---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What if God exists except it turns out he…"
description: "\"What if God exists except it turns out he doesn't really like people very much?\" — Douglas Coupland"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/352/douglas-coupland-305_exists_what-if-god-exists-except-it-turns-out-h_552161.jpg"
---

#  What if God exists except it turns out he doesn't really…

![“What if God exists except it turns out he doesn't really like people very much?” quote by Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/352/douglas-coupland-305_exists_what-if-god-exists-except-it-turns-out-h_552161.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/352/douglas-coupland-305_exists_what-if-god-exists-except-it-turns-out-h_552161.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/352/douglas-coupland-305_exists_what-if-god-exists-except-it-turns-out-h_552161.jpg)

> “What if God exists except it turns out he doesn't really like people very much?”

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

## About This Quote

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

If God exists but dislikes humanity, it challenges our assumptions about divine benevolence and purpose.

**In simple terms:** Divine indifference questions our faith.

Key Takeaway

Reevaluate assumptions about higher powers.

Themes

faith skepticism existentialism

Mood

thoughtful provocative

Type

philosophical literary

When to use this quote

- personal crisis
- moral dilemmas
- existential questioning

Key Concepts

theology philosophy human nature

Questions to Reflect On

- How would you live if higher powers were indifferent?
- What gives life meaning beyond divine approval?

A Different Perspective

May lead to nihilism if not balanced with personal meaning.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god/) [God exists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-exists/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/)

## Related quotes

> [Man exists, turns up, appears on the scene and only afterwards, defines himself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/man-exists-turns-up-appears-on-the-scene-and-only-afterwards-defines/)

[Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/)

> [I don't spend much time thinking about whether God exists. I don't consider that a relevant question. It's unanswerable and irrelevant to my life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendy-kaminer/i-don-t-spend-much-time-thinking-about-whether-god-exists-i-don-t/)

[Wendy Kaminer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendy-kaminer/)

> [God Exists without a place](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/babloo/god-exists-without-a-place/)

[Babloo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/babloo/)

> [If god exists, he is not to be believed in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/if-god-exists-he-is-not-to-be-believed-in/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [God is everywhere, and exists in us, through us, as us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/god-is-everywhere-and-exists-in-us-through-us-as-us/)

[Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/)

> [If God exists, what objection can he have to saying so?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemuel-k-washburn-2/if-god-exists-what-objection-can-he-have-to-saying-so/)

Lemuel K. Washburn

> [“I believe that god exists all around us. In the flow of the river, in the rustle of the trees, in the whisper of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amish-tripathi/i-believe-that-god-exists-all-around-us-in-the-flow-of-the-river-in/)

[Amish Tripathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amish-tripathi/)

> [If God exists, He is there, in the small, cast-off pieces, rough and random and no two alike.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-kallos/if-god-exists-he-is-there-in-the-small-cast-off-pieces-rough-and/)

[Stephanie Kallos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-kallos/)

> [“If you believe in God, then He exists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-bashevis-singer/if-you-believe-in-god-then-he-exists/)

[Isaac Bashevis Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-bashevis-singer/)

> [If God exists, his name is will to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-pino/if-god-exists-his-name-is-will-to-do/)

Jim Pino

> [God exists wherever He is allowed to enter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/god-exists-wherever-he-is-allowed-to-enter/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [God exists or God does not exist. Leave it for us. Your task is to learn how to live peacefully.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/god-exists-or-god-does-not-exist-leave-it-for-us-your-task-is-to/)

[Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/)

> [There is a God. God exists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sinead-o-connor/there-is-a-god-god-exists/)

[Sinead O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sinead-o-connor/)

> [What do I believe? I believe in God, if he exists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanislaw-jerzy-lec/what-do-i-believe-i-believe-in-god-if-he-exists/)

[Stanislaw Jerzy Lec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanislaw-jerzy-lec/)

> [“Since God exists outside of time, He also has all of the time He needs to personally act in each of our lives. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dillon-burroughs/since-god-exists-outside-of-time-he-also-has-all-of-the-time-he-needs/)

[Dillon Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dillon-burroughs/)

## More by Douglas Coupland

> [And in your new lives you'll have to live entirely for that one sensation-that of imminent truth. And you're going to have to holler…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/and-in-your-new-lives-you-ll-have-to-live-entirely-for-that-one/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [A man in a bookstore buys a book on loneliness and every woman in the store hits on him. A woman buys a book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/a-man-in-a-bookstore-buys-a-book-on-loneliness-and-every-woman-in-the/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [The future and eternity are two entirely different things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/the-future-and-eternity-are-two-entirely-different-things/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [Do you remember how you felt at seventeen? I do and I don't (...) Imagine you came from outer space and someone showed you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/do-you-remember-how-you-felt-at-seventeen-i-do-and-i-don-t-imagine/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [You can't fake competence, creativity, or sexual arousal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/you-can-t-fake-competence-creativity-or-sexual-arousal/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [“But Dag, for all of his efforts, might as well have been talking to a cat. Our parents’ generation seems neither able nor interested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/but-dag-for-all-of-his-efforts-might-as-well-have-been-talking-to-a/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [Negative? Moi? I think realistic might be a better word. You mean to tell me we can drive all the way here from L.A.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/negative-moi-i-think-realistic-might-be-a-better-word-you-mean-to/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [It was pivotal in making you but you don't remember it. Or do you? Do we understand the events that make us who we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/it-was-pivotal-in-making-you-but-you-don-t-remember-it-or-do-you-do/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [Your ability to rationalize your own bad deeds makes you believe that the whole world is as amoral as you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/your-ability-to-rationalize-your-own-bad-deeds-makes-you-believe-that/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [“I like to go beach-combing, and I like to find interestingly shaped rocks. When I really get into the groove I start finding beautiful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/i-like-to-go-beach-combing-and-i-like-to-find-interestingly-shaped/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [“You know, Dag and Claire smile a lot, as do many people I know. But I always wondered if there is something either mechanical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/you-know-dag-and-claire-smile-a-lot-as-do-many-people-i-know-but-i/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [Brain research tells us that only twenty percent of human beings have a sense of irony, which means that eighty percent of the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/brain-research-tells-us-that-only-twenty-percent-of-human-beings-have/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [I keep vampire hours, going to bed at 2 A.M. and waking up at about 10:30-11 A.M.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/i-keep-vampire-hours-going-to-bed-at-2-a-m-and-waking-up-at-about-10/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [“Anna-Louise leans over and whispers in my ear. "This is so surreal," she says, "I think I'm turning into a melting clock.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/anna-louise-leans-over-and-whispers-in-my-ear-this-is-so-surreal-she/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

> [When you grow up these days, you're told you're going to have four or five different careers during your lifetime. But what they don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/when-you-grow-up-these-days-you-re-told-you-re-going-to-have-four-or/)

[Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

[Explore all 704 Douglas Coupland quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/)

## More Exists quotes

> [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/)

[Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/)

> [What's gone will never come back, but it exists when you think of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-frusciante/what-s-gone-will-never-come-back-but-it-exists-when-you-think-of-it/)

[John Frusciante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-frusciante/)

> [ Does God know he \[exists\]?" "Of course he does. Otherwise, you could not have asked the question, and I could not have answered. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/does-god-know-he-exists-of-course-he-does-otherwise-you-could-not/)

[Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/)

> [I have to admit that I get quite emotional listening to the amazing talent that exists in the New York subways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-o-hare/i-have-to-admit-that-i-get-quite-emotional-listening-to-the-amazing/)

[Lisa O'Hare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-o-hare/)

> [No good end exists for any dictator!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/no-good-end-exists-for-any-dictator/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [“Nothing exists until it is created.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-coalson/nothing-exists-until-it-is-created/)

Les Coalson

> [I don't spend much time thinking about whether God exists. I don't consider that a relevant question. It's unanswerable and irrelevant to my life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendy-kaminer/i-don-t-spend-much-time-thinking-about-whether-god-exists-i-don-t/)

[Wendy Kaminer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendy-kaminer/)

> [Once you realize just the sort of glut of books that exists out there, it does become incumbent on you not to add to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/once-you-realize-just-the-sort-of-glut-of-books-that-exists-out-there/)

[Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/)

> [The launch of phase 1 Ebola vaccine studies is a first step in developing a vaccine that could be licensed and used in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-launch-of-phase-1-ebola-vaccine-studies-is-a-first-step-in/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [What do I believe? I believe in God, if he exists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanislaw-jerzy-lec/what-do-i-believe-i-believe-in-god-if-he-exists/)

[Stanislaw Jerzy Lec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanislaw-jerzy-lec/)

> [Love exists to show us how much we can endure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-hesse/love-exists-to-show-us-how-much-we-can-endure/)

[Herman Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-hesse/)

> [More than ever, Romania now needs to see that a force exists that puts an end to Ponta and Antonescu's abuses and coup d'etat.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/traian-basescu/more-than-ever-romania-now-needs-to-see-that-a-force-exists-that-puts/)

[Traian Basescu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/traian-basescu/)

> [“Love exists to the extent that you give it away.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-woodward-thomas/love-exists-to-the-extent-that-you-give-it-away/)

[Katherine Woodward Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-woodward-thomas/)

> [Attention may sound dull, but it is an essential aspect of consciousness. In fact, it governs what it is that we turn out to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-mcgilchrist/attention-may-sound-dull-but-it-is-an-essential-aspect-of/)

[Iain McGilchrist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-mcgilchrist/)

> [That is what poetry can do. It speaks to us of what does not exist, which is not only better than what exists, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivan-turgenev/that-is-what-poetry-can-do-it-speaks-to-us-of-what-does-not-exist/)

[Ivan Turgenev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivan-turgenev/)

Browse all 647 Exists quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "What if God exists except it turns out he doesn't really like people very much?",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Douglas Coupland"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/what-if-god-exists-except-it-turns-out-he-doesn-t-really-like-people/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Exists"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/what-if-god-exists-except-it-turns-out-he-doesn-t-really-like-people/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/352/douglas-coupland-305_exists_what-if-god-exists-except-it-turns-out-h_552161.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/352/douglas-coupland-305_exists_what-if-god-exists-except-it-turns-out-h_552161.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/352/douglas-coupland-305_exists_what-if-god-exists-except-it-turns-out-h_552161.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“What if God exists except it turns out he doesn't really like people very much?” — Douglas Coupland",
                "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": "Douglas Coupland",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "What if God exists except it...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/what-if-god-exists-except-it-turns-out-he-doesn-t-really-like-people/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/what-if-god-exists-except-it-turns-out-he-doesn-t-really-like-people/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
