Gilbert K. Chesterton Quotes

On the third day the friends of Christ coming at daybreak to the place found the grave empty and the stone rolled away. In varying ways they realized the new wonder; but even they hardly realized that the world had died in the night. What they were looking at was the first day of a new creation, with a new heaven and a new earth; and in a semblance of the gardener God walked again in the garden, in the cool not of the evening but of the dawn.

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Tags : Gilbert K. Chesterton Quotes , Night Quotes , Garden Quotes

We lose our bearings entirely by speaking of the 'lower classes' when we mean humanity minus ourselves.

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The poetry of art is in beholding the single tower; the poetry of nature in seeing the single tree; the poetry of love in following the single woman; the poetry of religion in worshipping the single star.

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There is only one thing that stands in our midst, attenuated and threatened, but enthroned in some power like a ghost of the Middle Ages: the Trade Unions.

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Tags : Gilbert K. Chesterton Quotes , Age Quotes , Unions Quotes

Idolatry is committed, not merely by setting up false gods, but also by setting up false devils; by making men afraid of war or alcohol, or economic law, when they should be afraid of spiritual corruption and cowardice.

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Tags : Gilbert K. Chesterton Quotes , Spiritual Quotes , War Quotes

We are always giving foreign names to very native things. If there is a thing that reeks of the glorious tradition of the old English tavern, it is toasted cheese. But for some wild reason we call it Welsh rarebit. I believe that what we call Irish stew might more properly be called English stew, and that it is not particularly familiar in Ireland.

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Tags : Gilbert K. Chesterton Quotes , Food Quotes , Believe Quotes

If our caricaturists do not hate their enemies, it is not because they are too big to hate them, but because their enemies are not big enough to hate.

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'My country, right or wrong' is a thing no patriot would ever think of saying except in a desperate case. It is like saying 'My mother, drunk or sober.'

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From the standpoint of any sane person, the present problem of capitalist concentration is not only a question of law, but of criminal law, not to mention criminal lunacy.

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Facts by themselves can often feed the flame of madness, because sanity is a spirit.

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When a politician is in opposition he is an expert on the means to some end; and when he is in office he is an expert on the obstacles to it.

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War is not the best way of settling differences; it is the only way of preventing their being settled for you.

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Science must not impose any philosophy, any more than the telephone must tell us what to say.

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It seems to me,' said the other, 'That you are simply seeking a pretext to insult the Marquis.' By George!' said Syme facing round and looking at him, 'What a clever chap you are!

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Tags : Gilbert K. Chesterton Quotes , Clever Quotes , Insult Quotes

For religion all men are equal, as all pennies are equal, because the only value of any of them is that they bear the image of the king.

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All good writers express the state of their souls, even (as occurs in some cases of very good writers) if it is a state of damnation.

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I came to the conclusion that the optimist thought everything good except the pessimist, and that the pessimist thought everything bad, except himself.

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Tags : Gilbert K. Chesterton Quotes , Perspective Quotes , Pessimist Quotes

Do not be proud of the fact that your grandmother was shocked at something which your are accustomed to seeing or hearing without being shocked. ... It may be that your grandmother was an extremely lively and vital animal and that you are a paralytic.

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The moderns do not realize modernity.

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The reason that angels fly is that they take themselves so lightly.

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