What we want is to see the child in pursuit of knowledge, and not knowledge in pursuit of the child.
Gentle Jesus, meek and mild' is a snivelling modern invention, with no warrant in the gospels.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote critiques the common perception of Jesus as overly gentle and weak, suggesting that such an image is not supported by the biblical texts.
George Bernard Shaw's quote challenges the popular portrayal of Jesus as a gentler figure, advocating for a more nuanced understanding of his character as depicted in the Gospels. Shaw implies that the cultural construct of 'Gentle Jesus, meek and mild' is a diluted interpretation that does not align with the more complex and potentially assertive nature of Jesus as presented in religious texts.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
During a debate on religious interpretations, one might refer to this quote to emphasize the need for a critical examination of Jesus' portrayal.
More from George Bernard Shaw
All quotes βMarriage is good enough for the lower classes: they have facilities for desertion that are denied to us.
Forgive him, for he believes that the customs of his tribe are the laws of nature!
Those who talk most about the blessings of marriage and the constancy of its vows are the very people who declare that if the chain were broken and the prisoners left free to choose, the whole social fabric would fly asunder. You cannot have the argument both ways. If the prisoner is happy, why lock him in? If he is not, why pretend that he is?
Treat a friend as a person who may someday become your enemy; an enemy as a person who may someday become your friend.
The happiness of credulity is a cheap and dangerous quality.
Similar quotes
If you wish to shine like day, burn up the night of self-existence. Dissolve in the Being who is everything.
Because I could not stop for death, He kindly stopped for me; The carriage held but just ourselves and immortality.
Never again can we afford to live with the narrow, provincial "outside agitator" idea. Anyone who lives inside the United States can never be considered an outsider.
People shouldn't call for demons unless they really mean what they say.
A good man can be stupid and still be good. But a bad man must have brains.
Life is, if anything, the art of combination. Of discrimination. Of freely picking one's own personal pattern out of a hundred choices. Not letting it be picked for youβeither by the Establishment, or by the Rebels. Conformity of Hip is no better than Conformity of Square.