--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I admire certain priests and nuns who go…" description: "\"I admire certain priests and nuns who go off on their own and do God's work on their own, who help in the ghettos, but as far as the institution of the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/051/frank-mccourt-2576_admire_i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go_42858.png" --- # I admire certain priests and nuns who go off on their own… ![“I admire certain priests and nuns who go off on their own and do God's work on their own, who help in the ghettos, but as far as the institution of the church is concerned, I think it is despicable.” quote by Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/051/frank-mccourt-2576_admire_i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go_42858.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/051/frank-mccourt-2576_admire_i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go_42858.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/051/frank-mccourt-2576_admire_i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go_42858.png) > “I admire certain priests and nuns who go off on their own and do God's work on their own, who help in the ghettos, but as far as the institution of the church is concerned, I think it is despicable.” [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker praises individual religious activists who serve marginalized communities while condemning the broader religious institution as morally corrupt. **In simple terms:** Individual faith vs. corrupt institution Key Takeaway True service can exist outside flawed structures Themes faith activism institutional critique morality social justice Mood defiant hopeful critical Type critical observational social When to use this quote - urban poverty outreach - grassroots charity - personal religious calling - institutional reform debates - social activism Key Concepts personal agency ethical hypocrisy community service Practical Applications - advocacy for independent faith-based NGOs - critique of organized religion Questions to Reflect On - How can individuals maintain integrity within compromised institutions? - What responsibilities do institutions have to align with the values of their members? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Admire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/admire/) [Certain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain/) [Certain Priests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain-priests-639246/) [Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/) [Church Concerned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church-concerned-639248/) [Concerned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concerned/) [Despicable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/despicable/) [Nuns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nuns/) [Priests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/priests/) [Priests Nuns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/priests-nuns-639247/) ## Related quotes > [It’s funny to hear priests and nuns argue with each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendelin-van-draanen/it-s-funny-to-hear-priests-and-nuns-argue-with-each-other/) [Wendelin Van Draanen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendelin-van-draanen/) > [The Church was as concerned with this world as the next: I saw that virtually all of the achievements of Africans seemed to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/the-church-was-as-concerned-with-this-world-as-the-next-i-saw-that/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [More thinking is required, and we should all exercise our God-given right to think and be unafraid to express our opinions, with proper respect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-b-brown/more-thinking-is-required-and-we-should-all-exercise-our-god-given/) [Hugh B. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-b-brown/) > [“The Church should be more concerned about the hearts of the lost rather than the comforts of the saved.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-stocker/the-church-should-be-more-concerned-about-the-hearts-of-the-lost/) [Todd Stocker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-stocker/) > [What if the church should be less concerned with creating saints than creating a world where we do not need saints? A world where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-rollins/what-if-the-church-should-be-less-concerned-with-creating-saints-than/) [Peter Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-rollins/) > [“I prefer a Church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a Church which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-prefer-a-church-which-is-bruised-hurting-and-dirty-because-it-has/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [People everywhere brag and whimper about the woes of their early years, but nothing can compare with the Irish version: the poverty; the shiftless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/people-everywhere-brag-and-whimper-about-the-woes-of-their-early/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [It's a funny thing about being raised Catholic and then going to Catholic schools with nuns - the cliche about the mean nun was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-dowd/it-s-a-funny-thing-about-being-raised-catholic-and-then-going-to/) [Ann Dowd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-dowd/) > [“She was tall and dark-skinned and looked like a Nigerian sculpture. She moved like a lioness, her every step bristling with suppressed violence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-greer/she-was-tall-and-dark-skinned-and-looked-like-a-nigerian-sculpture/) [Bonnie Greer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-greer/) > [“It is hardly lonely in a nunnery, son, with other women. And God is there." Morgause said, "I would rather dwell in a hermitage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-zimmer-bradley/it-is-hardly-lonely-in-a-nunnery-son-with-other-women-and-god-is/) [Marion Zimmer Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-zimmer-bradley/) > [I went to Catholic school and experienced racism firsthand from nuns and priests.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthea-butler/i-went-to-catholic-school-and-experienced-racism-firsthand-from-nuns/) [Anthea Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthea-butler/) > [“Girls need to know they can break the rules. If the nuns had told me that, I could have saved twenty years.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/girls-need-to-know-they-can-break-the-rules-if-the-nuns-had-told-me/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [If it were true that children mimicked their teachers, you'd sure have a helluva lot more nuns running around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/if-it-were-true-that-children-mimicked-their-teachers-you-d-sure-have/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [Ha! Easy for nuns to talk about giving up things. That's what they do for a living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrison-keillor/ha-easy-for-nuns-to-talk-about-giving-up-things-that-s-what-they-do/) [Garrison Keillor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrison-keillor/) > [If you go to any nunnery and ask them what the main obstacle is, they'll always say low self-esteem and lack of confidence. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/if-you-go-to-any-nunnery-and-ask-them-what-the-main-obstacle-is-they/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) ## More by Frank McCourt > [I'm not one of those James Joyce intellectuals who can stand back and look at the whole edifice... It was a slow process for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-m-not-one-of-those-james-joyce-intellectuals-who-can-stand-back-and/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [When I act tough they listen politely till the spasm passes. They know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/when-i-act-tough-they-listen-politely-till-the-spasm-passes-they-know/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Just luxuriate in a certain memory, and the details will come. It's like a magnet attracting steel filings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/just-luxuriate-in-a-certain-memory-and-the-details-will-come-it-s/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Sing your song. Dance your dance. Tell your tale.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/sing-your-song-dance-your-dance-tell-your-tale/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [They all went into the bar business. Which was a mistake, because they began to sip at the merchandise and it set them back,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/they-all-went-into-the-bar-business-which-was-a-mistake-because-they/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [My childhood here... was very limited. So it was a long, long time before I actually went out to Brooklyn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/my-childhood-here-was-very-limited-so-it-was-a-long-long-time-before/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [We never really had any kind of a Christmas. This is one part where my memory fails me completely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/we-never-really-had-any-kind-of-a-christmas-this-is-one-part-where-my/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [A lot of people say writers start losing their powers after 60 or 65. But I look at the best-seller list and see a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/a-lot-of-people-say-writers-start-losing-their-powers-after-60-or-65/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [“When the dark clouds flutter like bats in my head I wish I could open a window and release them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/when-the-dark-clouds-flutter-like-bats-in-my-head-i-wish-i-could-open/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Shakespeare is like mashed potatoes, you can never get enough of him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/shakespeare-is-like-mashed-potatoes-you-can-never-get-enough-of-him/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [I just have to proceed as usual. No matter what happens, nothing helps with the writing of the next book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-just-have-to-proceed-as-usual-no-matter-what-happens-nothing-helps/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Worse than the ordinary, miserable childhood is the miserable Irish childhood, and worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/worse-than-the-ordinary-miserable-childhood-is-the-miserable-irish/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [It's not enough to be American. You always have to be something else, Irish-American, German-American, and you'd wonder how they'd get along if someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/it-s-not-enough-to-be-american-you-always-have-to-be-something-else/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [I had to get rid of any idea of hell or any idea of the afterlife. That's what held me, kept me down. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-had-to-get-rid-of-any-idea-of-hell-or-any-idea-of-the-afterlife/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [“On the Left side of the blackboard I print a capital F on the right side another capital F. I draw an arrow from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/on-the-left-side-of-the-blackboard-i-print-a-capital-f-on-the-right/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) [Explore all 159 Frank McCourt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) ## More Admire quotes > [Everyone will admire you when you do well. What a horrible thing to do to someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/everyone-will-admire-you-when-you-do-well-what-a-horrible-thing-to-do/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [I admire Serena Williams, because, I mean, who doesn't admire Serena Williams?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johanna-konta/i-admire-serena-williams-because-i-mean-who-doesn-t-admire-serena/) [Johanna Konta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johanna-konta/) > [How proud I am to be compared to Oprah. I really admire her. She's a minority woman and she's done all this by herself...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cristina-saralegui/how-proud-i-am-to-be-compared-to-oprah-i-really-admire-her-she-s-a/) [Cristina Saralegui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cristina-saralegui/) > [I admire President Obama's ability to trust strangers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-gutfeld/i-admire-president-obama-s-ability-to-trust-strangers/) [Greg Gutfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-gutfeld/) > [I really admire people's interactions with technology that aren't tech-centric but use it as a tool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-polachek/i-really-admire-people-s-interactions-with-technology-that-aren-t/) [Caroline Polachek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-polachek/) > [During my first years in the Sierra, I was ever calling on everybody within reach to admire them, but I found no one half…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/during-my-first-years-in-the-sierra-i-was-ever-calling-on-everybody/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [Shaw's works make me admire the magnificent tolerance and broadmindedness of the english.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/shaw-s-works-make-me-admire-the-magnificent-tolerance-and/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) > [It could be my British need for discipline that makes me admire the American appetite for freedom and passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-winwood/it-could-be-my-british-need-for-discipline-that-makes-me-admire-the/) [Steve Winwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-winwood/) > [I believe in a world where there are no heroes, and I've read and know humanity a lot. There are moments that I admire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/i-believe-in-a-world-where-there-are-no-heroes-and-i-ve-read-and-know/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [I admire machinery as much is any man, and am as thankful to it as any man can be for what it does for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-admire-machinery-as-much-is-any-man-and-am-as-thankful-to-it-as-any/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [I think it's really good and helpful to have the people you most admire in some other discipline than what you work in. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/i-think-it-s-really-good-and-helpful-to-have-the-people-you-most/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [Part of what we admire about a painting or a piece of music is the order which the artist has imposed upon what would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-storr/part-of-what-we-admire-about-a-painting-or-a-piece-of-music-is-the/) [Anthony Storr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-storr/) > [I respect and admire the Premier League.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-koeman/i-respect-and-admire-the-premier-league/) [Ronald Koeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-koeman/) > [“Admire and appreciate your man and he will be happy on your side”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-alfiori/admire-and-appreciate-your-man-and-he-will-be-happy-on-your-side/) [Linda Alfiori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-alfiori/) > [“The thing I admire most about you is no matter how hard, or how much the world has tried to beat you, break you,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-gill/the-thing-i-admire-most-about-you-is-no-matter-how-hard-or-how-much/) [Nikita Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikita-gill/) [Browse all 2,369 Admire quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/admire/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I admire certain priests and nuns who go off on their own and do God's work on their own, who help in the ghettos, but as far as the institution of the church is concerned, I think it is despicable.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Frank McCourt" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go-off-on-their-own-and-do-god/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Admire" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go-off-on-their-own-and-do-god/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/051/frank-mccourt-2576_admire_i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go_42858.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/051/frank-mccourt-2576_admire_i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go_42858.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/051/frank-mccourt-2576_admire_i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go_42858.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I admire certain priests and nuns who go off on their own and do God's work on their own, who help in the…” — Frank McCourt", "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": "Frank McCourt", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I admire certain priests and nuns...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go-off-on-their-own-and-do-god/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go-off-on-their-own-and-do-god/#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 } } ] } ```