58 Inspiring Thoughts & Quotations By Desmond Tutu, Who Endeavors To Make The World A Better Place
When we speak of ‘racism’, many prominent leaders come to our mind. One such personality is Archbishop Desmond Tutu. He came under the limelight during the 1980s apartheid movement in South Africa. He was a great opponent of the Apartheid, and remained active in the defense of human rights and fought for the rights of the oppressed. He was honored with the Nobel Peace Prize, the Gandhi Peace Prize, the Sydney Peace Prize and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. In his over four decades of public life, Desmond Tutu was quite vocal on several issues close to his heart. He has expressed his thoughts through his speeches, quotes, writings, columns and books. Some important issues that he shared his thoughts on include homosexuality and the Church, fashion, reconciliation, justice, apartheid, and sanctions. Here is a selection of some of his Desmond Tutu's quotes on a range of topics.
Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.
Don't raise your voice, improve your argument." [Address at the Nelson Mandela Foundation in Houghton, Johannesburg, South Africa, 23 November 2004]
We may be surprised at the people we find in heaven. God has a soft spot for sinners. His standards are quite low.
Differences are not intended to separate, to alienate. We are different precisely in order to realize our need of one another.
When the missionaries came to Africa they had the Bible and we had the land. They said "Let us pray." We closed our eyes. When we opened them we had the Bible and they had the land.
We learn from history that we don't learn from history!
When we see others as the enemy, we risk becoming what we hate. When we oppress others, we end up oppressing ourselves. All of our humanity is dependent upon recognizing the humanity in others.
Like when you sit in front of a fire in winter — you are just there in front of the fire. You don't have to be smart or anything. The fire warms you.
If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.
Language is very powerful. Language does not just describe reality. Language creates the reality it describes.
Religion is like a knife: you can either use it to cut bread, or stick in someone's back.
We are made for loving. If we don’t love, we will be like plants without water.
You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them.
Dear Child of God, I am sorry to say that suffering is not optional.
There is nothing more difficult than waking someone who is only pretending to be asleep.
Though wrong gratifies in the moment, good yields its gifts over a lifetime.
Give a man a fish and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime. Teach a man to cycle and he will realize fishing is stupid and boring.
We must be ready to learn from one another, not claiming that we alone possess all truth and that somehow we have a corner on God.
It is through weakness and vulnerability that most of us learn empathy and compassion and discover our soul.
A person is a person through other persons; you can't be human in isolation; you are human only in relationships.
Our maturity will be judged by how well we are able to agree to disagree and yet continue to love one another, to care for one another, and cherish one another and seek the greater good of the other.
Be nice to whites, they need you to rediscover their humanity.
I wish I could shut up, but I can't, and I won't.
Do a little bit of good wherever you are; its those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world
There comes a point where we need to stop just pulling people out of the river. We need to go upstream and find out why they’re falling in.
God is not a Christian.
Life is more than breath and a heartbeat; meaning and purpose are the life of life.
To be neutral in a situation of injustice is to have chosen sides already. It is to support the status quo.
We are not responsible for what breaks us, but we can be responsible for what puts us back together again. Naming the hurt is how we begin to repair our broken parts.
God is not a diversion.
