creed, as a fixed statement of belief, cannot be “stretched” to encompass the full complexity of reality; likewise, an institution cannot fully contain the breadth of human experience, conscience, and moral growth. The aphorism critiques doctrinal rigidity and sectarian boundaries, implying that spiritual or ethical life exceeds any single formulation or organization. It gestures toward a liberal, human-centered religiosity: institutions may guide, but they should not claim exhaustive authority over truth or the whole person.