In this life of ours we remain directed toward the relative utopia of a better world, and sensibly this can be the only model for our action.

The secret of big and revolutionary actions also consists in discovering the tiny step that is simultaneously a strategic step, insofar as it entails additional steps in the direction of a better reality.

War is not the quintessential emergency in which man has to prove himself, as my generation learned at its school desks in the days of the Kaiser; rather, peace is the emergency in which we all have to prove ourselves.

The first thing I see is the obligation to serve peace.

Some fatherlands are difficult. Germany is one of them. But it is our fatherland. Here is where we live and work.

Everywhere, authority and tradition have to justify themselves in the face of questions.

Insecurity and resignation mingle with the hope for a better order.