--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For me it is the virgin birth, the…" description: "\"For me it is the virgin birth, the Incarnation, the resurrection which are the true laws of the flesh and the physical. Death, decay, destruction are t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64d/flannery-o-connor-639_birth_for-me-it-is-the-virgin-birth-the-incarn_759856.png" --- # For me it is the virgin birth, the Incarnation, the… ![“For me it is the virgin birth, the Incarnation, the resurrection which are the true laws of the flesh and the physical. Death, decay, destruction are the suspension of these laws. I am always astonished at the emphasis the Church puts on the body. It is not the soul she says that will rise but the…” quote by Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64d/flannery-o-connor-639_birth_for-me-it-is-the-virgin-birth-the-incarn_759856.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64d/flannery-o-connor-639_birth_for-me-it-is-the-virgin-birth-the-incarn_759856.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64d/flannery-o-connor-639_birth_for-me-it-is-the-virgin-birth-the-incarn_759856.png) > “For me it is the virgin birth, the Incarnation, the resurrection which are the true laws of the flesh and the physical. Death, decay, destruction are the suspension of these laws. I am always astonished at the emphasis the Church puts on the body. It is not the soul she says that will rise but the body, glorified.” [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote contrasts spiritual doctrines of bodily resurrection with the physical reality of death and decay, suggesting that true law governs the flesh, not just the soul. **In simple terms:** Body and soul are both subject to divine law; death is a suspension of those laws. Key Takeaway Recognize the sacredness of the physical body. Themes theology mortality body spirituality Mood contemplative reverent Type philosophical theological When to use this quote - religious reflection - personal meditation - ethical discussions Key Concepts Incarnation resurrection materialism Questions to Reflect On - How does viewing the body as sacred change your daily choices? - What implications does this have for attitudes toward death? A Different Perspective Some argue the body is merely a vessel, not a law‑bearing entity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Birth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/) [Destruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destruction/) [Incarnation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/incarnation/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Resurrection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resurrection/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) [Virgin birth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virgin-birth/) ## Related quotes > [I think that the core doctrines of Christianity - the incarnation, the resurrection, life after death-these are as strong as ever. In fact, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-greeley/i-think-that-the-core-doctrines-of-christianity-the-incarnation-the/) [Andrew Greeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-greeley/) > [“The faithful have no dread of using the traditional language of the church. Terms like incarnation and resurrection need to be explained, not avoided.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-oden/the-faithful-have-no-dread-of-using-the-traditional-language-of-the/) [Thomas C. Oden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-oden/) > [“God became a real man, had a real birth, and had a real, physical body. This is an essential point of the Christian faith”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-hon/god-became-a-real-man-had-a-real-birth-and-had-a-real-physical-body/) [Henry Hon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-hon/) > [“I don’t really think the standard of judgment, the missing link, you spoke of that you find in my stories emerges from any religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/i-don-t-really-think-the-standard-of-judgment-the-missing-link-you/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [One of the awful things about writing when you are a Christian is that for you the ultimate reality is the Incarnation, the present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/one-of-the-awful-things-about-writing-when-you-are-a-christian-is/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [Why is it every careerist tries to turn his mother into a Madonna--to prove his intellect is a virgin birth, papa had nothing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/why-is-it-every-careerist-tries-to-turn-his-mother-into-a-madonna-to/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [... In relation to the way in which I look upon the works of God and his creatures, I will say that I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heber-c-kimball/in-relation-to-the-way-in-which-i-look-upon-the-works-of-god-and-his/) [Heber C. Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heber-c-kimball/) > [Christ was Begotten by an immortal Father in the same way that mortal men are begotten by mortal fathers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-r-mcconkie/christ-was-begotten-by-an-immortal-father-in-the-same-way-that-mortal/) [Bruce R. McConkie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-r-mcconkie/) > [The day will come when the mystical generation of Jesus, by the Supreme Being as his father, in the womb of a virgin, will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-day-will-come-when-the-mystical-generation-of-jesus-by-the/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The Virgin Birth, the Resurrection, the raising of Lazarus, even the Old Testament miracles, all are freely used for religious propaganda, and they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-virgin-birth-the-resurrection-the-raising-of-lazarus-even-the-old/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [When you can get people to believe in virgin birth and resurrection of the dead as reality - well, what can one say](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-mcgarvie/when-you-can-get-people-to-believe-in-virgin-birth-and-resurrection/) Grace McGarvie > [“His message delivered, Gabriel departed, leaving the chosen Virgin of Nazareth to ponder over her wondrous experience. Mary's promised Son was to be "The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-e-talmage/his-message-delivered-gabriel-departed-leaving-the-chosen-virgin-of/) [James E. Talmage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-e-talmage/) > [What I have against religion is that they start you when you are so defenseless. I mean, I was three when they started pumping…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/what-i-have-against-religion-is-that-they-start-you-when-you-are-so/) [Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/) > [“The author of this text did not write to provoke, but merely to express a truth as he conceives it. Your own theologians have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/the-author-of-this-text-did-not-write-to-provoke-but-merely-to/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [And Christ was born into the world as the literal Son of this Holy Being; he was born in the same personal, real, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-r-mcconkie/and-christ-was-born-into-the-world-as-the-literal-son-of-this-holy/) [Bruce R. McConkie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-r-mcconkie/) ## More by Flannery O'Connor > [“Wait here, wait here!" he cried and jumped up and began to run for help toward a cluster of lights he saw in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/wait-here-wait-here-he-cried-and-jumped-up-and-began-to-run-for-help/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [... the man in the violent situation reveals those qualities least dispensable in his personality, those qualities which are all he will have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/the-man-in-the-violent-situation-reveals-those-qualities-least/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [“I don’t know how to cure the source-itis except to tell you that I can discover a good many possible sources myself for Wise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/i-don-t-know-how-to-cure-the-source-itis-except-to-tell-you-that-i/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [“For the fiction writer himself the whole story is the meaning, because it is an experience, not an abstraction.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/for-the-fiction-writer-himself-the-whole-story-is-the-meaning-because/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [Everything that gave her pleasure was small and depressed him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/everything-that-gave-her-pleasure-was-small-and-depressed-him/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [To the hard of hearing you shout, and for the almost blind you draw large and startling figures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/to-the-hard-of-hearing-you-shout-and-for-the-almost-blind-you-draw/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [“He felt his hunger no longer as a pain but as a tide. He felt it rising in himself through time and darkness, rising…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/he-felt-his-hunger-no-longer-as-a-pain-but-as-a-tide-he-felt-it/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [“Where you come from is gone, where you thought you were going to never was there, and where you are is no good unless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/where-you-come-from-is-gone-where-you-thought-you-were-going-to-never/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [Technique in the minds of many is something rigid, something like a formula that you impose on the material; but in the best stories…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/technique-in-the-minds-of-many-is-something-rigid-something-like-a/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [“There are all kinds of truth ... but behind all of them there is only one truth and that is that there's no truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/there-are-all-kinds-of-truth-but-behind-all-of-them-there-is-only-one/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [“Mrs. May winced. She thought the word Jesus should be kept inside the church building like other words inside the bedroom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/mrs-may-winced-she-thought-the-word-jesus-should-be-kept-inside-the/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [I feel that discussing story-writing in terms of plot, character, and theme is like trying to describe the expression on a face by saying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/i-feel-that-discussing-story-writing-in-terms-of-plot-character-and/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [She had observed that the more education they got, the less they could do. Their father had gone to a one-room schoolhouse through the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/she-had-observed-that-the-more-education-they-got-the-less-they-could/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [One of the awful things about writing when you are a Christian is that for you the ultimate reality is the Incarnation, the present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/one-of-the-awful-things-about-writing-when-you-are-a-christian-is/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [“Hazel Motes sat at a forward angel on the green plush train seat, looking one minute at the window as if he might want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/hazel-motes-sat-at-a-forward-angel-on-the-green-plush-train-seat/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) [Explore all 432 Flannery O'Connor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) ## More Birth quotes > [“Conception is the beginning of human life. From the time that an ovum is fertilized a new life begins that is neither that of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/declaration-on-procured-abortion-congregation-for-the-doctrine-of-the-faith-1974/conception-is-the-beginning-of-human-life-from-the-time-that-an-ovum/) Declaration on Procured Abortion Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith 1974 > [In the entire history of the universe, let alone in your own history, there has never been another day just like today, and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/in-the-entire-history-of-the-universe-let-alone-in-your-own-history/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [The greatest mystery in life is not life itself, but death. Death is the culmination of life, the ultimate blossoming of life. In death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/the-greatest-mystery-in-life-is-not-life-itself-but-death-death-is/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [Guns have little or nothing to do with juvenile violence. The causes of youth violence are working parents who put their kids into daycare,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/guns-have-little-or-nothing-to-do-with-juvenile-violence-the-causes/) [Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/) > [“Every child is born as angel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/every-child-is-born-as-angel/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [Nirvana is a word that means enlightenment, being beyond the illusion of birth and death, the illusion of pain, the illusion of love, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/nirvana-is-a-word-that-means-enlightenment-being-beyond-the-illusion/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [It was no accident, no coincidence, that the seasons came round and round year after year. It was the Lord speaking to us all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-rivers/it-was-no-accident-no-coincidence-that-the-seasons-came-round-and/) [Francine Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-rivers/) > [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/) [Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/) > [There are two kinds of beauty; there is a beauty which God gives at birth, and which withers as a flower. And there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-kuyper/there-are-two-kinds-of-beauty-there-is-a-beauty-which-god-gives-at/) [Abraham Kuyper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-kuyper/) > [Always keep the smile, because the smile is the beginning of love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-imad/always-keep-the-smile-because-the-smile-is-the-beginning-of-love/) Adam Imad > [The wailing of the newborn infant is mingled with the dirge for the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucretius/the-wailing-of-the-newborn-infant-is-mingled-with-the-dirge-for-the/) [Lucretius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucretius/) > [I gave birth to most of them MC's... So when it comes around to the month of May, Send me your royalty check for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxanne-shante/i-gave-birth-to-most-of-them-mc-s-so-when-it-comes-around-to-the/) Roxanne Shante > [“A Beautiful verse takes birth when "U"n"I" VERSE.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajesh-walecha/a-beautiful-verse-takes-birth-when-u-n-i-verse/) [Rajesh Walecha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajesh-walecha/) > [“There is no born evil, only a corruptible canvas darkened by a formidable perpetrator.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yefon-isabelle/there-is-no-born-evil-only-a-corruptible-canvas-darkened-by-a/) [Yefon Isabelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yefon-isabelle/) > [I've always thought that the most extraordinary special effect you could do is to buy a child at the moment of its birth, sit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/i-ve-always-thought-that-the-most-extraordinary-special-effect-you/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) [Browse all 6,183 Birth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "For me it is the virgin birth, the Incarnation, the resurrection which are the true laws of the flesh and the physical. Death, decay, destruction are the suspension of these laws. I am always astonished at the emphasis the Church puts on the body. It is not the soul she says that will rise but the body, glorified.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Flannery O'Connor" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/for-me-it-is-the-virgin-birth-the-incarnation-the-resurrection-which/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Birth" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/for-me-it-is-the-virgin-birth-the-incarnation-the-resurrection-which/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64d/flannery-o-connor-639_birth_for-me-it-is-the-virgin-birth-the-incarn_759856.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64d/flannery-o-connor-639_birth_for-me-it-is-the-virgin-birth-the-incarn_759856.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64d/flannery-o-connor-639_birth_for-me-it-is-the-virgin-birth-the-incarn_759856.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“For me it is the virgin birth, the Incarnation, the resurrection which are the true laws of the flesh and…” — Flannery O'Connor", "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": "Flannery O'Connor", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "For me it is the virgin...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/for-me-it-is-the-virgin-birth-the-incarnation-the-resurrection-which/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/for-me-it-is-the-virgin-birth-the-incarnation-the-resurrection-which/#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 } } ] } ```