--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We said that we believed that the truth…" description: "\"“We said that we believed that the truth would set us free, and the truth was that the Sunday-school staff was burned out, that there were almost no pe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8e/anne-lamott-188_set-free_we-said-that-we-believed-that-the-truth_2523217.png" --- # We said that we believed that the truth would set us free… ![“We said that we believed that the truth would set us free, and the truth was that the Sunday-school staff was burned out, that there were almost no people of color, and that if we didn't get more help, we'd have to close down.” quote by Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8e/anne-lamott-188_set-free_we-said-that-we-believed-that-the-truth_2523217.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8e/anne-lamott-188_set-free_we-said-that-we-believed-that-the-truth_2523217.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8e/anne-lamott-188_set-free_we-said-that-we-believed-that-the-truth_2523217.png) > ““We said that we believed that the truth would set us free, and the truth was that the Sunday-school staff was burned out, that there were almost no people of color, and that if we didn't get more help, we'd have to close down.”” [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Truth reveals systemic failures; ignoring them leads to collapse. **In simple terms:** Truth shows problems. Key Takeaway Address issues openly. Themes truth institution justice Mood critical concerned Type reflective activist When to use this quote - nonprofit leadership - education reform - community building - policy making Key Concepts systemic bias organizational health Questions to Reflect On - What truths are ignored in your community? - How can you act on them? A Different Perspective Truth can be painful; confronting it may cause conflict. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Believed Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believed-truth-367133/) [Said Believed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-believed-415044/) [Set free](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/set-free/) [Staff Burned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/staff-burned-1271063/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Truth Sunday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-sunday-1271064/) ## Related quotes > [Poetry is truth in its Sunday clothes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-roux/poetry-is-truth-in-its-sunday-clothes/) [Joseph Roux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-roux/) > [Sometimes by a woodland stream he watched the water rush over the pebbled bed, its tiny modulations of bounce and flow. A woman's body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/sometimes-by-a-woodland-stream-he-watched-the-water-rush-over-the/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [Like I said, I always believed in the spirit realm. Whether or not I understood it or witnessed it or was involved in it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-sarchie/like-i-said-i-always-believed-in-the-spirit-realm-whether-or-not-i/) [Ralph Sarchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-sarchie/) > [“When I marveled over our compatibility and how easy things were with us, she said she believed that it was true that I loved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/when-i-marveled-over-our-compatibility-and-how-easy-things-were-with/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [“All I said was that I thought it was a judgement from God that Blyth had first lost his leg and then had the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-banks/all-i-said-was-that-i-thought-it-was-a-judgement-from-god-that-blyth/) [Iain Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-banks/) > [I've always said and believed that you make your own luck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-russell/i-ve-always-said-and-believed-that-you-make-your-own-luck/) [George Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-russell/) > [“With regard to religion, finally, it may be briefly said that she believed in God in much the same way as she believed in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/with-regard-to-religion-finally-it-may-be-briefly-said-that-she/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [Somebody, after all, had to make a start. What we wrote and said is also believed by many others. They just don't dare express…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-scholl/somebody-after-all-had-to-make-a-start-what-we-wrote-and-said-is-also/) [Sophie Scholl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-scholl/) > [People believed what I said was what I believed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-ehrlich/people-believed-what-i-said-was-what-i-believed/) [Bob Ehrlich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-ehrlich/) > [“The moment he said he believed in her, it was as if a boulder had rolled aside, light streamed in, hope emerged.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-c-diskin/the-moment-he-said-he-believed-in-her-it-was-as-if-a-boulder-had/) [E.C. Diskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-c-diskin/) > [I felt uneasy, but sometimes, like I said before, I believed in Col. North and there was a very solid and very valid reason…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fawn-hall/i-felt-uneasy-but-sometimes-like-i-said-before-i-believed-in-col/) [Fawn Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fawn-hall/) > [“A lie believed to be truth will be lived is if it is true”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-house/a-lie-believed-to-be-truth-will-be-lived-is-if-it-is-true/) [Roger House](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-house/) > [“My father believed that the truth was like a wild animal--just let it loose and it will defend itself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-andrews/my-father-believed-that-the-truth-was-like-a-wild-animal-just-let-it/) [Andy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-andrews/) > [“Everyone had their own theory about everything, and they believed that their truth was the only one that mattered. They spent days, nights, weeks,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho-veronika-decides-to-die/everyone-had-their-own-theory-about-everything-and-they-believed-that/) [Paulo Coelho Veronika Decides to Die](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho-veronika-decides-to-die/) > [I have always defended my convictions and what I believed to be the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-khodorkovsky/i-have-always-defended-my-convictions-and-what-i-believed-to-be-the/) [Mikhail Khodorkovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-khodorkovsky/) ## More by Anne Lamott > [What an incredible drug fear is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/what-an-incredible-drug-fear-is/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [I guess he'll have to figure out someday that he is supposed to have this dark side, that it is part of what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-guess-he-ll-have-to-figure-out-someday-that-he-is-supposed-to-have/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [It's funny where we look for salvation, and where we actually find it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/it-s-funny-where-we-look-for-salvation-and-where-we-actually-find-it/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [Why couldn't Jesus command us to obsess over everything, to try to control and manipulate people, to try not to breathe at all, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/why-couldn-t-jesus-command-us-to-obsess-over-everything-to-try-to/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [Publication is not all that it is cracked up to be. But writing is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/publication-is-not-all-that-it-is-cracked-up-to-be-but-writing-is/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [Your problem is how you are going to spend this one odd and precious life you have been issued. Whether you're going to spend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/your-problem-is-how-you-are-going-to-spend-this-one-odd-and-precious/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [And yet, I do believe there is ultimately meaning in the chaos, and also in the doldrums. What I resist is not the truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/and-yet-i-do-believe-there-is-ultimately-meaning-in-the-chaos-and/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [Raising a child, whether or not it is yours, is like Nautilus of the heart and soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/raising-a-child-whether-or-not-it-is-yours-is-like-nautilus-of-the/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“I heard a preacher say recently that hope is a revolutionary patience; let me add that so is being a writer. Hope begins in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-heard-a-preacher-say-recently-that-hope-is-a-revolutionary-patience/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“I think perfectionism is based on the obsessive belief that if you run carefully enough, hitting each stepping-stone just right, you won't have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-think-perfectionism-is-based-on-the-obsessive-belief-that-if-you/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [All criticism hurts me. I'm so in the wrong business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/all-criticism-hurts-me-i-m-so-in-the-wrong-business/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [We are going to die, as is everyone we adore - I hate this! But the question is, how do we live as women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/we-are-going-to-die-as-is-everyone-we-adore-i-hate-this-but-the/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“You will go through your life thinking there was a day in second grade that you must have missed, when the grown-ups came in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/you-will-go-through-your-life-thinking-there-was-a-day-in-second/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“You begin to string words together like beads to tell a story. You are desperate to communicate, to edify or entertain, to preserve moments…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/you-begin-to-string-words-together-like-beads-to-tell-a-story-you-are/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“You lose the known package of your nice organized self almost instantly here. Overeating is one way back, the way it is at funerals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/you-lose-the-known-package-of-your-nice-organized-self-almost/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) [Explore all 976 Anne Lamott quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) ## More Set free quotes > [If you love anything set it free unless it is a tiger..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kshitij-roshan/if-you-love-anything-set-it-free-unless-it-is-a-tiger/) [Kshitij Roshan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kshitij-roshan/) > [“Her. Her. Her. Future breezes implore me to stay. But I'm no future. I'm no past. Only ever contemporary of this path. I'll sacrifice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-z-danielewski/her-her-her-future-breezes-implore-me-to-stay-but-i-m-no-future-i-m/) [Mark Z. Danielewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-z-danielewski/) > [“The truth alone will not set you free, but holding on to the truth in the face of the lie, over and over again,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-reimer/the-truth-alone-will-not-set-you-free-but-holding-on-to-the-truth-in/) [Rob Reimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-reimer/) > [Forgiveness is unlocking the door to set someone free and realizing you were the prisoner!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/forgiveness-is-unlocking-the-door-to-set-someone-free-and-realizing/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“As has been said, the truth will set you free - but first it will make you miserable.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-watts/as-has-been-said-the-truth-will-set-you-free-but-first-it-will-make/) [Malcolm Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-watts/) > [How can I set free anyone who doesn't have the guts to stand up alone and declare his own freedom? I think it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-morrison/how-can-i-set-free-anyone-who-doesn-t-have-the-guts-to-stand-up-alone/) [Jim Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-morrison/) > [“To say to the slave who has not been emancipated 'Do not behave as a slave' is to mock his enslavement. But to say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-murray/to-say-to-the-slave-who-has-not-been-emancipated-do-not-behave-as-a/) [John Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-murray/) > [“A conviction, unformulated but strong, rose to the working level of her mind - that painting did something more important for Nicholas than the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-bridge/a-conviction-unformulated-but-strong-rose-to-the-working-level-of-her/) [Ann Bridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-bridge/) > [When I started this song I was still thirty-three The age that Mozart died and sweet Jesus was set free Keats and Shelley too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-chapin/when-i-started-this-song-i-was-still-thirty-three-the-age-that-mozart/) [Harry Chapin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-chapin/) > [“Should I really set her free, and free myself too of the fear - the fear of missing her, forever? Is that what my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prashant-chopra/should-i-really-set-her-free-and-free-myself-too-of-the-fear-the-fear/) [Prashant Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prashant-chopra/) > [Narcissus does not fall in love with his reflection because it is beautiful, but because it is his. If it were his beauty that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/narcissus-does-not-fall-in-love-with-his-reflection-because-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Then you know Prometheus was rescued in the end. His chains were broken, and he was finally set free." The old man squinted one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-selznick/then-you-know-prometheus-was-rescued-in-the-end-his-chains-were/) [Brian Selznick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-selznick/) > [“we are set free from all the illusions we fostered for so many years of our life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelius-wencel/we-are-set-free-from-all-the-illusions-we-fostered-for-so-many-years/) [Cornelius Wencel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelius-wencel/) > [“She opened her eyes slowly and saw that a pale lavender moth had come to a rest on the back of her hand. She…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-addison-allen/she-opened-her-eyes-slowly-and-saw-that-a-pale-lavender-moth-had-come/) [Sarah Addison Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-addison-allen/) > [“To be set free, turn away from your sins. And return to God of great mercy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/to-be-set-free-turn-away-from-your-sins-and-return-to-god-of-great/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) [Browse all 715 Set free quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/set-free/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We said that we believed that the truth would set us free, and the truth was that the Sunday-school staff was burned out, that there were almost no people of color, and that if we didn't get more help, we'd have to close down.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anne Lamott" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/we-said-that-we-believed-that-the-truth-would-set-us-free-and-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Set free" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/we-said-that-we-believed-that-the-truth-would-set-us-free-and-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8e/anne-lamott-188_set-free_we-said-that-we-believed-that-the-truth_2523217.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8e/anne-lamott-188_set-free_we-said-that-we-believed-that-the-truth_2523217.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8e/anne-lamott-188_set-free_we-said-that-we-believed-that-the-truth_2523217.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We said that we believed that the truth would set us free, and the truth was that the Sunday-school staff…” — Anne Lamott", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Anne Lamott", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“We said that we believed that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/we-said-that-we-believed-that-the-truth-would-set-us-free-and-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/we-said-that-we-believed-that-the-truth-would-set-us-free-and-the/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```