The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference.
The Bible is not only laws, it's also stories. It begins, 'In the beginning God created Heaven.' If I had written these words, I wouldn't have written anything else; it's just enough.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes that the Bible contains both laws and rich narratives, highlighting the significance of its creation story.
Elie Wiesel reflects on the profound nature of the Bible, pointing out that it is not merely a set of laws but also a collection of stories that convey deep truths about existence and creation. The phrase 'In the beginning God created Heaven' holds immense weight for Wiesel, suggesting that the act of creation itself carries sufficient meaning, encapsulating the essence of faith and humanity's relationship with the divine. By recognizing the narrative aspect of religious texts, Wiesel invites us to appreciate both the moral guidance and the timeless stories that shape our understanding of life.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
During a discussion on the importance of narratives in teaching moral lessons.
More from Elie Wiesel
All quotes →With every cell of my being and with every fiber of my memory I oppose the death penalty in all forms. I do not believe any civilized society should be at the service of death. I don't think it's human to become an agent of the angel of death.
Certain things, certain events, seem inexplicable only for a time: up to the moment when the veil is torn aside.
We're alone, but we are capable of communicating to one another both our loneliness and our desire to break through it. You say, 'I'm alone.' Someone answers, 'I'm alone too.' There's a shift in the scale of power. A bridge is thrown between the two abysses.
No one is as capable of gratitude as one who has escaped the kingdom of night.
My loyalty to my people, to our people, and to Israel comes first and prevents me from saying anything critical of Israel outside Israel… As a Jew I see my role as a melitz yosher, a defender of Israel: I defend even her mistakes… I must identify with whatever Israel does – even with her errors.
Similar quotes
The great decisions of human life have as a rule far more to do with the instincts and other mysterious unconscious factors than with conscious will and well-meaning reasonableness. The shoe that fits one person pinches another; there is no recipe for living that suits all cases. Each of us carries his own life-form- an indeterminable form which cannot be superseded by any other.
In rivers, the water that you touch is the last of what has passed and the first of that which comes; so with present time.
Some natures are too good to be spoiled by praise.
Dhikr (remembrance of Allah) is to the heart as water is to a fish; see what happens to a fish when it is taken out of water
Translation rewrites a foreign text in terms that are intelligible and interesting to readers in the receiving culture. Doing so is akin to committing an act of ethnocentric violence by uprooting the text from the language and culture that gave it life. Translating into current, standard English at once conceals that violence and homogenizes foreign cultures.
In addition to my other numerous acquaintances, I have one more intimate confidant. ... My depression is the most faithful mistress I have known - no wonder, then, that I return the love.