54 quotes
The inertia of society is so stubborn that no one will move against it, if he cannot believe that it can be more easily overcome than is actually the case.
Moral Man and Immoral Society (1932)
Historical communities are, in short, more deeply involved in nature and time than the individual.
The Nature and Destiny of Man: A Christian Interpretation (1941)
The inevitable hypocrisy, which is associated with the all the collective activities of the human race, springs chiefly from this source: that individuals have a moral code which makes the actions of collective man an outrage to their conscience.
Moral Man and Immoral Society (1932)
God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change,
the courage to change the things I can,
and the wisdom to know the difference.
We cannot deny the indictment that we seek solution for practically every problem of life in quantitative terms, and are not fully aware of the limits of this approach.
The Irony of American History (1952)
If the man of power were to take a message of absolute honesty and absolute love seriously he would lose his power, or would divest himself of it.
Christianity and Power Politics (1936)
Every society will have to maintain methods of arbitrating conflicting needs to the end of history; and in that process those who are shrewder will gain some advantage over the simple, even if they should lack special instruments of power.
Moral Man and Immoral Society (1932)
We take, and must continue to take, morally hazardous actions to preserve our civilization.
The Irony of American History (1952)
This insinuation of the interests of the self into even the most ideal enterprises and most universal objectives, envisaged in moments of highest rationality, makes hypocrisy an inevitable by product of all virtuous endeavor.
Moral Man and Immoral Society (1932)
It is significant that it is as difficult to get charity out of piety as to get reasonableness out of rationalism.
The Mike Wallace Interview (1958)
The individual is not discrete. He cannot find his fulfillment outside of the community; but he also cannot find fulfillment completely within society.
The Irony of American History (1952)
I wouldn't judge a man by the presuppositions of his life, but only by the fruits of his life.
The Mike Wallace Interview (1958)
Nothing we do, however virtuous, can be accomplished alone; therefore, we are saved by love. No virtuous act is quite as virtuous from the standpoint of our friend or foe as from our own; therefore, we are saved by the final form of love, which is forgiveness.
The more complex the world situation becomes, the more scientific and rational analysis you have to have, the less you can do with simple good will and sentiment.
The Mike Wallace Interview (1958)
An irrevocable defeat of a socio-historical cause which gives meaning to the life of the individual must create a complete sense of meaninglessness unless the individual is sustained by a religion which interprets such defeats from the aspect of the eternal.
The Nature and Destiny of Man: A Christian Interpretation (1941)
The self is tempted to hide its desire to dominate the world behind its pretended devotion to the world. All mature moral conduct is therefore infected with an element of dishonesty and insincerity. The lie is always intimately related to the sin of egotism.
Not necessarily every standard that every church tries to enforce upon the society is from the society's standpoint a good standard.
The Mike Wallace Interview (1958)
The truest visions of religion are illusions, which may be partially realised by being resolutely believed. For what religion believes to be true is not wholly true but ought to be true; and may become true if its truth is not doubted.
Moral Man and Immoral Society (1932)
The redemption of mankind, by whatever means, was assured for the future. It was, in fact, assured by the future.
Faith and History: A Comparison of Christian and Modern Views of History (1949)
There were experiences in previous centuries which might well have challenged this unqualified optimism.
Faith and History: A Comparison of Christian and Modern Views of History (1949)