--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For some reason, the most vocal…" description: "\"For some reason, the most vocal Christians among us never mention the Beatitudes (Matthew 5). But, often with tears in their eyes, the demand that the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e5/kurt-vonnegut-41_beatitudes_for-some-reason-the-most-vocal-christian_303477.jpg" --- # For some reason, the most vocal Christians among us never… ![“For some reason, the most vocal Christians among us never mention the Beatitudes (Matthew 5). But, often with tears in their eyes, the demand that the Ten Commandments be posted in public buildings. And of course, that's Moses, not Jesus. I haven't heard one of them demand that the Sermon on the…” quote by Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e5/kurt-vonnegut-41_beatitudes_for-some-reason-the-most-vocal-christian_303477.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e5/kurt-vonnegut-41_beatitudes_for-some-reason-the-most-vocal-christian_303477.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e5/kurt-vonnegut-41_beatitudes_for-some-reason-the-most-vocal-christian_303477.jpg) > “For some reason, the most vocal Christians among us never mention the Beatitudes (Matthew 5). But, often with tears in their eyes, the demand that the Ten Commandments be posted in public buildings. And of course, that's Moses, not Jesus. I haven't heard one of them demand that the Sermon on the Mount, the Beatitudes, be posted anywhere. "Blessed are the merciful" in a courtroom? "Blessed are the peacemakers" in the Pentagon? Give me a break!” [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People often cherry‑pick religious teachings, highlighting rules over deeper moral teachings. **In simple terms:** Selective religious focus ignores core values. Key Takeaway Look beyond rules to underlying teachings. Themes faith hypocrisy selectivity Mood critical skeptical Type commentary philosophical When to use this quote - public policy - education - media discourse - personal belief Key Concepts beatitudes ten commandments Questions to Reflect On - Why do we favor easy rules over complex virtues? - How can societies honor both law and moral teaching? A Different Perspective Emphasizing rules can alienate those seeking deeper meaning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beatitudes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beatitudes/) [Blessed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blessed/) [Christ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christ/) [Christian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christian/) [Christianity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) [Courtroom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courtroom/) [Demand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demand/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Jesus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jesus/) [Matthew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matthew/) [Moses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moses/) [Peacemaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peacemaker/) [Pentagon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pentagon/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Sermon on the mount](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sermon-on-the-mount/) [Tears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tears/) [Ten commandments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ten-commandments/) ## Related quotes > [“Look at the commencement of His ministry. In the Beatitudes with which the Sermon on the Mount opens, He speaks: “Blessed are the poor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-murray/look-at-the-commencement-of-his-ministry-in-the-beatitudes-with-which/) [Andrew Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-murray/) > [“When God wants to sort out the world, as the Beatitudes in the Sermon on the Mount make clear, he doesn't send in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-t-wright/when-god-wants-to-sort-out-the-world-as-the-beatitudes-in-the-sermon/) [N.T. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-t-wright/) > [“From there Ari took her to the church which marked the place of the miracle of the multiplication of loaves and fishes a short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-uris/from-there-ari-took-her-to-the-church-which-marked-the-place-of-the/) [Leon Uris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-uris/) > [“the Sermon on the Mount is God’s formula for revival. The Beatitudes are His recipe for His kingdom to come and His will to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-baker/the-sermon-on-the-mount-is-god-s-formula-for-revival-the-beatitudes/) [Heidi Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heidi-baker/) > [An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/an-eye-for-an-eye-and-a-tooth-for-a-tooth/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [If it weren't for the message of mercy and pity in Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, I wouldn't want to be a human being.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/if-it-weren-t-for-the-message-of-mercy-and-pity-in-jesus-sermon-on/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“(Socialist Powers Hapgood)...had become an official in the CIO. There had been some sort of dust-up on a picket line, and he was testifying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/socialist-powers-hapgood-had-become-an-official-in-the-cio-there-had/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [Powers Hapgood had just come from court because there was some kind of dust-up on a picket line. The judge was so curious about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/powers-hapgood-had-just-come-from-court-because-there-was-some-kind/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“The Beatitudes declare what a child of the kingdom looks like; they do not list dos and don’ts that get you in the kingdom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-w-glenn/the-beatitudes-declare-what-a-child-of-the-kingdom-looks-like-they-do/) R W Glenn > [We need to build up society in the light of the Beatitudes, walking towards the Kingdom with the least among us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/we-need-to-build-up-society-in-the-light-of-the-beatitudes-walking/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [“Blessed are the sleepy ones: for they shall soon nod off.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nietzsche-friedrich-2/blessed-are-the-sleepy-ones-for-they-shall-soon-nod-off/) Nietzsche, Friedrich > [British Beatitudes! ... Beer, beef, business, bibles, bulldogs, battleships, buggery and bishops.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/british-beatitudes-beer-beef-business-bibles-bulldogs-battleships/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) > [They're called in the Scripture the Beatitudes. You know why they're called the Beatitudes without being prestigious? Because they should be the attitudes of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-ravenhill/they-re-called-in-the-scripture-the-beatitudes-you-know-why-they-re/) [Leonard Ravenhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-ravenhill/) > [I love the melodies in the Old Testament, how preachers highlight them when they read from the Scripture. But I was influenced forever by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/i-love-the-melodies-in-the-old-testament-how-preachers-highlight-them/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [“I am waiting for the meek to be blessed and inherit the earth... without taxes”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/i-am-waiting-for-the-meek-to-be-blessed-and-inherit-the-earth-without/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) ## More by Kurt Vonnegut > [“You must bloom as a writer and I must bloom as a painter. Everything else about us is uninteresting.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/you-must-bloom-as-a-writer-and-i-must-bloom-as-a-painter-everything/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“People aren't supposed to look back.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/people-aren-t-supposed-to-look-back/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Have a good nap, did you?” said the porter. “Yes,” said Billy. “Man,” said the porter, “you sure had a hard-on.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/have-a-good-nap-did-you-said-the-porter-yes-said-billy-man-said-the/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“I told him that if we doubted that we are demons in Hell, he should read The Mysterious Stranger, which Mark Twain wrote in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-told-him-that-if-we-doubted-that-we-are-demons-in-hell-he-should/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [ “Thomas Jefferson High School \[..\] His high school was named after a slave owner who was also one of the world’s greatest theoreticians on… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/thomas-jefferson-high-school-his-high-school-was-named-after-a-slave/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“I had a certain amount of skill as a dramatist, and Dr. Goebbels wanted me to use it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-had-a-certain-amount-of-skill-as-a-dramatist-and-dr-goebbels-wanted/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [I was some of the mud that got to sit up and look around. Lucky me, lucky mud.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-was-some-of-the-mud-that-got-to-sit-up-and-look-around-lucky-me/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“The town was Newport, Rhode Island, U.S.A., Earth, Solar System, Milky Way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/the-town-was-newport-rhode-island-u-s-a-earth-solar-system-milky-way/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Her face was one of a kind, a surprising variation that made observers think, Yes--that would be another very nice way for people to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/her-face-was-one-of-a-kind-a-surprising-variation-that-made-observers/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“You finally fell in love, I see,” said Salo. “Only an Earthling year ago,” said Constant. “It took us that long to realize that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/you-finally-fell-in-love-i-see-said-salo-only-an-earthling-year-ago/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Like all Earthlings at the point of death, Mary Young sent faint reminders of herself to those who had known her. She released a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/like-all-earthlings-at-the-point-of-death-mary-young-sent-faint/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“And contrast Mary Kathleen, if you will, with my wife Ruth, the Ophelia of the death camps, who believed that even the most intelligent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/and-contrast-mary-kathleen-if-you-will-with-my-wife-ruth-the-ophelia/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [Someday, someday, this crazy world will have to end, And our God will take things back that He to us did lend. And if,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/someday-someday-this-crazy-world-will-have-to-end-and-our-god-will/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“They were going back to the slaughterhouse for souvenirs of the war.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/they-were-going-back-to-the-slaughterhouse-for-souvenirs-of-the-war/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“There are plenty of good reasons for fighting," I said, "but no good reason ever to hate without reservation, to imagine that God Almighty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/there-are-plenty-of-good-reasons-for-fighting-i-said-but-no-good/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) [Explore all 2,089 Kurt Vonnegut quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) ## More Beatitudes quotes > [“I am waiting for the meek to be blessed and inherit the earth... without taxes”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/i-am-waiting-for-the-meek-to-be-blessed-and-inherit-the-earth-without/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [I love the melodies in the Old Testament, how preachers highlight them when they read from the Scripture. But I was influenced forever by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/i-love-the-melodies-in-the-old-testament-how-preachers-highlight-them/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [“the Sermon on the Mount is God’s formula for revival. The Beatitudes are His recipe for His kingdom to come and His will to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-baker/the-sermon-on-the-mount-is-god-s-formula-for-revival-the-beatitudes/) [Heidi Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heidi-baker/) > [“From there Ari took her to the church which marked the place of the miracle of the multiplication of loaves and fishes a short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-uris/from-there-ari-took-her-to-the-church-which-marked-the-place-of-the/) [Leon Uris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-uris/) > [They're called in the Scripture the Beatitudes. You know why they're called the Beatitudes without being prestigious? Because they should be the attitudes of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-ravenhill/they-re-called-in-the-scripture-the-beatitudes-you-know-why-they-re/) [Leonard Ravenhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-ravenhill/) > [“When God wants to sort out the world, as the Beatitudes in the Sermon on the Mount make clear, he doesn't send in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-t-wright/when-god-wants-to-sort-out-the-world-as-the-beatitudes-in-the-sermon/) [N.T. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-t-wright/) > [British Beatitudes! ... Beer, beef, business, bibles, bulldogs, battleships, buggery and bishops.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/british-beatitudes-beer-beef-business-bibles-bulldogs-battleships/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) > [“Blessed are the sleepy ones: for they shall soon nod off.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nietzsche-friedrich-2/blessed-are-the-sleepy-ones-for-they-shall-soon-nod-off/) Nietzsche, Friedrich > [We need to build up society in the light of the Beatitudes, walking towards the Kingdom with the least among us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/we-need-to-build-up-society-in-the-light-of-the-beatitudes-walking/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [“The Beatitudes declare what a child of the kingdom looks like; they do not list dos and don’ts that get you in the kingdom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-w-glenn/the-beatitudes-declare-what-a-child-of-the-kingdom-looks-like-they-do/) R W Glenn > [High above all earthly lower happiness, the blessedness of the eight Beatitudes towers into the heaven itself. They are white with the snows of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-penrhyn-stanley/high-above-all-earthly-lower-happiness-the-blessedness-of-the-eight/) [Arthur Penrhyn Stanley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-penrhyn-stanley/) > [The Beatitudes, far from being a new set of virtues that further divide the religious haves and have nots, are words of hope and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-bryan-smith/the-beatitudes-far-from-being-a-new-set-of-virtues-that-further/) [James Bryan Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-bryan-smith/) > [ “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. \[Matt 5:4\]” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/blessed-are-those-who-mourn-for-they-will-be-comforted-matt-5-4/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“BEATITUDES My God, this is staggering, Woah! Immense. This epiphany quivers me as I write. How powerful, nonpareil, & superordinary is your Word. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bright-heaven-s/beatitudes-my-god-this-is-staggering-woah-immense-this-epiphany/) Bright Heaven's > [“An Attitude of Gratitude Delivers to you the Altitude of Beatitudes”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaachynma-n-e-agu/an-attitude-of-gratitude-delivers-to-you-the-altitude-of-beatitudes/) [Jaachynma N.E. Agu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaachynma-n-e-agu/) [Browse all 35 Beatitudes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beatitudes/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "For some reason, the most vocal Christians among us never mention the Beatitudes (Matthew 5). But, often with tears in their eyes, the demand that the Ten Commandments be posted in public buildings. And of course, that's Moses, not Jesus. I haven't heard one of them demand that the Sermon on the Mount, the Beatitudes, be posted anywhere. \"Blessed are the merciful\" in a courtroom? \"Blessed are the peacemakers\" in the Pentagon? 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