--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'll never forget what a Catholic priest…" description: "\"I'll never forget what a Catholic priest told me; he said, \"If you try to padlock the door, you have to give people an alternative path - an alternativ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/890/jeh-johnson-33688_building_i-ll-never-forget-what-a-catholic-priest_1488760.jpg" --- # I'll never forget what a Catholic priest told me; he said… ![“I'll never forget what a Catholic priest told me; he said, "If you try to padlock the door, you have to give people an alternative path - an alternative, safer path. You can't padlock, and you shouldn't padlock a burning building."” quote by Jeh Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/890/jeh-johnson-33688_building_i-ll-never-forget-what-a-catholic-priest_1488760.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/890/jeh-johnson-33688_building_i-ll-never-forget-what-a-catholic-priest_1488760.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/890/jeh-johnson-33688_building_i-ll-never-forget-what-a-catholic-priest_1488760.jpg) > “I'll never forget what a Catholic priest told me; he said, "If you try to padlock the door, you have to give people an alternative path - an alternative, safer path. You can't padlock, and you shouldn't padlock a burning building."” [Jeh Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeh-johnson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The priest advises that restricting access (padlocking) without providing alternatives can be dangerous; instead, offer safe alternatives when limiting options. **In simple terms:** Don't block paths without safe alternatives. Key Takeaway Provide alternatives when limiting access. Themes ethics leadership problem solving Mood considerate pragmatic Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - security policies - emergency planning - community leadership Key Concepts risk management human behavior Questions to Reflect On - When is it acceptable to restrict access? - How can we ensure alternatives are truly safe? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Catholic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catholic/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Path](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/path/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [“Once a priest told us that no one gets up in the pulpit without promulgating a heresy. 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Nor will I ever repeat it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-s-hall/my-father-was-a-really-great-man-i-ll-never-forget-the-last-thing-he/) [John S. Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-s-hall/) > [Never forget that the road to Heaven is the Way of the Cross. Jesus has called us to follow Him, bearing the Cross as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-philippine-duchesne/never-forget-that-the-road-to-heaven-is-the-way-of-the-cross-jesus/) [Rose Philippine Duchesne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-philippine-duchesne/) > [Ancient eyes had stared at me, filled with ancient grief. And something more. Something so alien and unexpected that I'd almost burst into tears.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/ancient-eyes-had-stared-at-me-filled-with-ancient-grief-and-something/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [People are disturbed not by things but by the view they take of them. They may forget what you said, but they will never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/people-are-disturbed-not-by-things-but-by-the-view-they-take-of-them/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) ## More by Jeh Johnson > [Politics, in my judgment, has become not just the means to a policy ends, but it's become the end itself. Politics has become the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeh-johnson/politics-in-my-judgment-has-become-not-just-the-means-to-a-policy/) [Jeh Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeh-johnson/) > [I hope that the states are taking seriously their obligations to harden the cybersecurity around the election infrastructure that Americans rely upon and need.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeh-johnson/i-hope-that-the-states-are-taking-seriously-their-obligations-to/) [Jeh Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeh-johnson/) > [I think that ISIS is a problem and it's really a symptom of a much greater problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeh-johnson/i-think-that-isis-is-a-problem-and-it-s-really-a-symptom-of-a-much/) [Jeh Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeh-johnson/) > [If you build - if you spend billions of taxpayer dollars to build a wall over, let's say, a mountain, if you build a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeh-johnson/if-you-build-if-you-spend-billions-of-taxpayer-dollars-to-build-a/) [Jeh Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeh-johnson/) > [I think that the potential for homegrown terrorist attacks is something that we have to be very concerned about, because, in many respects, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeh-johnson/i-think-that-the-potential-for-homegrown-terrorist-attacks-is/) [Jeh Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeh-johnson/) > [And we need a president who is a uniter, not a divider; who can lower the temperature, not raise the temperature. 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It's a people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/t-he-church-is-not-a-place-it-s-not-a-building-it-s-not-a-preaching/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [I'd like to play Ian Paisley, actually. I'd need building up, though he's very frail now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liam-neeson/i-d-like-to-play-ian-paisley-actually-i-d-need-building-up-though-he/) [Liam Neeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liam-neeson/) > [Death is but an aspect of life, and the destruction of one material form is but a prelude to building up of another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/death-is-but-an-aspect-of-life-and-the-destruction-of-one-material/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Some architects have a preconceived notion of what a building should be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-w-fentress/some-architects-have-a-preconceived-notion-of-what-a-building-should/) [Curtis W. 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