Faith always contains an element of risk, of venture; and we are impelled to make the venture by the affinity and attraction which we feel in ourselves.
William IngeRead
A man may build himself a throne of bayonets, but he can't sit on it.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Power gained through force is not a true source of comfort or stability.
This quote speaks to the futility of relying on power achieved through violence or oppression. It suggests that while one may accumulate force or authority, it does not bring genuine fulfillment or security, highlighting the importance of moral integrity and the limitations of aggressive pursuits in achieving true leadership or happiness.
Themes
PowerViolenceLeadershipIntegrityAuthority
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about non-violent leadership, one might quote this to emphasize the limits of coercion.
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Keats mourned that the rainbow, which as a boy had been for him a magic thing, had lost its glory because the physicists had found it resulted merely from the refraction of the sunlight by the raindrops. Yet knowledge of its causation could not spoil the rainbow for me. I am sure that it is not given to man to be omniscient. There will always be something left to know, something to excite the imagination of the poet and those attuned to the great world in which they live (p. 64)
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But that part of us greater than the sum of our parts cannot begin and cannot end, and so it cannot fail
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If you really want to experience God, go and make disciples.
Francis ChanRead
Sacrifice is truly the crowning test of the gospel. Men are tried and tested in this mortal probation to see if they will put first in their lives the kingdom of God.
Ezra Taft BensonRead