The deepest difference between religions is not that between polytheism and monotheism.

It does not follow that the meaning must be given from above; that life and suffering must come neatly labeled; that nothing is worth while if the world is not governed by a purpose.

Man stands alone in the universe, responsible for his condition, likely to remain in a lowly state, but free to reach above the stars.

Writing is thinking in slow motion.

Reason may not always tell us what to believe, but it can help us on what we shouldn't believe.

The great artist is the man who most obviously succeeds in turning his pains to advantage, in letting suffering deepen his understanding and sensibility, in growing through his pains.

Words signify man's refusal to accept the world as it is.

Those who believe in God because their experience of life and the facts of nature prove his existence must have led sheltered lives and closed their hearts to the voice of their brothers' blood.

For atheism and polytheism there is no special problem of suffering, nor need there be for every kind of monotheism.

To try to fashion something from suffering, to relish our triumphs, and to endure defeats without resentment: all that is compatible with the faith of a heretic.

Life ceases to be so oppressive: we are free to give our own lives meaning and purpose, free to redeem our suffering by making something of it.

Shed who you think you are, in order to experience who you really are.

Silence can be a planrigorously executedthe blueprint to a lifeIt is a presenceit has a history a formDo not confuse itwith any kind of absence

Increasingly we confused the pursuit of happiness with the pursuit of pleasure.

Labor is the great source from which nearly all, if not all, human comforts and necessities are drawn.

To build a road is so much simpler than to think of what the country really needs.

What I began by reading, I must finish by acting.

When does a building actually become a built?

When I sign people's stuff I put down John 3:16 and 17.

How many times does a man have to shave before his chin gets the message?