Mike
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“If we want to be Christians, we must have some share in Christ’s large-heartedness by acting with responsibility and in freedom when the hour of danger comes, and by showing a real sympathy that springs, not from fear , but from the liberating and redeeming love of Christ for all who suffer. Mere waiting and looking on is not Christian behavior. The Christian is called to sympathy and action, not in the first place by his own sufferings, but by the sufferings of his brethren, for whose sake Christ suffered.”
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“What we would like to do is change the world--make it a little simpler for people to feed, clothe, and shelter themselves as God intended them to do. And, by fighting for better conditions, by crying out unceasingly for the rights of the workers, the poor, of the destitute--the rights of the worthy and the unworthy poor, in other words--we can, to a certain extent, change the world; we can work for the oasis, the little cell of joy and peace in a harried world. We can throw our pebble in the pond and be confident that its ever widening circle will reach around the world. We repeat, there is nothing we can do but love, and, dear God, please enlarge our hearts to love each other, to love our neighbor, to love our enemy as our friend.”
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“I hope you don’t have friends who recommend Ayn Rand to you. The fiction of Ayn Rand is as low as you can get re fiction. I hope you picked it up off the floor of the subway and threw it in the nearest garbage pail. She makes Mickey Spillane look like Dostoevsky.”
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“I come from a family where the only emotion respectable to show is irritation. In some this tendency produces hives, in others literature, in me both.”
― The Habit of Being: Letters of Flannery O'Connor
― The Habit of Being: Letters of Flannery O'Connor
“I think there is no suffering greater than what is caused by the doubts of those who want to believe. I know what torment this is, but I can only see it, in myself anyway, as the process by which faith is deepened. A faith that just accepts is a child's faith and all right for children, but eventually you have to grow religiously as every other way, though some never do.
What people don't realize is how much religion costs. They think faith is a big electric blanket, when of course it is the cross. It is much harder to believe than not to believe. If you feel you can't believe, you must at least do this: keep an open mind. Keep it open toward faith, keep wanting it, keep asking for it, and leave the rest to God.”
― The Habit of Being: Letters of Flannery O'Connor
What people don't realize is how much religion costs. They think faith is a big electric blanket, when of course it is the cross. It is much harder to believe than not to believe. If you feel you can't believe, you must at least do this: keep an open mind. Keep it open toward faith, keep wanting it, keep asking for it, and leave the rest to God.”
― The Habit of Being: Letters of Flannery O'Connor
The History Book Club
— 26024 members
— last activity Mar 19, 2026 05:48PM
"Interested in history - then you have found the right group". The History Book Club is the largest history and nonfiction group on Goodread ...more
The Classics
— 425 members
— last activity Jan 20, 2015 10:42AM
Did you ever have to read "Jane Eyre" in high school and just couldn't get through it? Have you ever been confused by the symbolism in "Lord of the Fl ...more
Tea with Tolkien Community
— 295 members
— last activity Dec 27, 2022 05:39PM
Tea with Tolkien is an online community for the hobbit at heart, inspired by the works, life, and faith of JRR Tolkien.
Boxall's 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die
— 22165 members
— last activity 10 hours, 10 min ago
For those attempting the crazy feat of reading all 1001 books! For discerning bibliophiles and readers who enjoy unforgettable classic literature, 10 ...more
The Bitter Southerner Book Club
— 311 members
— last activity Jan 30, 2025 11:39AM
A place for Bitter Southerner Family Members to discuss their favorite Southern books of the moment — and in history. We've loaded the shelf with book ...more
Mike’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Mike’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
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