A home is a kingdom of it's own in the midst of the world, a stronghold amid life's storms and stresses, a refuge, even a sanctuary.
Dietrich BonhoefferRead
We must learn to regard people less in light of what they do or omit to do, and more in the light of what they suffer.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes understanding others based on their struggles rather than their actions.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer's quote encourages us to shift our perspective towards viewing others not just in terms of their actions or failures, but in context of their experiences and suffering. This deeper understanding fosters compassion and empathy, recognizing the inherent struggles that shape individuals' behaviors and choices.
Themes
EmpathySufferingCompassionUnderstandingPerspective
In practice
Example use cases
During a discussion about social justice, this quote can be used to highlight the importance of understanding the challenges faced by marginalized communities.
More from Dietrich Bonhoeffer
All quotes βIn normal life we hardly realize how much more we receive than we give, and life cannot be rich without such gratitude. It is so easy to overestimate the importance of our own achievements compared with what we owe to the help of others.
Dietrich BonhoefferRead
Sometimes we just need a firm kick in the pants. An unsmiling expectation that if we mean all these wonderful things we talk about and sing about, then letβs see something to prove it.
Dietrich BonhoefferRead
It is God's earth out of which man is taken. From it he has his body. His body belongs to his essential being. Man's body is not his prison, his shell his exterior, but man himself. Man does not "have" a body; he does not "have" a soul; rather he "is" body and soul. Man in the beginning is really his body. He is one. He is his body, as Christ is completely his body, as the Church is the body of Christ
Dietrich BonhoefferRead
...And then, just when everything is bearing down on us to such an extent that we can scarcely withstand it, the Christmas message comes to tell us that all our ideas are wrong, and that what we take to be evil and dark is really good and light because it comes from God. Our eyes are at fault, that is all.
Dietrich BonhoefferRead
Anyone who thinks that his time is too valuable to spend keeping quiet will eventually have no time for God and his brother, but only for himself and for his own follies.
Dietrich BonhoefferRead
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