--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The sermon was based on what he claimed…" description: "\"The sermon was based on what he claimed was a well-known fact, that there were no Atheists in foxholes. I asked Jack what he thought of the sermon afte..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd7/kurt-vonnegut-41_atheism_the-sermon-was-based-on-what-he-claimed_1357880.jpg" --- # The sermon was based on what he claimed was a well-known… ![“The sermon was based on what he claimed was a well-known fact, that there were no Atheists in foxholes. I asked Jack what he thought of the sermon afterwards, and he said, "There's a Chaplain who never visited the front.” quote by Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd7/kurt-vonnegut-41_atheism_the-sermon-was-based-on-what-he-claimed_1357880.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd7/kurt-vonnegut-41_atheism_the-sermon-was-based-on-what-he-claimed_1357880.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd7/kurt-vonnegut-41_atheism_the-sermon-was-based-on-what-he-claimed_1357880.jpg) > “The sermon was based on what he claimed was a well-known fact, that there were no Atheists in foxholes. I asked Jack what he thought of the sermon afterwards, and he said, "There's a Chaplain who never visited the front.” [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. Points out the irony of claiming universal bravery while avoiding real danger. **In simple terms:** Criticizes false bravado about courage. Key Takeaway Question authenticity of claims. Themes courage hypocrisy war faith Mood skeptical reflective Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - military leadership - religious discourse - public speaking - ethical debates Key Concepts social critique psychology Questions to Reflect On - Is bravery truly absent in fear? - How do we test such claims? A Different Perspective May generalize without evidence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Atheism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheism/) [Atheist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheist/) [Atheists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheists/) [Atheists Foxholes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheists-foxholes-871574/) [Chaplains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chaplains/) [Fact Atheists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fact-atheists-4638464/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Foxholes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foxholes/) [Fronts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fronts/) [Known](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/known/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Said Chaplain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-chaplain-1736411/) [Sermon Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sermon-said-4638463/) [Sermons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sermons/) [Well known](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/well-known/) [Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wells/) ## Related quotes > [People say there are no atheists in foxholes. A lot of people think this is a good argument against atheism. Personally, I think it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/people-say-there-are-no-atheists-in-foxholes-a-lot-of-people-think/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [There's a Chaplain who never visited the front.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/there-s-a-chaplain-who-never-visited-the-front/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [There may or may not be atheists in foxholes, but I'm certain there are none in the Ku Klux Klan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/there-may-or-may-not-be-atheists-in-foxholes-but-i-m-certain-there/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [“There are Atheists in foxholes Atheists in hurricanes There are Atheists in all the roles Denied by your refrains Atheists are your fellow citizens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-kagin/there-are-atheists-in-foxholes-atheists-in-hurricanes-there-are/) [Edwin Kagin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-kagin/) > [“There’s a saying, “There are no atheists in foxholes,” but it should be amended to add “. . . or in penitentiaries.”\* If I am ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annabelle-gurwitch/there-s-a-saying-there-are-no-atheists-in-foxholes-but-it-should-be/) [Annabelle Gurwitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annabelle-gurwitch/) > [There are no atheists in the foxholes of Bataan...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-macarthur/there-are-no-atheists-in-the-foxholes-of-bataan/) [Douglas MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-macarthur/) > [There are no atheists in foxholes and there are no libertarians in financial crises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-krugman/there-are-no-atheists-in-foxholes-and-there-are-no-libertarians-in/) [Paul Krugman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-krugman/) > [Maybe there are only atheists in foxholes. If the faithful truly and fully believe in a protective deity, why would they dive into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anderson-thomson/maybe-there-are-only-atheists-in-foxholes-if-the-faithful-truly-and/) [J. Anderson Thomson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-anderson-thomson/) > [“There are plenty of atheists in foxholes. What I don't see are Christians in foxholes. If a Christian soldier takes a bullet to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-singleton/there-are-plenty-of-atheists-in-foxholes-what-i-don-t-see-are/) [Sam Singleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-singleton/) > [There are no atheists in foxholes" isn't an argument against atheism, it's an argument against foxholes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-no-atheists-in-foxholes-isn-t-an-argument-against-atheism/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“There’s a saying— there are no atheists in foxholes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarina-bowen/there-s-a-saying-there-are-no-atheists-in-foxholes/) [Sarina Bowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarina-bowen/) > [“Were there atheists in foxholes during World War II? Of course, as can be verified by my dogtags . . . A veteran of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-allen-smith/were-there-atheists-in-foxholes-during-world-war-ii-of-course-as-can/) [Warren Allen Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-allen-smith/) > [“There are no atheists in foxholes. Whoever had said that was right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-shay/there-are-no-atheists-in-foxholes-whoever-had-said-that-was-right/) [Kathryn Shay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-shay/) > [There are no atheists in the foxholes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-thomas-cummings/there-are-no-atheists-in-the-foxholes/) [William Thomas Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-thomas-cummings/) > [“There are no atheists in foxholes”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-stennett/there-are-no-atheists-in-foxholes/) [Mary Stennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-stennett/) ## 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 Atheism quotes > [From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/from-augustine-down-theologians-have-tried-to-compel-people-to-accept/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [No philosophy, no religion, has ever brought so glad a message to the world as this good news of Atheism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-besant/no-philosophy-no-religion-has-ever-brought-so-glad-a-message-to-the/) [Annie Besant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-besant/) > [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/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [God speaks through me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/god-speaks-through-me/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, of the manifestations of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty - it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/a-knowledge-of-the-existence-of-something-we-cannot-penetrate-of-the/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [You cannot ... transmute some incoherent mixture of words into sense merely by introducing the three-letter word "God" to be its grammatical subject.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-flew/you-cannot-transmute-some-incoherent-mixture-of-words-into-sense/) [Antony Flew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-flew/) > [Many humanists have argued that happiness involves a combination of hedonism and creative moral development; that an exuberant life fuses excellence and enjoyment, meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kurtz/many-humanists-have-argued-that-happiness-involves-a-combination-of/) [Paul Kurtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kurtz/) > [If, with all the time at my disposal, with all the wealth of the resources of this vast universe, to do with as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/if-with-all-the-time-at-my-disposal-with-all-the-wealth-of-the/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [Do you think that was kind? Do you think it was godlike? What would you think of a physician, if a woman came to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-h-gardener/do-you-think-that-was-kind-do-you-think-it-was-godlike-what-would-you/) [Helen H. Gardener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-h-gardener/) > [Science can destroy religion by ignoring it as well as by disproving its tenets. No one ever demonstrated, so far as I am aware,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/science-can-destroy-religion-by-ignoring-it-as-well-as-by-disproving/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [Honest investigation is utterly impossible within the pale of any church, for the reason, that if you think the church is right you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/honest-investigation-is-utterly-impossible-within-the-pale-of-any/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) [Browse all 4,769 Atheism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The sermon was based on what he claimed was a well-known fact, that there were no Atheists in foxholes. 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