“For I had expected always
Some brightness to hold in trust,
Some final innocence
To save from dust”
Stephen Spender (1909–1995) English poet and man of letters
"What I Expected Was" (l. 25–28). . .
“God save us always," I said, "from the innocent and the good.”
— Graham Greene, book The Quiet American
Pt. I, ch. 1, pg 15
Source: The Quiet American (1955)
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Graham Greene164
English writer, playwright and literary critic 1904–1991Related quotes
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XIV. In what sense, though the Gods never change, they are said to be made angry and appeased.
On the Gods and the Cosmos
Context: If any one thinks the doctrine of the unchangeableness of the Gods is reasonable and true, and then wonders how it is that they rejoice in the good and reject the bad, are angry with sinners and become propitious when appeased, the answer is as follows: God does not rejoice — for that which rejoices also grieves; nor is he angered — for to be angered is a passion; nor is he appeased by gifts — if he were, he would be conquered by pleasure.
It is impious to suppose that the divine is affected for good or ill by human things. The Gods are always good and always do good and never harm, being always in the same state and like themselves. The truth simply is that, when we are good, we are joined to the Gods by our likeness to live according to virtue we cling to the Gods, and when we become evil we make the Gods our enemies — not because they are angered against us, but because our sins prevent the light of the Gods from shining upon us, and put us in communion with spirits of punishment. And if by prayers and sacrifices we find forgiveness of sins, we do not appease or change the Gods, but by what we do and by our turning toward the divine we heal our own badness and so enjoy again the goodness of the Gods. To say that God turns away from the evil is like saying that the sun hides himself from the blind.
“Good is not always God's will, but God's will is always good.”
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