Harry Emerson Fosdick Quotes

No horse gets anywhere until he is harnessed. No steam or gas ever drives anything until it is confined. No Niagara is ever turned into light and power until it is tunneled. No life ever grows great until it is focused dedicated disciplined.

Democracy is based upon the conviction that there are extraordinary possibilities in ordinary people.

Christians are supposed not merely to endure change nor even to profit by it but to cause it.

All altruism springs from putting yourself in the other person's place.

Bitterness imprisons life love releases it. Bitterness paralyzes life love empowers it. Bitterness sours life love sweetens it. Bitterness sickens life love heals it. Bitterness blinds life love anoints its eyes.

God is not a cosmic bellboy for whom we can press a button to get things.

I would rather live in a world where my life is surrounded by mystery than live in a world so small that my mind could comprehend it.

Watch what people are cynical about and one can often discover what they lack.

Fear imprisons faith liberates fear paralyzes faith empowers fear disheartens faith encourages fear sickens faith heals fear makes useless faith makes serviceable.

Nothing in human life least of all in religion is ever right until it is beautiful.

Rebellion against your handicaps gets you nowhere. Self-pity gets you nowhere. One must have the adventurous daring to accept oneself as a bundle of possibilities and undertake the most interesting game in the world-making the most of one's best.

Bitterness imprisons life love releases it.

The most extraordinary thing about the oyster is this. Irritation gets into his shell. He does not like them. But when he cannot get rid of them he uses the irritation to do the lovelist thing an oyster ever has the chance to do. If there are irritations in our lives today, there is only one prescription: make a pearl. It may have to be a pearl of patience, but…make a pearl.-In the Treasure Chest, ed. Charles L. Wallis

Liberty is always dangerous - but it is the safest thing we have.

God is not a cosmic bellboy for whom we can press a button to get things done.

Liberty is always dangerous but it is the safest thing we have.