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In my mother language, there is a proverb which says: "Religious appearance is no a sign of being a religious person at all"; I've found two sentences in a local dictionary of proverbs and colloquialism. I would be thankful if you let me know which one sounds more natural to you in American English:

  1. Religious appearance doesn’t equate to a pious man.
  2. If the beard were all, the goat might preach.
A-friend
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    I really like #2, but I would use the indefinite article before goat: If the beard were all, a goat might preach. – J.R. Aug 30 '16 at 20:51

1 Answers1

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Both your sentences are understandable.

Your second sentence might sound better as

If a beard were all, a goat might preach.
if a beard was the only thing necessary, a goat might preach

Your first sentence is more general, however your second sentence might only work for certain orthodox religions.

Peter
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    Actually, the goat sentence communicates well and can work more generally, in the same way that "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy." works even for people not called Jack, and for non-boys. – Lawrence Aug 30 '16 at 14:22