--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The priesthood is a marriage. People…" description: "\"The priesthood is a marriage. People often start by falling in love, and they go on for years without realizing that love must change into some other l..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84c/iris-murdoch-993_change_the-priesthood-is-a-marriage-people-ofte_2250576.png" --- # The priesthood is a marriage. People often start by… ![“The priesthood is a marriage. People often start by falling in love, and they go on for years without realizing that love must change into some other love which is so unlike it that it can hardly be recognized as love at all.” quote by Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84c/iris-murdoch-993_change_the-priesthood-is-a-marriage-people-ofte_2250576.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84c/iris-murdoch-993_change_the-priesthood-is-a-marriage-people-ofte_2250576.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84c/iris-murdoch-993_change_the-priesthood-is-a-marriage-people-ofte_2250576.png) > “The priesthood is a marriage. People often start by falling in love, and they go on for years without realizing that love must change into some other love which is so unlike it that it can hardly be recognized as love at all.” [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Love in marriage evolves into a deeper, less obvious bond that may not feel like romantic love but sustains the partnership. **In simple terms:** Marital love changes into a different, lasting love. Key Takeaway Recognize and nurture the evolving love. Themes marriage love growth Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - long‑term marriage - friendship - family caregiving - spiritual partnership Key Concepts relationship dynamics spiritual intimacy Questions to Reflect On - How do you recognize love when it no longer feels romantic? - What practices sustain love beyond passion? A Different Perspective Love may feel unfamiliar, causing confusion or doubt. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Falling in love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/falling-in-love/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Marriage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marriage/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Priesthood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/priesthood/) ## Related quotes > [“With her Florentino Ariza learned what he had already experienced many times without realizing it: that one can be in love with several people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/with-her-florentino-ariza-learned-what-he-had-already-experienced-2/) [Gabriel García Márquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [I'm tired of the people that I Internet stalk not realizing their love for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crapp/i-m-tired-of-the-people-that-i-internet-stalk-not-realizing-their/) [Crapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crapp/) > [The worst heartbreak, is realizing you love someone when its already too late.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-worst-heartbreak-is-realizing-you-love-someone-when-its-already/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Contentment lies within us, it lies in realizing that the love and trust we are trying to get from others, stays within us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/senora-roy/contentment-lies-within-us-it-lies-in-realizing-that-the-love-and/) [Senora Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/senora-roy/) > [With her Florentino Ariza learned what he had already experienced many times without realizing it: that one can be in love with several people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/with-her-florentino-ariza-learned-what-he-had-already-experienced/) [Gabriel Garcia Marquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [“Oh God, have I missed you. 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Interestingly, it is not until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-dixon/in-2006-the-federal-government-expended-more-than-100-million-over-a/) [Patricia Dixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-dixon/) > [You told me you believed marriage was for other people." "You're the only man who could make me believe that it's for me, too.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/you-told-me-you-believed-marriage-was-for-other-people-you-re-the/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > [Surround your marriage with people who pull you toward your spouse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-lowe/surround-your-marriage-with-people-who-pull-you-toward-your-spouse/) [Ted Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-lowe/) > [Sometimes I even feel funny to say I'm in a biracial marriage because people are like, 'Oh, he's Asian?' The subtext is, 'Who cares?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-farr/sometimes-i-even-feel-funny-to-say-i-m-in-a-biracial-marriage-because/) [Diane Farr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-farr/) > [“(Regarding Marriage) Both people need to care deeply about the other person, to put the other’s needs before their own, and to make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alessandra-torre/regarding-marriage-both-people-need-to-care-deeply-about-the-other/) [Alessandra Torre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alessandra-torre/) > [Marriage is when two people are joined together to become one desperately boring person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/marriage-is-when-two-people-are-joined-together-to-become-one/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [I observed that after marriage people cease to be curious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/i-observed-that-after-marriage-people-cease-to-be-curious/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) ## More by Iris Murdoch > [Falling out of love is chiefly a matter of forgetting how charming someone is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/falling-out-of-love-is-chiefly-a-matter-of-forgetting-how-charming/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [One doesn't have to get anywhere in a marriage. It's not a public conveyance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/one-doesn-t-have-to-get-anywhere-in-a-marriage-it-s-not-a-public/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“I think being a woman is like being Irish... Everyone says you're important and nice, but you take second place all the time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-think-being-a-woman-is-like-being-irish-everyone-says-you-re/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [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/) > [The sending of a letter constitutes a magical grasp upon the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/the-sending-of-a-letter-constitutes-a-magical-grasp-upon-the-future/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [emotions really exist at the bottom of the personality or at the top. in the middle they are acted. this is why all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/emotions-really-exist-at-the-bottom-of-the-personality-or-at-the-top/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [I have used the word "attention," which I borrow from Simone Weil, to express the idea of a just and loving gaze directed upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-have-used-the-word-attention-which-i-borrow-from-simone-weil-to/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [Starting a novel is opening a door on a misty landscape; you can still see very little but you can smell the earth and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/starting-a-novel-is-opening-a-door-on-a-misty-landscape-you-can-still/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [Art and morality are, with certain provisos…one. 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But it was impossible, the machine would go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/oh-if-only-i-could-take-my-mother-away-and-never-know-of-these-things/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [We defend ourselves by descriptions and tame the world by generalizing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/we-defend-ourselves-by-descriptions-and-tame-the-world-by-generalizing/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“I'm sorry I was awful. I'm so full of terrors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-m-sorry-i-was-awful-i-m-so-full-of-terrors/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [I live, I live, with an absolutely continuous sense of failure. I am always defeated, always. Every book is the wreck of a perfect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-live-i-live-with-an-absolutely-continuous-sense-of-failure-i-am/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) [Explore all 306 Iris Murdoch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) ## More Change quotes > [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [“…progress isn't necessarily about change but about things turning out as we want them to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-hogan/progress-isn-t-necessarily-about-change-but-about-things-turning-out/) Phil Hogan > [Nobody can tell me that no changes are necessary in Washington.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-weld/nobody-can-tell-me-that-no-changes-are-necessary-in-washington/) [William Weld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-weld/) > [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [When you walk down the street of Kabul your values for life changes, they do change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-pierre-white/when-you-walk-down-the-street-of-kabul-your-values-for-life-changes/) [Marco Pierre White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-pierre-white/) > [Your world will change whether or not you choose to change, but you have the power to choose it's direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/your-world-will-change-whether-or-not-you-choose-to-change-but-you/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [I hope I continue to evolve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-flair/i-hope-i-continue-to-evolve/) [Charlotte Flair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-flair/) > [“Stay focused on bringing people together and more on positive messaging so that you can be the change you wish to see in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germany-kent/stay-focused-on-bringing-people-together-and-more-on-positive/) [Germany Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germany-kent/) > [The biggest change for me as a mom was realizing I needed to put someone else before me. Now the hardest part about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-alexis/the-biggest-change-for-me-as-a-mom-was-realizing-i-needed-to-put/) [Kim Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-alexis/) > [“After the funeral, my life changed. I felt as if time were suddenly precious, water going down an open drain, and I could not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/after-the-funeral-my-life-changed-i-felt-as-if-time-were-suddenly/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [You practice mindfulness, on the one hand, to be calm and peaceful. On the other hand, as you practice mindfulness and live a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-practice-mindfulness-on-the-one-hand-to-be-calm-and-peaceful-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Irish research will contribute to global progress and have the potential to help all countries realise the potential of their land sectors in addressing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enda-kenny/irish-research-will-contribute-to-global-progress-and-have-the/) [Enda Kenny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enda-kenny/) > [No man can change himself into anything from sheer reason; he can only change into what he potentially is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/no-man-can-change-himself-into-anything-from-sheer-reason-he-can-only/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) [Browse all 33,920 Change quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The priesthood is a marriage. 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