We are workers, not master builders, ministers, not messiahs. We are prophets of a future not our own.
Oscar RomeroRead
We must not seek the child Jesus in the pretty figures of our Christmas cribs. We must seek him among the undernourished children who have gone to bed at night with nothing to eat, among the poor newsboys who will sleep covered with newspapers in doorways.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the importance of empathy and social justice, urging a focus on the marginalized rather than superficial representations of faith.
Oscar Romero's quote highlights the need to recognize the presence of Jesus not in the idealized images of Christmas but in the struggles of the impoverished and neglected members of society. By urging us to seek Jesus among the underprivileged, Romero calls for an active commitment to compassion and advocacy for those who suffer, emphasizing that our faith should translate into action for social change and justice.
Themes
JesusPovertyCompassionSocial JusticeFaith
In practice
Example use cases
This quote is perfect for a church sermon focusing on social responsibility.
More from Oscar Romero
All quotes →Beautiful is the moment in which we understand that we are no more than an instrument of God; we live only as long as God wants us to live; we can only do as much as God makes us able to do; we are only as intelligent as God would have us be.
Oscar RomeroRead
When the church hears the cry of the oppressed it cannot but denounce the social structures that give rise to and perpetuate the misery from which the cry arises.
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Aspire not to have more, but to be more.
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A Christian's authenticity is show in difficult hours it is in difficult hours that the church grows in authenticity. Blest be God for this difficult hour in our archdiocese. Let us be worthy of it.
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The church would betray its own love for God and its fidelity to the gospel if it stopped being . . . a defender of the rights of the poor . . . a humanizer of every legitimate struggle to achieve a more just society . . . that prepares the way for the true reign of God in history.
Oscar RomeroRead
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