Nationalism is not the awakening of nations to self-consciousness; it invents nations where they do not exist.
Ernest GellnerRead
A cleric who loses his faith abandons his calling; a philosopher who loses his redefines his subject.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The loss of faith transforms a cleric's purpose, while a philosopher's loss leads to a reevaluation of ideas.
This quote suggests that faith is integral to a cleric's identity and role; without it, they can no longer fulfill their calling. Conversely, a philosopher, when losing faith, responds by redefining their philosophical inquiries and ideas, indicating a more flexible and adaptive approach to their intellectual pursuits.
Themes
FaithPhilosophyCallingIdentityRedefinition
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion on the interplay between faith and reason, this quote can illustrate how loss shapes belief systems.
More from Ernest Gellner
All quotes βI am deeply sensitive to the spell of nationalism. I can play about thirty Bohemian folk songs ... on my mouth-organ. My oldest friend, who is Czech and a patriot, cannot bear to hear me play them because he says I do it in such a schmalzy way, 'crying into the mouth organ'. I do not think I could have written the book on nationalism which I did write, were I not capable of crying, with the help of a little alcohol, over folk songs, which happen to be my favourite form of music.
Ernest GellnerRead
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