Creation Quote by Ferdinand Mount
““The irreducible, ultimate element in religious faith is the insistence that we are created things; male and female He created them; without God we are nothing. And yet, when men and women have children and become parents, they unmistakably become creators, incompetent, accidental and partial creators, no doubt, but creators none the less. It is their inescapable duty, and, with luck, their occasional delight to care and watch over their creations; even if this creative power is partly illusory because chromosomes and chance decide the whole business, parents cannot act as if it is illusory; they cannot sincerely believe in their ultimate helplessness. They must behave like shepherds, however clumsy, and not like sheep, however well trained. The Sermon on the Mount is a wonderful, intoxicating sermon. But it is a sermon for bachelors.””
About This Quote
Source Essay: “The Sermon on the Mount for Bachelors”, The Spectator, 2005
Parents, despite limited control, must responsibly nurture their children, acting as shepherds rather than passive observers.
In simple terms: Parents must care for children despite imperfections.
Key Takeaway
Embrace parental responsibility with humility.
Themes
parenthood
responsibility
imperfection
Mood
reflective
serious
Type
philosophical
ethical
When to use this quote
- family life
- child‑rearing
- ethical debates
Key Concepts
ethical duty
human creativity
Questions to Reflect On
- How can parents balance humility with authority?
- What does “shepherd” imply about guidance?
A Different Perspective
Biological randomness challenges the notion of true creation.
![“Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this [step by step, from humans to apes to monkeys to lemurs] - leading us insensibly from the crown and summit of the animal creation down to creatures, from which there is but a step, as it seems, to the…” quote by Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f0b/thomas-huxley-1183_animal_perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us_3051.jpg)
