--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Elie Wiesel, the Holocaust survivor who…" description: "\"“Elie Wiesel, the Holocaust survivor who doubts sometimes, has written that the reason so many babies keep being born is that God loves stories. Why”\" ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1aa/john-ortberg-jr-32708_god-love_elie-wiesel-the-holocaust-survivor-who-d_2147165.jpg" --- # Elie Wiesel, the Holocaust survivor who doubts sometimes… ![“Elie Wiesel, the Holocaust survivor who doubts sometimes, has written that the reason so many babies keep being born is that God loves stories. Why” quote by John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1aa/john-ortberg-jr-32708_god-love_elie-wiesel-the-holocaust-survivor-who-d_2147165.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1aa/john-ortberg-jr-32708_god-love_elie-wiesel-the-holocaust-survivor-who-d_2147165.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1aa/john-ortberg-jr-32708_god-love_elie-wiesel-the-holocaust-survivor-who-d_2147165.jpg) > ““Elie Wiesel, the Holocaust survivor who doubts sometimes, has written that the reason so many babies keep being born is that God loves stories. Why”” [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stories give meaning to life; believing in a higher purpose makes existence feel purposeful. **In simple terms:** Stories give life meaning and purpose. Key Takeaway Share and cherish meaningful stories. Themes faith storytelling purpose human experience Mood contemplative hopeful Type spiritual inspirational When to use this quote - family gatherings - church services - personal reflection - writing Key Concepts Narrative existential meaning spirituality Questions to Reflect On - What story shapes your life? - How do stories influence your choices? A Different Perspective Overreliance on stories may ignore practical realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Babies Born](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/babies-born/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elie-wiesel/) [God love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-love/) [Holocaust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holocaust/) [Holocaust survivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holocaust-survivor/) [Reason Babies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason-babies-4497760/) [Wiesel Holocaust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wiesel-holocaust-4497759/) ## Related quotes > [ If I do an interview with \[Holocaust survivor\] Elie Wiesel, am I required as a journalist to find a Holocaust denier? ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-pelley/if-i-do-an-interview-with-holocaust-survivor-elie-wiesel-am-i/) [Scott Pelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-pelley/) > [“Bearing witness takes the courage to realize the potential of the human spirit. Witnessing requires us to call forth the highest qualities of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-joy/bearing-witness-takes-the-courage-to-realize-the-potential-of-the/) [Melanie Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-joy/) > [I think the reason why babies sleep so much is because it's God's way of letting us make it up early for all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-s/i-think-the-reason-why-babies-sleep-so-much-is-because-it-s-god-s-way/) [Laura S](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-s/) > [Miami Beach - that's where I grew up, in a middle-class Jewish family led by my maternal grandfather. Me, my great-grandmother - a Holocaust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brett-ratner/miami-beach-that-s-where-i-grew-up-in-a-middle-class-jewish-family/) [Brett Ratner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brett-ratner/) > [My grandfather was a Holocaust survivor and his life and history were very formative to myself and my family. The almost unimaginable dichotomy between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-raymond/my-grandfather-was-a-holocaust-survivor-and-his-life-and-history-were/) [Jonathan Raymond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-raymond/) > [The Mormons even baptized Anne Frank. It took Ernest Michel, then chairman of the American Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors, three years to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-dowd/the-mormons-even-baptized-anne-frank-it-took-ernest-michel-then/) [Maureen Dowd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-dowd/) > [For me the Holocaust was not only a Jewish tragedy, but also a human tragedy. After the war, when I saw that the Jews…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-wiesenthal/for-me-the-holocaust-was-not-only-a-jewish-tragedy-but-also-a-human/) [Simon Wiesenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-wiesenthal/) > [My dad had this incredible kindness that oozed through every part of his body. He had the ability to look at life positively in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-lubetzky/my-dad-had-this-incredible-kindness-that-oozed-through-every-part-of/) [Daniel Lubetzky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-lubetzky/) > [“Luz Castro "And then i explain that the world did know and remained silent. and that is why I swore never to be silent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/luz-castro-and-then-i-explain-that-the-world-did-know-and-remained/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [“I want to remember my past To see before my eyes The image of my parents The house in which I grew up The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/itta-benhaiem-keller/i-want-to-remember-my-past-to-see-before-my-eyes-the-image-of-my/) [Itta Benhaiem-Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/itta-benhaiem-keller/) > [The Holocaust survivors are among the most inspiring people I have had the privilege to meet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/the-holocaust-survivors-are-among-the-most-inspiring-people-i-have/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [When somebody says that six million people died in the Holocaust, there is nobody in the world who can understand that. It's only through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uzodinma-iweala/when-somebody-says-that-six-million-people-died-in-the-holocaust/) [Uzodinma Iweala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uzodinma-iweala/) > [As the generation of Holocaust survivors and liberators dwindles, the torch of remembrance, of bearing witness, and of education must continue forward.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-gillerman/as-the-generation-of-holocaust-survivors-and-liberators-dwindles-the/) [Dan Gillerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-gillerman/) > [“When we are no longer able to change a situation,” psychiatrist and Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl observed, “we are challenged to change ourselves.” After”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/when-we-are-no-longer-able-to-change-a-situation-psychiatrist-and/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [“From one end to the other I have identified with various forms of spirituality. I was a Jew, then a God-hater. I was an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/april-voytko-kempler/from-one-end-to-the-other-i-have-identified-with-various-forms-of/) [April Voytko Kempler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/april-voytko-kempler/) ## More by John Ortberg Jr > [“I can buy baseball cards to view an entire career on the back of a little square of cardboard. But nobody sells major league…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/i-can-buy-baseball-cards-to-view-an-entire-career-on-the-back-of-a/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [“A pastor struggled for years with sexual addiction, eventually becoming so despondent that hospitalized himself. He joined an inpatient group and was mostly silent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/a-pastor-struggled-for-years-with-sexual-addiction-eventually/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [“When asked to identify what the law is about, Jesus’ response was simply “Love God, love people.” He named a fundamentally different way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/when-asked-to-identify-what-the-law-is-about-jesus-response-was/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [“Those who believe they believe in God but without passion in the heart, without anguish of mind, without uncertainty, without doubt, and even at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/those-who-believe-they-believe-in-god-but-without-passion-in-the/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [“But a philosopher named William James responded that sometimes Clifford's advice is bad strategy. He said doubt is the wrong alternative when three conditions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/but-a-philosopher-named-william-james-responded-that-sometimes/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [“It was around Clifford's era that Thomas Huxley coined the term agnostic, which did not exist before the nineteenth century. Agnostics, Huxley said, “totally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/it-was-around-clifford-s-era-that-thomas-huxley-coined-the-term/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [“What makes a man's 80 year-old Irish uncle skip like a little boy? "Me Father is very fond of me!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/what-makes-a-man-s-80-year-old-irish-uncle-skip-like-a-little-boy-me/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [“Gratitude is not something we give to God because he wants to make sure we know how much trouble he went to over us.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/gratitude-is-not-something-we-give-to-god-because-he-wants-to-make/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [“Theologian Lesslie Newbigin writes that we live in an age that favors doubt over faith.4 We often speak of “blind faith” and “honest doubt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/theologian-lesslie-newbigin-writes-that-we-live-in-an-age-that-favors/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [“Failure is not an event, but rather a judgment about an event. Failure is not something that happens to us or a label we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/failure-is-not-an-event-but-rather-a-judgment-about-an-event-failure/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [“Bitterness is like drinking rat poison and waiting for the rat to die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/bitterness-is-like-drinking-rat-poison-and-waiting-for-the-rat-to-die/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [“And it struck me, in that year, how deeply both faith and doubt are part of my life. We often think of them as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/and-it-struck-me-in-that-year-how-deeply-both-faith-and-doubt-are/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [“Dostoyevsky, who was a believer, wrote that the “death of a single infant calls into question the existence of God.”1”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/dostoyevsky-who-was-a-believer-wrote-that-the-death-of-a-single/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [“Jesus has made God’s presence scandalously available to anyone who wants it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/jesus-has-made-god-s-presence-scandalously-available-to-anyone-who/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) [Explore all 15 John Ortberg Jr quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) ## More God love quotes > [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/) > [God's love never fail :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-s-love-never-fail/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don't rush it. When the timing is right, God will make it happen!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexa-dolmo/don-t-rush-it-when-the-timing-is-right-god-will-make-it-happen/) [Alexa Dolmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexa-dolmo/) > [God loves to glorify himself by suspending his gifts and blessings on our asking him for them. We should never presume to receive from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-storms/god-loves-to-glorify-himself-by-suspending-his-gifts-and-blessings-on/) [Sam Storms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-storms/) > [Total depravity means the entire absence of holiness, not the highest intensity of sin. A totally depraved man is not as bad as he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-greenough-thayer-shedd/total-depravity-means-the-entire-absence-of-holiness-not-the-highest/) [William Greenough Thayer Shedd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-greenough-thayer-shedd/) > [If you ponder the scriptures and begin to do what you covenanted with God to do, I can promise you that you will feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-b-eyring/if-you-ponder-the-scriptures-and-begin-to-do-what-you-covenanted-with/) [Henry B. Eyring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-b-eyring/) > [Imagine the world without God !](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chizim/imagine-the-world-without-god/) [Chizim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chizim/) > [I know that God loves us. He allows us to exercise our moral agency even when we misuse it. He permits us to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-s-monson/i-know-that-god-loves-us-he-allows-us-to-exercise-our-moral-agency/) [Thomas S. Monson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-s-monson/) > [Never try to judge any one](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajat-dogra/never-try-to-judge-any-one/) [Rajat Dogra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajat-dogra/) > [Every genuine expression of love grows out of a consistent and total surrender to God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/every-genuine-expression-of-love-grows-out-of-a-consistent-and-total/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [People don't do right because of the fear of God or love of him. You do right because the world doesn't make sense if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-allison/people-don-t-do-right-because-of-the-fear-of-god-or-love-of-him-you/) [Dorothy Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-allison/) > [In low theologies, hell is invariably the deepest truth, and the love of God is not so deep as hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/in-low-theologies-hell-is-invariably-the-deepest-truth-and-the-love/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [“he’d spent his whole life trying to make God love him—and that this didn’t matter in the slightest. All that mattered was that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mallon/he-d-spent-his-whole-life-trying-to-make-god-love-him-and-that-this/) [Thomas Mallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mallon/) > [My father was a minister for 50 years with Pentecostal Church of God in Christ. We prayed about everything, every day, then he always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denzel-washington/my-father-was-a-minister-for-50-years-with-pentecostal-church-of-god/) [Denzel Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denzel-washington/) > [The world takes us to a silver screen on which flickering images of passion and romance play, and as we watch, the world says,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-harris/the-world-takes-us-to-a-silver-screen-on-which-flickering-images-of/) [Joshua Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-harris/) [Browse all 3,478 God love quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-love/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Elie Wiesel, the Holocaust survivor who doubts sometimes, has written that the reason so many babies keep being born is that God loves stories. Why”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Ortberg Jr" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/elie-wiesel-the-holocaust-survivor-who-doubts-sometimes-has-written/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "God love" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/elie-wiesel-the-holocaust-survivor-who-doubts-sometimes-has-written/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1aa/john-ortberg-jr-32708_god-love_elie-wiesel-the-holocaust-survivor-who-d_2147165.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1aa/john-ortberg-jr-32708_god-love_elie-wiesel-the-holocaust-survivor-who-d_2147165.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1aa/john-ortberg-jr-32708_god-love_elie-wiesel-the-holocaust-survivor-who-d_2147165.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Elie Wiesel, the Holocaust survivor who doubts sometimes, has written that the reason so many babies keep…” — John Ortberg Jr", "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": "John Ortberg Jr", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Elie Wiesel, the Holocaust survivor who...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/elie-wiesel-the-holocaust-survivor-who-doubts-sometimes-has-written/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/elie-wiesel-the-holocaust-survivor-who-doubts-sometimes-has-written/#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 } } ] } ```