QuoteProject
If we can find God only as he is revealed in nature we have no moral God.
Reinhold Niebuhr
ShareWTF𝕏

Interpretation

What this quote means

This quote suggests that understanding God solely through nature dismisses moral attributes we associate with divinity.

Reinhold Niebuhr's quote explores the concept that if our perception of God is limited to his manifestations in the natural world, we may overlook the moral dimensions of divine character. It implies that a true understanding of God must encompass moral values and ethical guidance, which may not be evident in nature alone. Thus, the quote emphasizes the importance of a broader comprehension of divinity that includes moral facets rather than solely attributing characteristics based on the physical environment.

Themes

GodNatureMoralityPhilosophyEthics

In practice

Example use cases

In a religious discussion about the nature of divinity.

More from Reinhold Niebuhr

Religion is so frequently a source of confusion in political life, and so frequently dangerous to democracy, precisely because it introduces absolutes into the realm of relative values.
Reinhold NiebuhrRead
The tendency to claim God as an ally for our partisan value and ends is the source of all religious fanaticism.
Reinhold NiebuhrRead
The mastery of nature is vainly believed to be an adequate substitute for self mastery.
Reinhold NiebuhrRead
All you earnest young men out to save the world. . . please, have a laugh.
Reinhold NiebuhrRead
Forgiveness is the final form of love.
Reinhold NiebuhrRead
God, give me grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed.
Reinhold NiebuhrRead

Similar quotes

I know no religion that destroys courtesy, civility, and kindness.
William PennRead
We often forget that everything we see, animate or inanimate, is a visual manifestation of the work of our invisible God. We have become so accustomed to trees, mountains, sky, air, water, flowers, animals, vegetables and people that we no longer see them for what they are - God's work.
Mother AngelicaRead
Small use it will be to save democracy for the race if we cannot save the race for democracy.
Jeannette RankinRead
Give us that grand word 'woman' once again, and let's have done with 'lady'; one's a term full of fine force, strong, beautiful, and firm, fit for the noblest use of tongue or pen; and one's a word for lackeys.
Ella Wheeler WilcoxRead
Spiritual realization is theoretically the easiest thing and in practice the most difficult thing there is. It is the easiest because it is enough to think of God. It is the most difficult because human nature is forgetfulness of God.
Frithjof SchuonRead
The probability of apocalypse soon cannot be realistically estimated, but it is surely too high for any sane person to contemplate with equanimity.
Noam ChomskyRead

A little wisdom, now and then

Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.