Quotations

"All too often we bemoan our imperfections rather than embrace them as part of the process in which we are brought to God. Cherished emptiness gives God space in which to work. We are pure capacity for God. Let us not, then, take our littleness lightly. It is a wonderful grace. It is a gift to receive. At the same time, let us not get trapped in the confines of our littleness, but keep pushing on to claim our greatness. Remind yourself often, “I am pure capacity for God; I can be more."

— Macrina Wiederkehr, Benedictine monastic

"Holiness comes wrapped in the ordinary. There are burning bushes all around you. Every tree is full of angels. Hidden beauty is waiting in every crumb."

— Macrina Wiederkehr, Benedictine monastic

"O God, help me to believe the truth about myself, no matter how beautiful it is."

— Macrina Wiederkehr, Benedictine monastic

"I have not lost faith in God. I have moments of anger and protest. Sometimes I've been closer to him for that reason."

— Elie Wiesel, Romanian-American holocaust survivor, died July 2, 2016

"Night is purer than day; it is better for thinking and loving and dreaming. At night everything is more intense, more true. The echo of words that have been spoken during the day takes on a new and deeper meaning. The tragedy of man is that he doesn't know how to distinguish between day and night. He says things at night that should only be said by day."

— Elie Wiesel, Romanian-American holocaust survivor, born September 30, 1928

"When a person doesn’t have gratitude, something is missing in his or her humanity. A person can almost be defined by his or her attitude toward gratitude."

— Elie Wiesel, Romanian-American holocaust survivor, born September 30, 1928

"We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented."

— Elie Wiesel, Romanian-American holocaust survivor, born September 30, 1928

"The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference."

— Elie Wiesel, Romanian-American holocaust survivor, born September 30, 1928

"Violence is like a weed - it does not die even in the greatest drought."

— Simon Wiesenthal, Austrian Nazi hunter, died September 20, 2005

"There is no denying that Hitler and Stalin are alive today... they are waiting for us to forget, because this is what makes possible the resurrection of these two monsters."

— Simon Wiesenthal, Ukrainian-Austrian Nazi hunter, born December 31, 1908

"The end was surely near. The Nazis killed you only when you were naked, because they knew, psychologically, that naked people never resist."

— Simon Wiesenthal,  Austrian Nazi hunter, born December 31, 1908

"The schools would fail through their silence, the Church through its forgiveness, and the home through the denial and silence of the parents. The new generation has to hear what the older generation refuses to tell it."

— Simon Wiesenthal, Austrian Nazi hunter, born December 31, 1908

"It would have been more logical if silent pictures had grown out of the talkies instead of the other way around."

— Mary Wigman, German dancer, died September 18, 1973

"Make them laugh, make them cry, and back to laughter. What do people go to the theater for? An emotional exercise. I am a servant of the people. I have never forgotten that."

— Mary Wigman, German dancer, died September 18, 1973