---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: England and the English governing class…"
description: "\"“England and the English governing class never did call on this absurd deity of race until it seemed, for an instant, that they had no other god to cal..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c08/g-k-chesterton-224_human-soul_england-and-the-english-governing-class_425609.jpg"
---

#  England and the English governing class never did call on…

![“England and the English governing class never did call on this absurd deity of race until it seemed, for an instant, that they had no other god to call on… the truth of the whole matter is very simple. Nationality exists, and has nothing in the world to do with race. Nationality is a thing like a…” quote by G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c08/g-k-chesterton-224_human-soul_england-and-the-english-governing-class_425609.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c08/g-k-chesterton-224_human-soul_england-and-the-english-governing-class_425609.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c08/g-k-chesterton-224_human-soul_england-and-the-english-governing-class_425609.jpg)

> ““England and the English governing class never did call on this absurd deity of race until it seemed, for an instant, that they had no other god to call on… the truth of the whole matter is very simple. Nationality exists, and has nothing in the world to do with race. Nationality is a thing like a church or a secret society. It is the product of the human soul and will; it is a spiritual product. And there are men… who would think anything and do anything rather than admit anything could be a spiritual product.””

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

## About This Quote

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

Nationality is a cultural identity, not tied to race; it’s a spiritual community created by people.

**In simple terms:** National identity is cultural, not racial.

Key Takeaway

Respect cultural differences without conflating race.

Themes

identity culture spirituality

Mood

reflective critical

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- political discourse
- education curricula
- community building

Key Concepts

Nationalism race social constructs

Questions to Reflect On

- What distinguishes cultural identity from racial identity?
- How can societies foster inclusive nationalism?

A Different Perspective

Nationalism can be misused to justify exclusion.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Deity Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deity-race-3763961/) [Human soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-soul/) [Nationality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nationality/) [Nationality Exists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nationality-exists-3763959/) [Nationality Thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nationality-thing-3763960/) [Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race/) [Race Nationality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race-nationality-1005563/) [Secret society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret-society/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/)

## Related quotes

> [“No matter what is your name, gender, race and nationality, you too are fully capable in turning your dreams into realities.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seema-brain-openers/no-matter-what-is-your-name-gender-race-and-nationality-you-too-are/)

[Seema Brain Openers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seema-brain-openers/)

> [We say that a group united and developed in the royal way, by forces of nature, is a race; a group united and developed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-yat-sen/we-say-that-a-group-united-and-developed-in-the-royal-way-by-forces/)

[Sun Yat-sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-yat-sen/)

> [“The vision which has been so faintly suggested in these pages has never been confined to monks or even to friars. It has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/the-vision-which-has-been-so-faintly-suggested-in-these-pages-has/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [Surrealism will usher you into death, which is a secret society. It will glove your hand, burying therein the profound M with which the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andr-breton/surrealism-will-usher-you-into-death-which-is-a-secret-society-it/)

[Andre Breton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andr-breton/)

> [“The cemetery watchman left the room and returned with a tray holding three small skulls and a large one. I could feel the short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/the-cemetery-watchman-left-the-room-and-returned-with-a-tray-holding/)

[Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/)

> [“Most secret societies—at least those you can read about in books or on the Internet—are collegiate. Or adult... They are like fraternities, only they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-lockhart/most-secret-societies-at-least-those-you-can-read-about-in-books-or/)

[E. Lockhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-lockhart/)

> [Why should we not form a secret society with but one object the furtherance of the British Empire and the bringing of the whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecil-rhodes/why-should-we-not-form-a-secret-society-with-but-one-object-the/)

[Cecil Rhodes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecil-rhodes/)

> [The high office of the President has been used to foment a plot to destroy the American's freedom and before I leave office, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/the-high-office-of-the-president-has-been-used-to-foment-a-plot-to/)

[John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/)

> [I'll never look down on and I love running into actors who say 'Oh yeah, I did a soap.' I say 'Tell me which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-fillion/i-ll-never-look-down-on-and-i-love-running-into-actors-who-say-oh/)

[Nathan Fillion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-fillion/)

> [The very word 'secrecy' is repugnant in a free and open society. ... There is little value in ensuring the survival of our nation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/the-very-word-secrecy-is-repugnant-in-a-free-and-open-society-there/)

[John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/)

> [In the vast majority of cases the secret society symbolism hearkens from two places - Ireland and Egypt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tsarion/in-the-vast-majority-of-cases-the-secret-society-symbolism-hearkens/)

[Michael Tsarion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tsarion/)

> [The very word "secrecy" is repugnant in a free and open society; and we are as a people inherently and historically opposed to secret…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/the-very-word-secrecy-is-repugnant-in-a-free-and-open-society-and-we/)

[John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/)

> [According to Miller, Pharisee Judaism is not a religion at all, but a secret society posing as a religion, a "sect with Judaism as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-starr-miller/according-to-miller-pharisee-judaism-is-not-a-religion-at-all-but-a/)

[Edith Starr Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-starr-miller/)

> [“When Christianity proscribed the public exercise of the ancient worships, the partisans of the latter were compelled to meet in secret for the celebration…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliphas-levi/when-christianity-proscribed-the-public-exercise-of-the-ancient/)

[Éliphas Lévi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliphas-levi/)

## More by G.K. Chesterton

> [“I never use paradox. The statements I make are wearisome and obvious common sense. I have even been driven to the tedium of reading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/i-never-use-paradox-the-statements-i-make-are-wearisome-and-obvious/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“Nothing, again, could be more prosaic and impenetrable than the domestic energies of Miss Diana Duke. But Innocent had somehow blundered on the discovery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/nothing-again-could-be-more-prosaic-and-impenetrable-than-the/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“The mass of men have been forced to be gay about the little things, but sad about the big ones. Nevertheless (I offer my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/the-mass-of-men-have-been-forced-to-be-gay-about-the-little-things/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“ask yourself how many people you have met who grumbled at a thing as incurable, and how many who attacked it as curable? How…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/ask-yourself-how-many-people-you-have-met-who-grumbled-at-a-thing-as/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“The human race, to which so many of my readers belong, has been playing at children's games from the beginning, and will probably do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/the-human-race-to-which-so-many-of-my-readers-belong-has-been-playing/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“Internationalism is in any case hostile to democracy….The only purely popular government is local, and founded on local knowledge. The citizens can rule the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/internationalism-is-in-any-case-hostile-to-democracy-the-only-purely/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“There was a short railway official travelling up to the terminus, three fairly short market-gardeners picked up two stations afterwards, one very short widow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/there-was-a-short-railway-official-travelling-up-to-the-terminus/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“Humility is the mother of giants. One sees great things from the valley; only small things from the peak.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/humility-is-the-mother-of-giants-one-sees-great-things-from-the/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“Anything worth doing is worth doing badly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/anything-worth-doing-is-worth-doing-badly/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“There exists in such a case a certain institution or law; let us say for the sake of simplicity, a fence or gate erected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/there-exists-in-such-a-case-a-certain-institution-or-law-let-us-say/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“Man, by a blind instinct, knew that if once things were wildly questioned, reason could be questioned first. The authority of priests to absolve,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/man-by-a-blind-instinct-knew-that-if-once-things-were-wildly/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“It is idle to talk always of the alternative of reason and faith. Reason is itself a matter of faith. It is an act…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/it-is-idle-to-talk-always-of-the-alternative-of-reason-and-faith/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“But in order that life should be a story or romance to us, it is necessary that a great part of it, at any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/but-in-order-that-life-should-be-a-story-or-romance-to-us-it-is/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“Buddhism seeks after God with the largest conception it can find, the all-producing and all-absorbing One; Christianity seeks after God with the most elementary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/buddhism-seeks-after-god-with-the-largest-conception-it-can-find-the/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

> [“Man is more himself, more manlike, when joy is the fundamental thing and grief superficial.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/man-is-more-himself-more-manlike-when-joy-is-the-fundamental-thing/)

[G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

[Explore all 853 G.K. Chesterton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/)

## More Human soul quotes

> [We can see nothing whatever of the soul unless it is visible in the expression of the countenance; one might call the faces at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-c-lichtenberg/we-can-see-nothing-whatever-of-the-soul-unless-it-is-visible-in-the/)

[Georg C. Lichtenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-c-lichtenberg/)

> [Organized religion has a part in the evolution of personal religion. It is the material upon which personal religion is grafted, but the process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-montagu/organized-religion-has-a-part-in-the-evolution-of-personal-religion/)

[Lily Montagu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-montagu/)

> [ “\[W\]e must learn to accommodate ourselves to the discovery that some of those cunningly-fashioned instruments called human souls have only a very limited range… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/w-e-must-learn-to-accommodate-ourselves-to-the-discovery-that-some-of/)

[George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/)

> [“Using a wide variety of media, we could demonstrate for our fellow Americans their anxieties, desires, insufficiencies, and frustrations--and how to assuage them all.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-ferris/using-a-wide-variety-of-media-we-could-demonstrate-for-our-fellow/)

[Joshua Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-ferris/)

> [The point I wish plainly to bring before you on this occasion is the individuality of each human soul--our Protestant idea, the right of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-cady-stanton/the-point-i-wish-plainly-to-bring-before-you-on-this-occasion-is-the/)

[Elizabeth Cady Stanton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-cady-stanton/)

> [“You and I, however, were so created that by anything and everything we do, we are saying to our Creator either “God, I love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-ian-thomas/you-and-i-however-were-so-created-that-by-anything-and-everything-we/)

[W. Ian Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-ian-thomas/)

> [Art is the final cunning of the human soul which would rather do anything than face the gods.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/art-is-the-final-cunning-of-the-human-soul-which-would-rather-do/)

[Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/)

> [Adolescence is when the very worst and best impulses in the human soul struggle against each other for possession.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-stanley-hall/adolescence-is-when-the-very-worst-and-best-impulses-in-the-human/)

[G. Stanley Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-stanley-hall/)

> [“Knowledge is like an endless resource; a well of water that satisfies the innate thirst of the growing human soul. Therefore never stop learning...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chidi-okonkwo/knowledge-is-like-an-endless-resource-a-well-of-water-that-satisfies/)

[Chidi Okonkwo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chidi-okonkwo/)

> [It wants not merely microscopic but telescopic power to know humanity in its essence; a power to discern its grandeur as well as its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoheb/it-wants-not-merely-microscopic-but-telescopic-power-to-know-humanity/)

[Zoheb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoheb/)

> [“Years later, as a professor, Martin would try to find the words to articulate the power of togetherness in a world where togetherness had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-shattuck/years-later-as-a-professor-martin-would-try-to-find-the-words-to/)

[Jessica Shattuck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-shattuck/)

> [Uncertainty! fell demon of our fears! The human soul that can support despair, supports not thee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mallet/uncertainty-fell-demon-of-our-fears-the-human-soul-that-can-support/)

[David Mallet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mallet/)

> [Not all human souls but only the pious ones are divine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-hermes/not-all-human-souls-but-only-the-pious-ones-are-divine/)

[Georg Hermes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-hermes/)

> [“The relationship between love and appropriate action is demonstrated repeatedly in the scriptures and is highlighted by the Savior's instruction to His Apostles: 'If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-a-bednar/the-relationship-between-love-and-appropriate-action-is-demonstrated/)

[David A. Bednar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-a-bednar/)

> [Style used to be an interaction between the human soul and tools that were limiting. In the digital era, it will have to come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaron-lanier/style-used-to-be-an-interaction-between-the-human-soul-and-tools-that/)

[Jaron Lanier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaron-lanier/)

[Browse all 675 Human soul quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-soul/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“England and the English governing class never did call on this absurd deity of race until it seemed, for an instant, that they had no other god to call on… the truth of the whole matter is very simple. Nationality exists, and has nothing in the world to do with race. Nationality is a thing like a church or a secret society. It is the product of the human soul and will; it is a spiritual product. And there are men… who would think anything and do anything rather than admit anything could be a spiritual product.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "G.K. Chesterton"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/england-and-the-english-governing-class-never-did-call-on-this-absurd/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Human soul"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/england-and-the-english-governing-class-never-did-call-on-this-absurd/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c08/g-k-chesterton-224_human-soul_england-and-the-english-governing-class_425609.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c08/g-k-chesterton-224_human-soul_england-and-the-english-governing-class_425609.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c08/g-k-chesterton-224_human-soul_england-and-the-english-governing-class_425609.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“England and the English governing class never did call on this absurd deity of race until it seemed, for an…” — G.K. Chesterton",
                "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": "G.K. Chesterton",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“England and the English governing class...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/england-and-the-english-governing-class-never-did-call-on-this-absurd/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/england-and-the-english-governing-class-never-did-call-on-this-absurd/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
