Celebration is a confrontation, giving attention to the transcendent meaning of one's actions.
Abraham Joshua HeschelRead
The higher goal of spiritual living is not to amass a wealth of information, but to face sacred moments.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Spiritual living prioritizes meaningful experiences over mere knowledge accumulation.
Abraham Joshua Heschel's quote emphasizes that the essence of spiritual living lies not in accumulating vast amounts of information, but in engaging with and embracing profound, sacred moments in life. It encourages individuals to seek deeper connections and understanding rather than getting lost in the distractions of intellectual wealth.
Themes
SpiritualLivingMeaningfulExperienceKnowledgeSacred
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about life's purpose, one might quote this to emphasize the importance of experiencing sacred moments.
More from Abraham Joshua Heschel
All quotes →Normal consciousness is a state of stupor, in which the sensibility to the wholly real and responsiveness to the stimuli of the spirit are reduced. The mystics, knowing that man is involved in a hidden history of the cosmos, endeavor to awake from the drowsiness and apathy and to regain the state of wakefulness for their enchanted souls.
Abraham Joshua HeschelRead
Prayer cannot bring water to parched fields, or mend a broken bridge, or rebuild a ruined city; but prayer can water an arid soul, mend a broken heart, and rebuild a weakened will.
Abraham Joshua HeschelRead
The worship of reason is arrogance and betrays a lack of intelligence. The rejection of reason is cowardice and betrays a lack of faith.
Abraham Joshua HeschelRead
We worship God through our questions.
Abraham Joshua HeschelRead
When religion speaks only in the name of authority rather than with the voice of compassion, its message becomes meaningless.
Abraham Joshua HeschelRead
Similar quotes
He hath a heart as sound as a bell, and his tongue is the clapper; for what his heart thinks his tongue speaks.
William ShakespeareRead
Age carries all things away, even the mind.
VirgilRead
And yet not a dream, but a mighty reality- a glimpse of the higher life, the broader possibilities of humanity, which is granted to the man who, amid the rush and roar of living, pauses four short years to learn what living means
W. E. B. Du BoisRead
You’re talking about Rwanda or Bangladesh, or Cambodia, or the Philippines. They’ve got democracy, according to Freedom House. But have you got a civilised life to lead? People want economic development first and foremost. The leaders may talk something else. You take a poll of any people. What is it they want? The right to write an editorial as you like? They want homes, medicine, jobs, schools.
Lee Kuan YewRead
It has long been recognized that an essential element in protecting human rights was a widespread knowledge among the population of what their rights are and how they can be defended.
Boutros Boutros-GhaliRead
In our world, we have this huge focus on vicarious living - politicians, movie stars, athletes, coaches, all these people. What our research has shown very clearly is that people who are really happier and have more meaningful lives are people that focus on living their own lives.
Marshall GoldsmithRead