He will wipe the tears from all faces.' It takes nothing from the loveliness of the verse to say that is exactly what will be required
Marilynne RobinsonRead
It seems to me there is less meanness in atheism, by a good measure. It seems that the spirit of religious self-righteousness this article deplores is precisely the spirit in which it is written. Of course he's right about many things, one of them being the destructive potency of religious self-righteousness. (p. 146)
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote critiques religious self-righteousness and suggests atheism may embody less egoism.
In this quote, Marilynne Robinson expresses a perspective on the nature of atheism versus religious belief. She posits that atheism, potentially lacking the fervent moral superiority that can accompany religious conviction, is less mean-spirited. Robinson points out that the self-righteousness often associated with religious adherence can lead to destructive behavior, contrasting it with a more open-minded or compassionate approach found in atheism.
Themes
AtheismSelf-RighteousnessReligionCompassionBelief
In practice
Example use cases
In a debate on morality, one could use this quote to illustrate the perils of self-righteousness in religious discussions.
More from Marilynne Robinson
All quotes →A narrow pond would form in the orchard, water clear as air covering grass and black leaves and fallen branches, all around it black leaves and drenched grass and fallen branches, and on it, slight as an image in an eye, sky, clouds, trees, our hovering faces and our cold hands.
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The moon looks wonderful in this warm evening light, just as a candle flame looks beautiful in the light of morning. Light within light...It seems to me to be a metaphor for the human soul, the singular light within that great general light of existence.
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There are worries that seem to me sustained by the love of worry. For example, that people are reading from screens, or listening to recorded books. Why scold the impulse to enjoy language and narrative in whatever form it takes?
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Teaching is a distraction and a burden, but it's also an incredible stimulus. And a reprieve, in a way. When you're trying to work on something and it's not going anywhere, you can go to school and there's a two-and-a-half-hour block of time in which you can accomplish something.
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Every single one of us is a little civilization built on the ruins of any number of preceding civilizations, but with our own variant notions of what is beautiful and what is acceptable - which, I haste to add, we generally do not satisfy and by which we struggle to live.
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