---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm as true a Protestant, in sooth, as…"
description: "\"I'm as true a Protestant, in sooth, as any fine lady that walks into church, but it's not wrong to turn sometimes to the good St. Nicholas.\" — Mary Map..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/696/mary-mapes-dodge-34591_church_i-m-as-true-a-protestant-in-sooth-as-any_2159907.jpg"
---

#  I'm as true a Protestant, in sooth, as any fine lady that…

![“I'm as true a Protestant, in sooth, as any fine lady that walks into church, but it's not wrong to turn sometimes to the good St. Nicholas.” quote by Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/696/mary-mapes-dodge-34591_church_i-m-as-true-a-protestant-in-sooth-as-any_2159907.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/696/mary-mapes-dodge-34591_church_i-m-as-true-a-protestant-in-sooth-as-any_2159907.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/696/mary-mapes-dodge-34591_church_i-m-as-true-a-protestant-in-sooth-as-any_2159907.jpg)

> “I'm as true a Protestant, in sooth, as any fine lady that walks into church, but it's not wrong to turn sometimes to the good St. Nicholas.”

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A woman acknowledges her Protestant faith yet admits to occasionally seeking the comfort of a more popular saint.

**In simple terms:** She balances personal belief with occasional alternative devotion.

Key Takeaway

Accept diverse comforts without abandoning core faith.

Themes

faith tradition personal comfort religion balance

Mood

reflective conflicted thoughtful

Type

aphilosophical personal

When to use this quote

- family gatherings
- personal crises
- holiday traditions

Key Concepts

Protestantism syncretism cultural practice

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you reconcile personal comfort with doctrinal expectations?
- What role do cultural traditions play in personal faith?

A Different Perspective

May conflict with doctrinal purity for some believers.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/) [Fine lady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fine-lady/) [Protestant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protestant/) [Protestants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protestants/) [St nicholas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/st-nicholas/)

## Related quotes

> [“walks into a church, a temple”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/various/walks-into-a-church-a-temple/)

Various

> [“What do you learn at school, then?" "We learn about the Prophet and his three hundred authenticated miracles,and about Abraham and Isaac and Jonah…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-de-bernieres/what-do-you-learn-at-school-then-we-learn-about-the-prophet-and-his/)

[Louis de Bernières](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-de-bernieres/)

> [“Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; The stockings were hung by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clement-clarke-moore/twas-the-night-before-christmas-when-all-through-the-house-not-a-2/)

[Clement Clarke Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clement-clarke-moore/)

> [The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clement-clarke-moore/the-stockings-were-hung-by-the-chimney-with-care-in-hopes-that-st/)

[Clement Clarke Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clement-clarke-moore/)

> [Now, 'Dasher!' now, 'Dancer!' now, 'Prancer' and 'Vixen!' On, 'Comet!' on, 'Cupid!' on, 'Donner' and 'Blitzen!'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clement-clarke-moore/now-dasher-now-dancer-now-prancer-and-vixen-on-comet-on-cupid-on/)

[Clement Clarke Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clement-clarke-moore/)

> [The children were nestled all snug in their beds,while visions of sugar plums danced in their heads.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clement-clarke-moore/the-children-were-nestled-all-snug-in-their-beds-while-visions-of/)

[Clement Clarke Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clement-clarke-moore/)

> [Never deny the babies their Christmas! It is the shining seal set upon, a year of happiness. Let them believe in Santa Claus, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-virginia-terhune/never-deny-the-babies-their-christmas-it-is-the-shining-seal-set-upon/)

[Mary Virginia Terhune](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-virginia-terhune/)

> [“We did not oversleep at St. Nicholas. The church-bell began to ring at four-thirty in the morning, and from the length of time it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain-samuel-clemens/we-did-not-oversleep-at-st-nicholas-the-church-bell-began-to-ring-at/)

Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens

> [“In the Christmas season of 1822, Clement Clarke Moore, a prosperous New York scholar and landowner, wrote a series of verses in a lively…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-bowler/in-the-christmas-season-of-1822-clement-clarke-moore-a-prosperous-new/)

[Gerry Bowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-bowler/)

> [Rays were blazing through the atmosphere of the earth, the horizon became bright orange, gradually passing into all the colors of the rainbow: from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuri-gagarin/rays-were-blazing-through-the-atmosphere-of-the-earth-the-horizon/)

[Yuri Gagarin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuri-gagarin/)

> [“July is a bad month for revolutionaries. In France, Robespierre was executed in July; in Russia, five eminent Decembrists, who had revolted against Nicholas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edvard-radzinsky/july-is-a-bad-month-for-revolutionaries-in-france-robespierre-was/)

Edvard Radzinsky

> [“of toys—and St. Nicholas too.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/of-toys-and-st-nicholas-too/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Who's St Nicholas? I don't want him, I want Father Christmas!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-bailey/who-s-st-nicholas-i-don-t-want-him-i-want-father-christmas/)

[Scarlett Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-bailey/)

> [“ First maid: If I was a princess, with silver and gold, And loved by a hero, I'd never grow old: Oh, if a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/first-maid-if-i-was-a-princess-with-silver-and-gold-and-loved-by-a/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [A fine lady; by which term I wish to express the result of that perfect education in taste and manner, down to every gesture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-kingsley/a-fine-lady-by-which-term-i-wish-to-express-the-result-of-that/)

[Charles Kingsley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-kingsley/)

## More by Mary Mapes Dodge

> [Whenever a snowflake leaves the sky,It turns and turns to say "Good-by!Good-by, dear clouds, so cool and gray!"Then lightly travels on its way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/whenever-a-snowflake-leaves-the-sky-it-turns-and-turns-to-say-good-by/)

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

> [But when a snowflake, brave and meek,Lights on a rosy maiden's cheek,It starts-"How warm and soft the day!""'T is summer!" and it melts away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/but-when-a-snowflake-brave-and-meek-lights-on-a-rosy-maiden-s-cheek/)

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

> [Now the noisy winds are still; April's coming up the hill! All the spring is in her train, Led by shining ranks of rain;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/now-the-noisy-winds-are-still-april-s-coming-up-the-hill-all-the/)

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

> [ \[On The Netherlands:\] ... the entire country is a kind of saturated sponge. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/on-the-netherlands-the-entire-country-is-a-kind-of-saturated-sponge/)

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

> [ \[On the Netherlands:\] There is not a richer or more carefully tilled garden spot in the whole world than this leaky, springy little country. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/on-the-netherlands-there-is-not-a-richer-or-more-carefully-tilled/)

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

> [She waits for me, my lady Earth, Smiles and waits and sighs; I'll say her nay, and hide away, Then take her by surprise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/she-waits-for-me-my-lady-earth-smiles-and-waits-and-sighs-i-ll-say/)

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

> [Ten years dropped from a man's life are no small loss; ten years of manhood, of household happiness and care; ten years of honest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/ten-years-dropped-from-a-man-s-life-are-no-small-loss-ten-years-of/)

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

> [Grandma told me all about it, Told me so I couldn't doubt it, How she danced, my grandma danced; long ago…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/grandma-told-me-all-about-it-told-me-so-i-couldn-t-doubt-it-how-she/)

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

> [Luxuries unfit us for returning to hardships easily endured before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/luxuries-unfit-us-for-returning-to-hardships-easily-endured-before/)

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

> [Life is a mystery as deep as ever death can be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/life-is-a-mystery-as-deep-as-ever-death-can-be/)

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

> [But I believe that God is overheadAnd as life is to the living, so death is to the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/but-i-believe-that-god-is-overheadand-as-life-is-to-the-living-so/)

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

> [What a dreadful thing it must be to have a dull father.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/what-a-dreadful-thing-it-must-be-to-have-a-dull-father/)

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

> [“a half-dollar's worth will sometimes do for the poor what hundreds of dollars may fail to do for the rich; it makes them happy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/a-half-dollar-s-worth-will-sometimes-do-for-the-poor-what-hundreds-of/)

[Mary Mapes Dodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

[Explore all 14 Mary Mapes Dodge quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/)

## More Church quotes

> [While the 1963 Birmingham church bombing is the most historic, there also was a series of church burnings in the 1990s. Recognition of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthea-butler/while-the-1963-birmingham-church-bombing-is-the-most-historic-there/)

[Anthea Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthea-butler/)

> [If I had my brothers I think with just a little bit of the correct marketing, I'd like to be almost exclusively in small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-bozzio/if-i-had-my-brothers-i-think-with-just-a-little-bit-of-the-correct/)

[Terry Bozzio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-bozzio/)

> [Turn over the pages of history and read the damning record of the church's opposition to every advance in every field of science. . . .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/upton-sinclair/turn-over-the-pages-of-history-and-read-the-damning-record-of-the/)

[Upton Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/upton-sinclair/)

> [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/)

> [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/)

[Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/)

> [God is not calling us to go to church; he is calling us to be his church, the hope of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-groeschel/god-is-not-calling-us-to-go-to-church-he-is-calling-us-to-be-his/)

[Craig Groeschel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-groeschel/)

> [The emerging church movement has come to believe that the ultimate context of the spiritual aspirations of a follower of Jesus Christ is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samir-selmanovic/the-emerging-church-movement-has-come-to-believe-that-the-ultimate/)

[Samir Selmanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samir-selmanovic/)

> [ T\]he church is not a place. It's not a building. It's not a preaching point. It's not a spiritual service provider. It's a people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/t-he-church-is-not-a-place-it-s-not-a-building-it-s-not-a-preaching/)

[Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/)

> [There could be no more powerful argument against mixing religion and government than the success of independent African American churches in placing racial segregation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jacoby/there-could-be-no-more-powerful-argument-against-mixing-religion-and/)

[Susan Jacoby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jacoby/)

> [Worship is not about personality, temperament, personal limitations, church background, or comfort. It is about God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wimber/worship-is-not-about-personality-temperament-personal-limitations/)

[John Wimber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wimber/)

> [A beggarly people, A church and no steeple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-b-macaulay/a-beggarly-people-a-church-and-no-steeple/)

[Thomas B. Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-b-macaulay/)

> [Pound St. Paul's Church into atoms, and consider any single atom; it is to be sure, good for nothing; but put all these atoms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/pound-st-paul-s-church-into-atoms-and-consider-any-single-atom-it-is/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [The religion of art, like the religion of politics, was born from the ruins of Christianity. Art inherited from the old religion the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/the-religion-of-art-like-the-religion-of-politics-was-born-from-the/)

[Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/)

> [The minute you walk outside of your church on Sunday you're in mission territory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/the-minute-you-walk-outside-of-your-church-on-sunday-you-re-in/)

[Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/)

> [I'm not ashamed of the things I believe and why I believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-huckabee/i-m-not-ashamed-of-the-things-i-believe-and-why-i-believe-them/)

[Mike Huckabee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-huckabee/)

[Browse all 9,430 Church quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I'm as true a Protestant, in sooth, as any fine lady that walks into church, but it's not wrong to turn sometimes to the good St. Nicholas.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Mary Mapes Dodge"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/i-m-as-true-a-protestant-in-sooth-as-any-fine-lady-that-walks-into/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Church"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/i-m-as-true-a-protestant-in-sooth-as-any-fine-lady-that-walks-into/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/696/mary-mapes-dodge-34591_church_i-m-as-true-a-protestant-in-sooth-as-any_2159907.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/696/mary-mapes-dodge-34591_church_i-m-as-true-a-protestant-in-sooth-as-any_2159907.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/696/mary-mapes-dodge-34591_church_i-m-as-true-a-protestant-in-sooth-as-any_2159907.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I'm as true a Protestant, in sooth, as any fine lady that walks into church, but it's not wrong to turn…” — Mary Mapes Dodge",
                "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": "Mary Mapes Dodge",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mapes-dodge/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I'm as true a Protestant, in...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/i-m-as-true-a-protestant-in-sooth-as-any-fine-lady-that-walks-into/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mapes-dodge/i-m-as-true-a-protestant-in-sooth-as-any-fine-lady-that-walks-into/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
