#religious

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. -John, Apostle (and brother?) of Jesus, The Bible (RSV, non-Catholic), 3:16 ↗

— John Apostle

#spiritual-quotes #life

Most prayers are not really questions...and if we listen very closely, a prayer is often its own answer. ...We pray because we are here - not to change the world, but to change ourselves. Because it is when we change ourselves...that the world is changed. ↗

— Douglas Wood

#religious #change

When everyone drowns and I'm the only one to escape, God is protecting me. When everyone else is saved and I'm the only one to drown, God is protecting me then too. ↗

— Nikos Kazantzakis

#religious #inspirational

But to reject, marginalize, trivialize, or be suspicious of the sacraments (and quasi-sacramental acts such as lighting a candle, bowing, washing feet, raising hands in the air, crossing oneself and so forth) on the grounds that such things CAN be superstitious or idolatrous or that some people might suppose they are putting God in their debt, is like rejecting sexual relations in marriage on the grounds that it's the same act that in other circumstances constitutes immorality. ↗

— N.T. Wright

#sacraments #marriage

Only he who has the power to punish can pardon. ↗

— Hazrat Ali ibn Abu-Talib

#inspirational

Christianity, unlike any other religion in the world, begins with catastrophe and defeat. Sunshine religions and psychological inspirations collapse in calamity and wither in adversity. But the Life of the Founder of Christianity, having begun with the Cross, ends with the empty tomb and victory. ↗

— Fulton J. Sheen

#jesus #psychology #religious #resurrection #inspirational

Don't call me a saint. I don't want to be dismissed so easily. ↗

— Dorothy Day

#religious #sainthood #inspirational

Life seems to be fashioned and formed best out of the obstacles that seem unbearable. ↗

— John Paul Warren

#church #inspirational #leadership #motivational #pastors

The Lord often has his prophets climb mountains to converse with Him. I always wondered why He did that, and now I know the answer: when we are on high, we can see everything else as small. Our glory and sadness lose their importance. Whatever we conquered or lost remains there below. From the heights of the mountain, you see how large the world is, and how wide its horizons. ↗

— Paulo Coelho

#inspirational

Times of sadness are the very moment to laugh and laugh greatly. ↗

— Masaharu Taniguchi

#religious #inspirational