Causes Quote by Abraham Lincoln
“I claim not to have controlled events, but confess plainly that events have controlled me. Now, at the end of three years struggle the nation's condition is not what either party, or any man devised, or expected. God alone can claim it. Whither it is tending seems plain. If God now wills the removal of a great wrong, and wills also that we of the North as well as you of the South, shall pay fairly for our complicity in that wrong, impartial history will find therein new cause to attest and revere the justice and goodness of God.”
About This Quote
Source Speech: Address to Congress, 1865
Human events shape nations, but divine will ultimately guides history; justice will be served when wrongs are corrected.
In simple terms: God guides history beyond human control.
Trust in divine justice.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- national policy
- reconciliation
- historical analysis
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- What role does faith play in political decisions?
- How can societies reconcile past injustices?
Human agency is limited; divine providence influences outcomes.