--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Auschwitz was a dark epiphany, providing…" description: "\"“Auschwitz was a dark epiphany, providing us with a terrible vision of what life is like when all sense of the sacred is lost and the human being--whoe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9f/karen-armstrong-1053_dreams_auschwitz-was-a-dark-epiphany-providing_1155096.jpg" --- # Auschwitz was a dark epiphany, providing us with a… ![“Auschwitz was a dark epiphany, providing us with a terrible vision of what life is like when all sense of the sacred is lost and the human being--whoever he or she may be--is no longer revered as an inviolable mystery.” quote by Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9f/karen-armstrong-1053_dreams_auschwitz-was-a-dark-epiphany-providing_1155096.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9f/karen-armstrong-1053_dreams_auschwitz-was-a-dark-epiphany-providing_1155096.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9f/karen-armstrong-1053_dreams_auschwitz-was-a-dark-epiphany-providing_1155096.jpg) > ““Auschwitz was a dark epiphany, providing us with a terrible vision of what life is like when all sense of the sacred is lost and the human being--whoever he or she may be--is no longer revered as an inviolable mystery.”” [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When sacredness is erased, humanity loses reverence, leading to dehumanization and moral collapse. **In simple terms:** Loss of sacredness dehumanizes people. Key Takeaway Preserve reverence for the sacred. Themes ethics spirituality humanity history morality Mood thoughtful serious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - cultural conflict - religious education - policy making Key Concepts sacredness dehumanization moral crisis Questions to Reflect On - What practices keep the sacred alive today? - How can societies protect human dignity without religious frameworks? A Different Perspective Some argue secularism can coexist with reverence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Auschwitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/auschwitz/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [Epiphany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/epiphany/) [History-of-thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history-of-thought/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) ## Related quotes > [“The history of philosophy, and perhaps especially of moral, social and political philosophy, is there to prevent us from becoming too readily bewitched. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-history-of-philosophy-and-perhaps-especially-of-moral-social-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“We are like dwarfs standing on the shoulders of giants; thanks to them, we see farther than they. 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Sacred energy renews us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/the-purpose-of-daily-prayer-is-the-cultivation-of-a-sense-of-the/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [We have to shift our attitude of ownership of nature to relationship with nature. The moment you change from ownership to relationship, you create…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satish-kumar/we-have-to-shift-our-attitude-of-ownership-of-nature-to-relationship/) [Satish Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satish-kumar/) > [Until we can sense a sacred quality in time we will not begin to have a fuller understanding of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-fagg/until-we-can-sense-a-sacred-quality-in-time-we-will-not-begin-to-have/) [Lawrence Fagg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-fagg/) > [If individuals start to walk on the path of spirit and feel a sense of the sacred connectedness, then social, economic and political problems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satish-kumar/if-individuals-start-to-walk-on-the-path-of-spirit-and-feel-a-sense/) [Satish Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satish-kumar/) > [On the other hand, with a sense of the sacred, one grows in understanding and truth. The Holy Spirit becomes his frequent and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-todd-christofferson/on-the-other-hand-with-a-sense-of-the-sacred-one-grows-in/) [D. Todd Christofferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-todd-christofferson/) ## More by Karen Armstrong > [If it is written and read with serious attention, a novel, like a myth or any great work of art, can become an initiation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/if-it-is-written-and-read-with-serious-attention-a-novel-like-a-myth/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [A gentleman is not born but crafted. He had to work on himself in the same way as a sculptor shaped a rough stone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/a-gentleman-is-not-born-but-crafted-he-had-to-work-on-himself-in-the/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [I was a lousy nun. I couldn't do it. I couldn't find God. It wasn't suitable for me. It is suitable for very few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/i-was-a-lousy-nun-i-couldn-t-do-it-i-couldn-t-find-god-it-wasn-t/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [I have become convinced, through my studies, that the only way to achieve a safe, just and viable world is to live by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/i-have-become-convinced-through-my-studies-that-the-only-way-to/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [In the past some of the most influential Jewish, Christian and Muslim theologians, such as Maimonides, Aquinas and Ibn Sina, made it clear that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/in-the-past-some-of-the-most-influential-jewish-christian-and-muslim/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [The great task of our time is to build a global society, where people can live together in peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/the-great-task-of-our-time-is-to-build-a-global-society-where-people/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [We want to create, never mind the leaders or the bishops or chief rabbis or imams, or Popes. 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I felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/after-i-left-the-convent-for-15-years-i-was-worn-out-with-religion-i/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [“As we have seen, so many of the things we once took for granted have proved unreliable that we may have to “forget” old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/as-we-have-seen-so-many-of-the-things-we-once-took-for-granted-have/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [Yet a personal God can become a grave liability. He can be a mere idol carved in our own image, a projection of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/yet-a-personal-god-can-become-a-grave-liability-he-can-be-a-mere-idol/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [“I discovered that I felt at home and alive in the silence, which compelled me to enter my interior world and around there. Without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/i-discovered-that-i-felt-at-home-and-alive-in-the-silence-which/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [Each of the world religions has its own particular genius, its own special insight into the nature and requirements of compassion, and has something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/each-of-the-world-religions-has-its-own-particular-genius-its-own/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [“all rightly guided religion that submitted wholly to God, refused to worship man-made deities and preached that justice and equality came from the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/all-rightly-guided-religion-that-submitted-wholly-to-god-refused-to/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [“advocates of evolutionary theory since Thomas H. Huxley (1825–95) have found altruism problematic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/advocates-of-evolutionary-theory-since-thomas-h-huxley-1825-95-have/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) [Explore all 296 Karen Armstrong quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) ## More Auschwitz quotes > [I stated that Hiroshima and Nagasaki are 'among the most unspeakable crimes in history.' I took no position on just where they stand on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-stated-that-hiroshima-and-nagasaki-are-among-the-most-unspeakable/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [We need creativity. We need more poetry after Auschwitz.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rithy-panh/we-need-creativity-we-need-more-poetry-after-auschwitz/) [Rithy Panh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rithy-panh/) > [“I remember that one Holy Week, the magazine I got every Thursday, Anteojito , came with a free poster depicting the Stations of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcelo-figueras/i-remember-that-one-holy-week-the-magazine-i-got-every-thursday/) [Marcelo Figueras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcelo-figueras/) > [No sane person wants hell to exist. No sane person wants evil to exist. But hell is just evil eternalized. If there is evil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-kreeft/no-sane-person-wants-hell-to-exist-no-sane-person-wants-evil-to-exist/) [Peter Kreeft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-kreeft/) > [My own interest in Kafka's letter came about when I was writing an article on Peter Ginz, the boy novelist held in Terezin, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-cartwright/my-own-interest-in-kafka-s-letter-came-about-when-i-was-writing-an/) [Justin Cartwright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-cartwright/) > [Eighteen months before I was born, my mother was in Auschwitz. She weighed 49 pounds. She always told me that God saved her so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-von-furstenberg/eighteen-months-before-i-was-born-my-mother-was-in-auschwitz-she/) [Diane von Furstenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-von-furstenberg/) > [“I am keenly aware that the security we enjoy is frail, and could easily be disrupted. Secretly, a nagging fear gnaws at me: what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-waterman/i-am-keenly-aware-that-the-security-we-enjoy-is-frail-and-could/) [Daniel Waterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-waterman/) > [There is more to Jewish history than Auschwitz.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/romain-gary/there-is-more-to-jewish-history-than-auschwitz/) [Romain Gary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/romain-gary/) > [“I once conjured up this image of Hitler. I imagined that he didn’t kill himself and that he was kept in a kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-haybittle/i-once-conjured-up-this-image-of-hitler-i-imagined-that-he-didn-t/) [Glenn Haybittle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-haybittle/) > [“In February, 1943, eight months before she was murdered in Auschwitz, the German painter Charlotte Salomon killed her grandfather. 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