--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was enrolled in divinity school and…" description: "\"I was enrolled in divinity school and thought I was going to become a minister - I'm Episcopalian - but I was disavowed of that notion pretty quickly w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/319/john-green-12_answers_i-was-enrolled-in-divinity-school-and-th_1485851.jpg" --- # I was enrolled in divinity school and thought I was going… ![“I was enrolled in divinity school and thought I was going to become a minister - I'm Episcopalian - but I was disavowed of that notion pretty quickly while working at the hospital. I found myself really unfulfilled by the answers that are traditionally offered to questions of why some people…” quote by John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/319/john-green-12_answers_i-was-enrolled-in-divinity-school-and-th_1485851.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/319/john-green-12_answers_i-was-enrolled-in-divinity-school-and-th_1485851.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/319/john-green-12_answers_i-was-enrolled-in-divinity-school-and-th_1485851.jpg) > “I was enrolled in divinity school and thought I was going to become a minister - I'm Episcopalian - but I was disavowed of that notion pretty quickly while working at the hospital. I found myself really unfulfilled by the answers that are traditionally offered to questions of why some people suffer and why others suffer so little.” [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He realized that traditional religious explanations for suffering felt empty, prompting a search for deeper meaning. **In simple terms:** Religious answers felt empty. Key Takeaway Seek personal meaning beyond doctrine. Themes spirituality existential suffering Mood reflective thoughtful Type personal philosophical When to use this quote - hospital work - personal crisis - career change Key Concepts theology philosophy psychology Questions to Reflect On - What alternative frameworks can address suffering? - How do personal experiences reshape belief? A Different Perspective Traditional doctrines may not satisfy all seekers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Answers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/answers/) [Become](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/become/) [Catholic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catholic/) [Divinity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divinity/) [Divinity School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divinity-school-1141358/) [Enrolled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enrolled/) [Episcopalian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/episcopalian/) [Episcopalian Disavowed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/episcopalian-disavowed-5426335/) [Found](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/found/) [Going](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/going/) [Hospital](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hospital/) [Little](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/little/) [Minister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minister/) [Minister Episcopalian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minister-episcopalian-5426336/) [Myself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myself/) [Notion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/notion/) [Offered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/offered/) [Others](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/others/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Pretty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pretty/) [Questions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/questions/) [Quickly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quickly/) [Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/really/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [Some](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/some/) [Some people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/some-people/) [Suffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffer/) [Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought/) [Unfulfilled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unfulfilled/) [Unfulfilled Answers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unfulfilled-answers-5426337/) [While](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/while/) [Why](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/why/) [Working](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/working/) ## Related quotes > [I teach in the Divinity School at Duke University, a very secular university. But before Duke, I taught fourteen years at the University of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-hauerwas/i-teach-in-the-divinity-school-at-duke-university-a-very-secular/) [Stanley Hauerwas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-hauerwas/) > [My intellect was quickened at divinity school, and my abilities to discern were strengthened, and that's always valuable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-elling/my-intellect-was-quickened-at-divinity-school-and-my-abilities-to/) [Kurt Elling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-elling/) > [I'll long remember the crestfallen look of a pious student when I told him the faculty of a divinity school he planned to attend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-sloan/i-ll-long-remember-the-crestfallen-look-of-a-pious-student-when-i/) [Gary Sloan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-sloan/) > [I do have a tendency to want to go back to school at all times in my life. Maybe I'll do the Ph.D. in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/i-do-have-a-tendency-to-want-to-go-back-to-school-at-all-times-in-my/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [After I graduated high school and came out to do 'Buffy,' I was enrolled at my mom's university, and I was going to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliza-dushku/after-i-graduated-high-school-and-came-out-to-do-buffy-i-was-enrolled/) [Eliza Dushku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliza-dushku/) > [Jackson, however, persevered. He joined the Franklin Debating Society, an institution that had been in existence over fifty years, and had enrolled in its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-h-hill/jackson-however-persevered-he-joined-the-franklin-debating-society-an/) [Daniel H. 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Kao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-k-kao/) > [I first became familiar with Dave Eggers's work when I was living in San Francisco and enrolled at USF's MFA Program.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-bernard-frost/i-first-became-familiar-with-dave-eggers-s-work-when-i-was-living-in/) [James Bernard Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-bernard-frost/) > [After I graduated from school, I enrolled in the military college, a cadet school. This is the first stage of military training; it instills…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-romanenko/after-i-graduated-from-school-i-enrolled-in-the-military-college-a/) [Roman Romanenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-romanenko/) > [They basically said that if I didn't show up for school they'd mark me present, they wouldn't send the truant officer after me. At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-van-ronk/they-basically-said-that-if-i-didn-t-show-up-for-school-they-d-mark/) [Dave Van Ronk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-van-ronk/) > [I actually didn't really go to college. I enrolled and never showed up. Being on a college campus where we shot some of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rodriguez/i-actually-didn-t-really-go-to-college-i-enrolled-and-never-showed-up/) [Adam Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rodriguez/) > [You feel the pressure of going to university because you need a back-up plan, which is why I enrolled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-lilley/you-feel-the-pressure-of-going-to-university-because-you-need-a-back/) [Chris Lilley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-lilley/) > [I'm enrolled right now in the School of Life. I deferred from Sarah Lawrence, so I think I'm going to try to find time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-roberts/i-m-enrolled-right-now-in-the-school-of-life-i-deferred-from-sarah/) [Emma Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-roberts/) > [Young adults enrolled in universities and colleges or other postsecondary training should avail themselves of the opportunity to take institute of religion courses or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/young-adults-enrolled-in-universities-and-colleges-or-other/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) ## More by John Green > [Issac:"I dislike living in a world without Augustus Waters." Computer: "I don't understand-" Issac: "Me neither. Pause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/issac-i-dislike-living-in-a-world-without-augustus-waters-computer-i/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“I just want to stay away from people and read books and think”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-just-want-to-stay-away-from-people-and-read-books-and-think/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [She smiled with all the delight of a kid on Christmas morning and said, "Y'all smoke to enjoy it. I smoke to die." -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/she-smiled-with-all-the-delight-of-a-kid-on-christmas-morning-and/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [A Margo for each of us--and each more mirror than window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/a-margo-for-each-of-us-and-each-more-mirror-than-window/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“No one ever says good-bye unless they want to see you again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/no-one-ever-says-good-bye-unless-they-want-to-see-you-again/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Traffic's not too bad on Sheridan, and I'm cornering the car like it's the Indy 500, and we're listening to my favorite NMH song,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/traffic-s-not-too-bad-on-sheridan-and-i-m-cornering-the-car-like-it-s/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Praise God for good nurses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/praise-god-for-good-nurses/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [So I was ugly. I was never fat, really, and I never wore headgear or had zits or anything. But I was ugly. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/so-i-was-ugly-i-was-never-fat-really-and-i-never-wore-headgear-or-had/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Nothing has ever looked like that ever in all of human history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/nothing-has-ever-looked-like-that-ever-in-all-of-human-history/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“said to him quietly, as if I couldn’t hear or something. Dad was about to respond but I interrupted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/said-to-him-quietly-as-if-i-couldn-t-hear-or-something-dad-was-about/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I believe humans have souls, and I believe in the conservation of souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-believe-humans-have-souls-and-i-believe-in-the-conservation-of-souls/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“He was hot. A nonhotboy stares at you relentlessly and it is, at best, awkward and, at worst, a form of assault. But a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/he-was-hot-a-nonhotboy-stares-at-you-relentlessly-and-it-is-at-best/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I think if you keep the box closed long enough you do kill the cat, actually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-think-if-you-keep-the-box-closed-long-enough-you-do-kill-the-cat/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Imagining the future is a kind of nostalgia. (...) You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking about how you'll escape it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/imagining-the-future-is-a-kind-of-nostalgia-you-spend-your-whole-life/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) [Explore all 3,614 John Green quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## More Answers quotes > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [Sometimes a question can hurt more than an answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/sometimes-a-question-can-hurt-more-than-an-answer/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [You feed yourself. Make sure you have all the information, whether it's aesthetic, scientific, mathematical, I don't care what it is. Then you walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/you-feed-yourself-make-sure-you-have-all-the-information-whether-it-s/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I have long felt that the way to keep children out of trouble is to keep them interested in things. Lecturing to children is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/i-have-long-felt-that-the-way-to-keep-children-out-of-trouble-is-to/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [“As long as you keep searching,the answers will come.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-kynock/as-long-as-you-keep-searching-the-answers-will-come/) [Mitch Kynock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-kynock/) > [The answer to deep anxiety is the deep adoration of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/the-answer-to-deep-anxiety-is-the-deep-adoration-of-god/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [A dialogue is very important. 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The lyrics are the answer to all your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/instead-of-asking-a-girl-how-she-feels-try-looking-through-her/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For someone to ask 'Who did you play for' and to be able to answer a single name 'Liverpool' that would be brilliant...I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-carragher/for-someone-to-ask-who-did-you-play-for-and-to-be-able-to-answer-a/) [Jamie Carragher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-carragher/) > [When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked "What is a hero?" ...My answer was that a hero is someone who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/when-the-first-superman-movie-came-out-i-was-frequently-asked-what-is/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > [Enjoying life isn't about finding the answers, but living the questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-margolis/enjoying-life-isn-t-about-finding-the-answers-but-living-the-questions/) [Sue Margolis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-margolis/) [Browse all 7,843 Answers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/answers/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I was enrolled in divinity school and thought I was going to become a minister - I'm Episcopalian - but I was disavowed of that notion pretty quickly while working at the hospital. 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