--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The worst sin... is... to be indifferent." description: "\"The worst sin... is... to be indifferent.\" — George Bernard Shaw" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad7/george-bernard-shaw-68_apathy_the-worst-sin-is-to-be-indifferent-25008_2500884.png" --- # The worst sin... is... to be indifferent. ![“The worst sin... is... to be indifferent.” quote by George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad7/george-bernard-shaw-68_apathy_the-worst-sin-is-to-be-indifferent-25008_2500884.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad7/george-bernard-shaw-68_apathy_the-worst-sin-is-to-be-indifferent-25008_2500884.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad7/george-bernard-shaw-68_apathy_the-worst-sin-is-to-be-indifferent-25008_2500884.png) > “The worst sin... is... to be indifferent.” [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Indifference is the greatest moral failing because it permits injustice to continue unchallenged. **In simple terms:** Being indifferent is the worst sin. Key Takeaway Act against injustice. Themes morality justice responsibility Mood concerned determined Type ethical motivational When to use this quote - political activism - community service - standing up to bullying Key Concepts ethical duty social apathy Questions to Reflect On - What injustice do you ignore? - How can you confront complacency? A Different Perspective Indifference can stem from fear or helplessness, making change harder. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Apathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apathy/) [Indifferent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indifferent/) [Sin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sin/) [Sin Indifferent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sin-indifferent-1060413/) [Worst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worst/) [Worst Sin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worst-sin-297746/) ## Related quotes > [The worst sin toward our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them: that's the essence of inhumanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-worst-sin-toward-our-fellow-creatures-is-not-to-hate-them-but-to/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The worst sin, the ultimate sin for me, in anything, is to be bored.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-turner/the-worst-sin-the-ultimate-sin-for-me-in-anything-is-to-be-bored/) [Ted Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-turner/) > [Perhaps the worst sin in life is knowing right and not doing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/perhaps-the-worst-sin-in-life-is-knowing-right-and-not-doing-it/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [“Enough with nonchalance in the name of practicality! Let us now rise as tornado and wipe out all apathy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/enough-with-nonchalance-in-the-name-of-practicality-let-us-now-rise/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [“If we’re honest, what makes something impossible is not our fear. Rather, it is our indifference.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/if-we-re-honest-what-makes-something-impossible-is-not-our-fear/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [What is called “apathy” is, I believe, a feeling of helplessness on the part of the ordinary citizen, a feeling of impotence in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/what-is-called-apathy-is-i-believe-a-feeling-of-helplessness-on-the/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“He did not care what the end would be, and in his lucid moments overvalued his indifference. The danger, when not seen, has the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/he-did-not-care-what-the-end-would-be-and-in-his-lucid-moments/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [Insect politics, indifferent universe. Bang your head against the wall, but apathy is worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-henley/insect-politics-indifferent-universe-bang-your-head-against-the-wall/) [Don Henley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-henley/) > [“Your worst sin is that you have destroyed and betrayed yourself for nothing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/your-worst-sin-is-that-you-have-destroyed-and-betrayed-yourself-for/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [Misuse of privilege is seen as the worst sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/misuse-of-privilege-is-seen-as-the-worst-sin/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“If the worst sin of all was betraying others, then what about people who lied to themselves?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-picoult/if-the-worst-sin-of-all-was-betraying-others-then-what-about-people/) [Jodie Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-picoult/) > [“But you are a great sinner, that's true," he added almost solemnly, and your worst sin is that you have destroyed and betrayed yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/but-you-are-a-great-sinner-that-s-true-he-added-almost-solemnly-and/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [“I do know the worst sin--perhaps the only sin--passion can commit, is to be joyless.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/i-do-know-the-worst-sin-perhaps-the-only-sin-passion-can-commit-is-to/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [You see, sins are of different types. The worst sin is blasphemy. Then there are sins that are great sins. Then there are sins…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/babloo/you-see-sins-are-of-different-types-the-worst-sin-is-blasphemy-then/) [Babloo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/babloo/) > [The worst sin that can be committed against the artist is to take him at his word, to see in his work a fulfillment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/the-worst-sin-that-can-be-committed-against-the-artist-is-to-take-him/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) ## More by George Bernard Shaw > [I love little children too but I don't cut off their heads and stick them in vases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/i-love-little-children-too-but-i-don-t-cut-off-their-heads-and-stick/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Blasphemy and sedition (meaning the truth about Church and State).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/blasphemy-and-sedition-meaning-the-truth-about-church-and-state/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of life, man invents nothing; but in the arts of death he outdoes Nature herself, and produces by chemistry and machinery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-life-man-invents-nothing-but-in-the-arts-of-death-he/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“My religious convictions and scientific views cannot at present be more specifically defined than as those of a believer in creative evolution. I desire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/my-religious-convictions-and-scientific-views-cannot-at-present-be/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [What a man believes may be ascertained, not from his creed, but from the assumptions on which he habitually acts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/what-a-man-believes-may-be-ascertained-not-from-his-creed-but-from/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You are my inspiration and my folly. You are my light across the sea, my million nameless joys, and my day's wage. You are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/you-are-my-inspiration-and-my-folly-you-are-my-light-across-the-sea/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Men have to do some awfully mean things to keep up their respectability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/men-have-to-do-some-awfully-mean-things-to-keep-up-their/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The schoolmaster is the person who takes the children off the parents' hands for a consideration. That is to say, he establishes a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-schoolmaster-is-the-person-who-takes-the-children-off-the-parents/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [As long as I have a want, I have a reason for living. Satisfaction is death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/as-long-as-i-have-a-want-i-have-a-reason-for-living-satisfaction-is/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The camera can represent flesh so superbly that, if I dared, I would never photograph a figure without asking that figure to take its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-camera-can-represent-flesh-so-superbly-that-if-i-dared-i-would/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [A man who is not a communist at the age of twenty is a fool. Any man who is still communist at the age…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/a-man-who-is-not-a-communist-at-the-age-of-twenty-is-a-fool-any-man/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [But to admire a strong person and to live under that strong person’s thumb are two different things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/but-to-admire-a-strong-person-and-to-live-under-that-strong-person-s/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Socialism is the same as Communism, only better English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/socialism-is-the-same-as-communism-only-better-english/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The person who is ignorant enough to believe that his nourishment depends on meat is in a horrible dilemma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-person-who-is-ignorant-enough-to-believe-that-his-nourishment/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of peace Man is a bungler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-peace-man-is-a-bungler/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) [Explore all 1,640 George Bernard Shaw quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## More Apathy quotes > [If possible, I want to hear POLITICS defined without either sympathy or apathy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-mark/if-possible-i-want-to-hear-politics-defined-without-either-sympathy/) [Terry Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-mark/) > [One response was given by the innkeeper when Mary and Joseph wanted to find a room where the Child could be born. The innkeeper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/one-response-was-given-by-the-innkeeper-when-mary-and-joseph-wanted/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [Try to greet troubles with apathy. Hello's are never what they used to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-swellers/try-to-greet-troubles-with-apathy-hello-s-are-never-what-they-used-to/) [The Swellers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-swellers/) > [Apathy can be overcome by enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-j-toynbee/apathy-can-be-overcome-by-enthusiasm/) [Arnold J. Toynbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-j-toynbee/) > [Indifference must be a crime in us, to be ranked but one degree below treachery; for deserting the commonwealth is next to betraying it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-st-john-1st-viscount-bolingbroke/indifference-must-be-a-crime-in-us-to-be-ranked-but-one-degree-below/) [Henry St John, 1st Viscount Bolingbroke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-st-john-1st-viscount-bolingbroke/) > [Insect politics, indifferent universe. Bang your head against the wall, but apathy is worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-henley/insect-politics-indifferent-universe-bang-your-head-against-the-wall/) [Don Henley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-henley/) > [“And there's a freedom in apathy, a wild, dizzying liberation on which you can almost get drunk.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-shriver/and-there-s-a-freedom-in-apathy-a-wild-dizzying-liberation-on-which/) [Lionel Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-shriver/) > [For he who is not deaf, half a silence is enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-malfatti/for-he-who-is-not-deaf-half-a-silence-is-enough/) [Jean-Paul Malfatti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-malfatti/) > [“Just because a person is silent doesn’t mean there’s no message.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-sonnenberg/just-because-a-person-is-silent-doesn-t-mean-there-s-no-message/) [Frank Sonnenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-sonnenberg/) > [“If someone with a high level of authority were to ask me, "Suzy, how can we make people so incredibly stupid and apathetic, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/if-someone-with-a-high-level-of-authority-were-to-ask-me-suzy-how-can/) [Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/) > [“It takes more than one kick in the pants to reverse a lifetime of unplanned apathy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-neilan/it-takes-more-than-one-kick-in-the-pants-to-reverse-a-lifetime-of/) [Paul Neilan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-neilan/) > [“Use the apathy of your logic to solve your problems and then the passion of your soul to enjoy life after that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelos-michalopoulos/use-the-apathy-of-your-logic-to-solve-your-problems-and-then-the/) [Angelos Michalopoulos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angelos-michalopoulos/) > [“The fundamental basis by which the court’s decision might be made is, in itself, imperfect and subject to contradictions. There is very little consideration…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashim-shanker/the-fundamental-basis-by-which-the-court-s-decision-might-be-made-is/) [Ashim Shanker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashim-shanker/) > [“The young woman had read a good many novels, and she had seen a good many films; this education by newspaper, serial and film…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-renard/the-young-woman-had-read-a-good-many-novels-and-she-had-seen-a-good/) [Maurice Renard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-renard/) > [Mourn not the dead that in the cool earth lie... But rather mourn the apathetic throng - The cowed and the meek - Who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-chaplin/mourn-not-the-dead-that-in-the-cool-earth-lie-but-rather-mourn-the/) [Ralph Chaplin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-chaplin/) [Browse all 619 Apathy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apathy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The worst sin... is... to be indifferent.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Bernard Shaw" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-worst-sin-is-to-be-indifferent/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Apathy" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-worst-sin-is-to-be-indifferent/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad7/george-bernard-shaw-68_apathy_the-worst-sin-is-to-be-indifferent-25008_2500884.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad7/george-bernard-shaw-68_apathy_the-worst-sin-is-to-be-indifferent-25008_2500884.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad7/george-bernard-shaw-68_apathy_the-worst-sin-is-to-be-indifferent-25008_2500884.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The worst sin... is... to be indifferent.” — George Bernard Shaw", "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": "George Bernard Shaw", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The worst sin... is... to be...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-worst-sin-is-to-be-indifferent/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-worst-sin-is-to-be-indifferent/#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 } } ] } ```