What we want is to see the child in pursuit of knowledge, and not knowledge in pursuit of the child.
Gentle Jesus, meek and mild' is a snivelling modern invention, with no warrant in the gospels.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote critiques the common perception of Jesus as overly gentle and weak, suggesting that such an image is not supported by the biblical texts.
George Bernard Shaw's quote challenges the popular portrayal of Jesus as a gentler figure, advocating for a more nuanced understanding of his character as depicted in the Gospels. Shaw implies that the cultural construct of 'Gentle Jesus, meek and mild' is a diluted interpretation that does not align with the more complex and potentially assertive nature of Jesus as presented in religious texts.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
During a debate on religious interpretations, one might refer to this quote to emphasize the need for a critical examination of Jesus' portrayal.
More from George Bernard Shaw
All quotes βMarriage is good enough for the lower classes: they have facilities for desertion that are denied to us.
Forgive him, for he believes that the customs of his tribe are the laws of nature!
Those who talk most about the blessings of marriage and the constancy of its vows are the very people who declare that if the chain were broken and the prisoners left free to choose, the whole social fabric would fly asunder. You cannot have the argument both ways. If the prisoner is happy, why lock him in? If he is not, why pretend that he is?
Treat a friend as a person who may someday become your enemy; an enemy as a person who may someday become your friend.
The happiness of credulity is a cheap and dangerous quality.
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Perhaps I'm old and tired, but I always think that the chances of finding out what really is going on are so absurdly remote that the only thing to do is to say hang the sense of it and just keep yourself occupied.
You can't be a minority in this society without having someone express disapproval about affirmative action.
Live the actual moment. Only this moment is life.
In God you come up against something which is in every respect immeasurably superior to yourself. Unless you know God as that-and, therefore, know yourself as nothing in comparison-you do not know God at all.
The chill of what I won't feel gnaws at my present heart.