Commentary Quotes
50 quotes
"The single best thing about coming out of the closet is that nobody can insult you by telling you what you've just told them."
"It is not disparaging wedlock to prefer virginity. No one can make a comparison between two things if one is good and the other evil."
""If 'it is good for a man not to touch a woman', then it is bad for him to touch one, for bad, and bad only, is the opposite of good. But, if though bad, it is made venial, then it is allowed to prevent something which would be worse than bad. ... Notice the Apostle's carefulness. He does not say: 'It is good not to have a wife', but, 'It is good for a man not to touch a woman'. ... I am not expounding the law as to husbands and wives, but discussing the general question of sexual intercourse – how in comparison with chastity and virginity, the life of angels, 'It is good for a man not to touch a woman'."
"While we honour marriage we prefer virginity which is the offspring of marriage. Will silver cease to be silver, if gold is more precious than silver?"
"It is true that simple-minded religious men have conceived their goal as a state of continued existence beyond the grave filled with all happy things and experiences. But plainly such happy things and experiences were no more than symbolic, and the happy heavens containing such things have the character of myth. To the human mind, fast fettered by the limits of its poor imagination, they stand for and represent the goal. One cannot conceive the inconceivable. So in place of it one puts whatever one can imagine of delight; wine and houris if one's imagination is limited to these; love, kindness, sweetness of spiritual living if one is of a less materialistic temper. But were these existences and delights, material or spiritual, to be actually found and enjoyed as present, they would be condemned by the saint along with all earthly joys. For they would have upon them the curse, the darkness, the disease, of all existent things, of all that is this or that. This is why we cannot conceive of any particular pleasure, happiness, joy, which would not cloy – which to be quite frank – would not in the end be boring."
"Chesed is a covenantal love, a profound and committed and long-term love, a kind love—but not a romantic love. Among people, it can take the form of charity; from God to human, chesed has qualities of mercy, of grace, and of long-suffering. This kind of love so confounded Miles Coverdale, a sixteenth-century Bible translator in England, that as he worked to translate the Hebrew Scriptures into English, he felt compelled to coin a new word to describe it: loving-kindness."
"The book of Genesis was written a long time before the idea of a spherical Earth was suggested and, as we shall see, the exegetes later found themselves in difficulty when attempting to reconcile the biblical writing with the results of the natural science; then the faith–science conflict was born, which has remained with us for almost two millennia."
"When I caught the speaker's eye and asked about the rakia, I caused the lecture to grind to halt."
"According to most classical Muslim commentators the Quran teaches that Jesus did not die. On the day of the crucifixion another person – whether his disciple or his betrayer – was miraculously transformed and assumed the appearance of Jesus. He was taken away, crucified, and killed, while Jesus was assumed body and soul into heaven. Most critical scholars accept that this is indeed the Quran's teaching, even if the Quran states explicitly only that the Jews did not kill Jesus."
"In Jannah [paradise] there are a hundred grades which Allah has prepared for those who fight in His Cause [mujahidin]; and the distance between any two of those grades is like the distance between the heaven and the earth."
"Moses has the Being of beings say, "I am he who is." ... "I am, therefore something exists," seems to us a more primal and simple basis for experimental philosophy. Ego sum qui sum: that is God's first revelation in man and of man in the world, and it is also the first axiom of occult philosophy. . Being is being. Thus the principle behind this philosophy is what is, and there is nothing hypothetical or uncertain about it."
""The Law Is." In this Aphorism the word "" denotes "present, actual existence." It is as strong a term denoting actual existence as the English language supplies. ... The word "Is" has the significance of the word "Am" in the following quotation from Exodus, iii. 14, in the Hebrew Sacred Books: "And God said unto Moses, ' That '; and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel: hath sent me unto you." This then is the sense in which the Arcane Aphorism employs the term ""—in the sense of Absolute Existence."
"And what is God's self-definition in the Bible? Did God say, "I have always been, and I always will be?" Of course not. That would have given reality to past and future. God said: "." No time here, just presence."
"When Moses asks his name and credentials, Yahweh replies with a pun which, as we shall see, would exercise monotheists for centuries. Instead of revealing his name directly, he answers: "I Am Who I Am (Ehyeh asher ehyeh)." ... When the Bible uses a phrase like: "they went where they went", it means: "I haven't the faintest idea where they went". So when Moses asks who he is, God replies in effect: "Never you mind who I am!" or "Mind your own business!""
"The exact significance of verse 14 is not completely clear, and it has been the subject of much scholarly speculation. 'Yahweh' is evidently related to the verb 'to be', and the King James Version of the Bible renders it as . The best translation is probably either '; that is who I am' (New English Bible) or 'I am the one who is' (New Jerusalem Bible)."
"We already find in Ezekiel a part of Sheol distinguished as deeper, called the "pit" or "the lowest parts of the earth", where the uncircumcised descend and those who have fallen by the sword, causing terror in the land of the living. In course of time this distinction came to be more definite: the upper part of Sheol, destined for the just, was called "Abraham's bosom", and the lower part became Gehenna, where sinners were tormented in flames."
"The place where children were sacrificed to the god Moloch was originally in the "valley of the son of Hinnom", to the south of Jerusalem (Josh. xv. 8, passim; II Kings xxiii. 10; Jer. ii. 23; vii. 31–32; xix. 6, 13–14). For this reason the valley was deemed to be accursed, and "Gehenna" therefore soon became a figurative equivalent for "hell"."
"In the part lowest of the abysses is Sheol, the place where those dwell who have passed to the state of rephaim or "shades". This is the place lower than any other, which is described in the Book of Job (x. 21–2) as the land where the shadow of death reigns, where the shadows are scarcely broken by any glimmers of twilight, where there is no order, and whence there is no return—in short, as something very like the Hades and Avernus of the Greek and Latin classics, and the Aralu of the Babylonians. No Hebrew Dante has described this place; yet we already find in Ezekiel a part of Sheol distinguished as deeper, called the "pit" or "the lowest parts of the earth", where the uncircumcised descend and those who have fallen by the sword, causing terror in the land of the living. In course of time this distinction came to be more definite: the upper part of Sheol, destined for the just, was called "Abraham's bosom", and the lower part became Gehenna, where sinners were tormented in flames."
"Here the dead meet (Ezek. xxxii.; Isa. xiv.; Job xxx. 23) without distinction of rank or condition—the rich and the poor, the pious and the wicked, the old and the young, the master and the slave—if the description in Job iii. refers, as most likely it does, to Sheol. The dead continue after a fashion their earthly life. Jacob would mourn there (Gen. xxxvii. 35, xlii. 38); David abides there in peace (I Kings ii. 6); the warriors have their weapons with them (Ezek. xxxii. 27), yet they are mere shadows ("rephaim"; Isa. xiv. 9, xxvi. 14; Ps. lxxxviii. 5, A. V. "a man that hath no strength"). The dead merely exist without knowledge or feeling (Job xiv. 13; Eccl. ix. 5). Silence reigns supreme; and oblivion is the lot of them that enter therein (Ps. lxxxviii. 13, xciv. 17; Eccl. ix. 10). Hence it is known also as "Dumah", the abode of silence (Ps. vi. 6, xxx. 10, xciv. 17, cxv. 17); and there God is not praised (ib. cxv. 17; Isa. xxxviii. 15)."
"The Jewish scriptures contain a variety of views about what happens to a person at death. Most commonly, a person who dies is simply said to have gone to "death"—a term used some thousand times in the Bible. Better known but far less frequent, a person's ultimate destination is sometimes called "Sheol", a term whose meaning and etymology are debated. It occurs over sixty times in the Hebrew Bible, and there is unanimity among critical scholars that in no case does Sheol mean "hell" in the sense people mean today. There is no place of eternal punishment in any passage of the entire Old Testament. In fact—and this comes as a surprise to many people—nowhere in the entire Hebrew Bible is there any discussion at all of heaven and hell as places of rewards and punishments for those who have died."
"Jesus is accordingly, in the following curious Talmudic legend, thought to sojourn in hell. A certain Onḳelos b. Ḳaloniḳos, son of Titus' sister, desired to embrace Judaism, and called up from hell by magic first Titus, then Balaam, and finally Jesus, who are here taken together as the worst enemies of Judaism. ... Onḳelos then asked the nature of his punishment, and was told that it was the degrading fate of those who mock the wise (Giṭ. 56b–57a)."
"Our rabbinic texts, all in the Bavli, emphasize that Jesus, the new Balaam, does not have a portion in the world to come: his fate is that he must be punished in hell forever, with no chance of redemption—and the same is true for his followers: they better give up any hope of earning eternal life in his succession, as his apostles promise."
"The opening verb form, ve-ahavta, rather than the imperative ehov, allows the prefixed vav to be taken as purposive. ... The rest of the verse serves as a topic sentence for a corresponding threefold explication in the following verses—drawn from the key terms heart (, leivav), soul (, nefesh), and might (, meʾod)—that spells out the implementation of the command."
"Understanding the deeper meaning of each of these words—heart, soul, might—enhances the power of this central Jewish prayer."
"According to a widespread Hadith, Muhammad instructed his followers neither to accept sayings from the Tawrat (translated for them by the Ahl al-Kitdb) nor to consider them untrue, but to stick to their own belief (al-Bukhari, ed. Krehl, e.g. book 97, Tawhid, bab 51, or book 65, Tafsir on sura II, bab 11). Nevertheless, some traditionists are said to have read the Tawrat every week, stating that each time the reading is finished God's mercy comes down (Ibn Sa'd, vii/1, 161)."
"One of the most basic principles in Jewish law is that human life comes first. Almost any religious commandment can be broken in order to save the life of a human being."
"In Judaism, human life is essential and so pikuach nefesh, the obligation to save a life in jeopardy, is considered a major value to uphold."
"My favorite expression of metta is encompassed by the words "the door of my heart is fully open to you, forever, whoever you are and whatever you have done.""
"Forget about deserving happiness, "deserving" is not ever part of mettā practice: not part of it when you are directing mettā to yourself and not part of it when you are directing it to anyone else. Although mettā is usually translated as "loving-kindness," it really is "unconditional love.""
"The Pali term, mettā, is derived from a word for friendship, and therefore can be understood as a deep friendship with life. This should not imply that mettā is necessarily easy. Deep friendship implies being present, connected, and caring even through difficult times."
"One who sincerely seeks inner peace and happiness sees the power of loving-friendliness."
"There are many benefits to practicing Lovingkindness meditation. In the suttas, it says that when you practice Mettā meditation, you go to sleep easily and sleep soundly. You have no nightmares. When you wake up, you awaken easily and quickly. People really like you! Animals like you. Your face becomes radiant and beautiful. You have good health. These are just a few of the benefits."
"Lovingkindness offers care and well-wishing to another without expectation or demand. There is no distance between their well-being and our own."
"The foundation of metta practice is to know how to be our own friend. According to the Buddha, "You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.""
"And pictures of perfection, as you know, make me sick and wicked."
"Comments are free but facts are sacred."
"We are living in the Selfie Society of Me."
"Anyone can smile for a photo, but who is still smiling after the selfie?"
"Have the courage to take off your mask and be humbled."
"The club is too loud to talk, so after a couple of drinks, everyone feels like the centre of attention but completely cut off from participating with anyone else. You're the corpse in an English murder mystery."
"Two people, two hands, and two songs, in this case "Big Shot" and "Bette Davis Eyes." The lyrics of the two songs provided no commentary, honest or ironic, on the proceedings. They were merely there and always underfoot, the insistent gray muck that was pop culture. It stuck to our shoes and we tracked it through our lives."
"Apparently the rarest commodities on earth are truth and honesty."
"the whole of Victorian literature done up in grey paper & neatly tied with string"
"No comment" is a comment so I never really understood."
"If the sale of flesh could be made as easily as the sale of spiritual exemption, the prescience of a dedicated businessman might be well preserved."
"You are what you read."
"My fiancé immediately began to look uncomfortable, but did not voice this discomfort except by a soft gurgling sound in the throat . . . The gurgling escalated, but my mother politely switched on the dishwasher, and soon we heard mostly the sound of machinery rather than that of a person's feelings surfacing."
"The book of Jonah becomes an embarrassing and public reading of your family business. (page iii)"
"Mr. Craig was not above talking politics occasionally, though he piqued himself rather on a wise insight than on specific information."
"The world is divided into the ordinary and the extraordinary. The problem is deciding which is which."