---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ...that parish which allows the living to…"
description: "\"“...that parish which allows the living to grasp the no longer cold hand of the beloved dead”\" — Dennis Potter"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dff/dennis-potter-13787_dead_that-parish-which-allows-the-living-to-g_1524684.png"
---

#  ...that parish which allows the living to grasp the no…

![“...that parish which allows the living to grasp the no longer cold hand of the beloved dead” quote by Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dff/dennis-potter-13787_dead_that-parish-which-allows-the-living-to-g_1524684.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dff/dennis-potter-13787_dead_that-parish-which-allows-the-living-to-g_1524684.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dff/dennis-potter-13787_dead_that-parish-which-allows-the-living-to-g_1524684.png)

> ““...that parish which allows the living to grasp the no longer cold hand of the beloved dead””

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A community that clings to the memory of a beloved deceased person, treating them as a source of comfort and guidance.

**In simple terms:** Holding onto a dead loved one’s influence.

Key Takeaway

Respect the dead, but live for the living.

Themes

memory grief community

Mood

reflective somber

Type

philosophical emotional

When to use this quote

- funeral rites
- family gatherings
- memorial events
- cultural rituals

Key Concepts

legacy attachment comfort

Questions to Reflect On

- How does clinging to the past affect growth?
- What healthy ways honor the dead?

A Different Perspective

Overreliance on the past can hinder progress.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/)

## Related quotes

> [Come and hold my hand my beloved, as I am dying to meet you and love you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaceem-madd/come-and-hold-my-hand-my-beloved-as-i-am-dying-to-meet-you-and-love/)

[Kaceem Madd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaceem-madd/)

> [“This is the thin time, when the beloved dead draw near. The world turns inward, and the chilling air grows thick with dreams and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/this-is-the-thin-time-when-the-beloved-dead-draw-near-the-world-turns/)

[Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/)

> [“Parking himself on the chaise lounge, he stared at the gown that Lassiter had handled so roughly. The fine satin was bunched up in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-ward/parking-himself-on-the-chaise-lounge-he-stared-at-the-gown-that/)

[J.R. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-ward/)

> [“When Sam had died, she had tucked him into her heart, tucked him in alongside her other beloved dead, whose names she kept so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/when-sam-had-died-she-had-tucked-him-into-her-heart-tucked-him-in/)

[Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/)

> [Once in my childhood I had been eager to learn Irish; I thought to get leave to take lessons from an old Scripture-reader who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-gregory/once-in-my-childhood-i-had-been-eager-to-learn-irish-i-thought-to-get/)

[Lady Gregory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-gregory/)

> [If the preaching of our ministers and the practice of our parishioners do not have the same effect on people that Jesus had, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-the-preaching-of-our-ministers-and-the-practice-of-our/)

[Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/)

> [My life is a tsunami of inspirations. Number one is that I really do just love my BBQ. I mean it's the sustenance of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-nugent/my-life-is-a-tsunami-of-inspirations-number-one-is-that-i-really-do/)

[Ted Nugent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-nugent/)

> [“He was stunning,incredible,unlike anything she had ever seen before.Around her,the crowd noise dissipated to a dull hum,but she barely noticed.Her gaze was slowly traveling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-wright/he-was-stunning-incredible-unlike-anything-she-had-ever-seen-before/)

[Laura Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-wright/)

> [There is not a single crowned head in Europe whose talents or merit would entitle him to be elected a vestryman by the people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/there-is-not-a-single-crowned-head-in-europe-whose-talents-or-merit/)

[Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/)

> [I applied for funding to embark on an overseas field trip in Iceland, and spent six weeks there happily holed up in the national…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-kent/i-applied-for-funding-to-embark-on-an-overseas-field-trip-in-iceland/)

[Hannah Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-kent/)

> [I think in particular of our need to speak to the hearts of young people, who, despite their constant exposure to messages contrary to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-benedict-xvi/i-think-in-particular-of-our-need-to-speak-to-the-hearts-of-young/)

[Pope Benedict XVI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-benedict-xvi/)

> [All the stories of the Bible that I know came to me first from my grandfather's lips... He would see stories in everything. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/all-the-stories-of-the-bible-that-i-know-came-to-me-first-from-my/)

[Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/)

> [The unique and indivisible existence of the Lord glorious in heaven, is not multiplied, but is rendered present by the sacrament in the many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-paul-vi/the-unique-and-indivisible-existence-of-the-lord-glorious-in-heaven/)

[Pope Paul VI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-paul-vi/)

> [Every art is a church without communicants, presided over by a parish of the respectable. An artist is born kneeling; he fights to stand.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hortense-calisher/every-art-is-a-church-without-communicants-presided-over-by-a-parish/)

[Hortense Calisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hortense-calisher/)

> [I don't miss the ministry, because I'm completely engaged in it. In terms of parish ministry, I miss the intimacy with a group of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-brown-taylor/i-don-t-miss-the-ministry-because-i-m-completely-engaged-in-it-in/)

[Barbara Brown Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-brown-taylor/)

## More by Dennis Potter

> [Television's Mr. Filth: that's me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/television-s-mr-filth-that-s-me/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [We should always look back on our own past with a sort of contempt, as long as the tenderness is there - but please…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/we-should-always-look-back-on-our-own-past-with-a-sort-of-contempt-as/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [“My only regret is to die four pages too soon.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/my-only-regret-is-to-die-four-pages-too-soon/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [As a piece of literacy criticism, Freud's best writing is about Dostoyevsky. It's a kind of displaced literacy criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/as-a-piece-of-literacy-criticism-freud-s-best-writing-is-about/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [Words themselves - the very material of our discourse increasingly take on masks or disguises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/words-themselves-the-very-material-of-our-discourse-increasingly-take/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [The loss of Eden is personally experienced by every one of us as we leave the wonder and magic and also the pains and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/the-loss-of-eden-is-personally-experienced-by-every-one-of-us-as-we/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [Therapy, as opposed to analysis, is a whole construct of myth, beautiful and creative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/therapy-as-opposed-to-analysis-is-a-whole-construct-of-myth-beautiful/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [Metaphor is embodied in language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/metaphor-is-embodied-in-language/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [I have been aware, from the age of 6, that I had talent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/i-have-been-aware-from-the-age-of-6-that-i-had-talent/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [I was given talent, and if you are given it, it is your obligation to use it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/i-was-given-talent-and-if-you-are-given-it-it-is-your-obligation-to/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [The strangest thing that human speech and human writing can do is create a metaphor. That is an amazing leap, is it not?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/the-strangest-thing-that-human-speech-and-human-writing-can-do-is/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [People endure what they endure and they deal with it. It may corrupt them. It may lead them into all sorts of compensatory excesses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/people-endure-what-they-endure-and-they-deal-with-it-it-may-corrupt/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [You just don't know writers. They'll use anything, anybody. They'll eat their young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/you-just-don-t-know-writers-they-ll-use-anything-anybody-they-ll-eat/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [The thing about imagination is that by the very act of putting it down, there must be some truth in one's own imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/the-thing-about-imagination-is-that-by-the-very-act-of-putting-it/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

> [Ideals jump across the hierarchies of the printed word.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/ideals-jump-across-the-hierarchies-of-the-printed-word/)

[Dennis Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

[Explore all 46 Dennis Potter quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/)

## More Dead quotes

> [I'm going to stay on stage until I drop dead. Then I'm going to have myself stuffed, like Trigger, and I'm going to put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-reynolds/i-m-going-to-stay-on-stage-until-i-drop-dead-then-i-m-going-to-have/)

[Debbie Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-reynolds/)

> [I can't be a legend yet. I'm not dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/i-can-t-be-a-legend-yet-i-m-not-dead/)

[Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/)

> [Okay, so I'll admit I'm curious. Big deal. We both know what that leads to. Dead cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/okay-so-i-ll-admit-i-m-curious-big-deal-we-both-know-what-that-leads/)

[Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/)

> [It's a really dark, emotionally wrenching world that we've created on 'The Walking Dead.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-holden/it-s-a-really-dark-emotionally-wrenching-world-that-we-ve-created-on/)

[Laurie Holden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-holden/)

> [If you’re alive, don’t move, if you’re dead, don’t worry about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/if-you-re-alive-don-t-move-if-you-re-dead-don-t-worry-about-it/)

[Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/)

> [“I’m just–” She wanted to say “not in the mood,” but that was not only a cliché but a vast understatement. She was dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-mcintosh/i-m-just-she-wanted-to-say-not-in-the-mood-but-that-was-not-only-a/)

[Will McIntosh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-mcintosh/)

> [Library: A place where the dead lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/library-a-place-where-the-dead-lie/)

[Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/)

> [When we dead awaken ... we see that we have never lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henrik-ibsen/when-we-dead-awaken-we-see-that-we-have-never-lived/)

[Henrik Ibsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henrik-ibsen/)

> [Rather be dead than cool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-cobain/rather-be-dead-than-cool/)

[Kurt Cobain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-cobain/)

> [He was obviously dead. But since he was a vampire that wasn't as hopless a thing as it might have been.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-briggs/he-was-obviously-dead-but-since-he-was-a-vampire-that-wasn-t-as/)

[Patricia Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-briggs/)

> [Ireland starts for me with the end of 'The Dead,' which my father read to me from his desk in his basement office in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-jeremiah-sullivan/ireland-starts-for-me-with-the-end-of-the-dead-which-my-father-read/)

[John Jeremiah Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-jeremiah-sullivan/)

> [“Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead.’ – Ben Franklin,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/three-may-keep-a-secret-if-two-of-them-are-dead-ben-franklin/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [I intend to do the Penn &amp; Teller show until they pry my cheesy magic wand from my cold dead fingers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/i-intend-to-do-the-penn-teller-show-until-they-pry-my-cheesy-magic/)

[Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/)

> ['Misery' left a lasting mark on me. When I die, it will be 'Kathy 'Misery' Bates Is Dead.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-bates/misery-left-a-lasting-mark-on-me-when-i-die-it-will-be-kathy-misery/)

[Kathy Bates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-bates/)

> [The only good Indian is a dead Indian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-tecumseh-sherman/the-only-good-indian-is-a-dead-indian/)

[William Tecumseh Sherman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-tecumseh-sherman/)

Browse all 3,376 Dead quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“...that parish which allows the living to grasp the no longer cold hand of the beloved dead”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Dennis Potter"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/that-parish-which-allows-the-living-to-grasp-the-no-longer-cold-hand/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Dead"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/that-parish-which-allows-the-living-to-grasp-the-no-longer-cold-hand/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dff/dennis-potter-13787_dead_that-parish-which-allows-the-living-to-g_1524684.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dff/dennis-potter-13787_dead_that-parish-which-allows-the-living-to-g_1524684.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dff/dennis-potter-13787_dead_that-parish-which-allows-the-living-to-g_1524684.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“...that parish which allows the living to grasp the no longer cold hand of the beloved dead” — Dennis Potter",
                "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": "Dennis Potter",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-potter/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“...that parish which allows the living...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/that-parish-which-allows-the-living-to-grasp-the-no-longer-cold-hand/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-potter/that-parish-which-allows-the-living-to-grasp-the-no-longer-cold-hand/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
