All racists are irresponsible.

We have all had the experience of finding that our reactions and perhaps even our deeds have denied beliefs we thought were ours.

Love is like the lightning, and your maturity is signaled by the extent to which you can accept the dangers and the power and the beauty of love.

There are few things under heaven more unnerving than the silent, accumulating contempt and hatred of a people.

If you are going to be a writer there is nothing I can say to stop you; if you're not going to be a writer nothing I can say will help you. What you really need at the beginning is somebody to let you know that the effort is real.

Years ago, when he was around fourteen, he'd been all hipped on the idea of going to India. He read books about people sitting on rocks, naked, in all kinds of weather, but mostly bad, naturally, and walking barefoot through hot coals and arriving at wisdom. I used to say that it sounded to me as though they were getting away from wisdom as fast as they could. I think he sort of looked down on me for that.

To be with God is really to be involved in some enormous, overwhelming desire, and joy, and power which you cannot control, which controls you.