--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is a choice before us as people who…" description: "\"There is a choice before us as people who live in a great world, so knit together that even America cannot stand quite outside it, or act as though it ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/812/maude-royden-36401_america_there-is-a-choice-before-us-as-people-wh_2956292.jpg" --- # There is a choice before us as people who live in a great… ![“There is a choice before us as people who live in a great world, so knit together that even America cannot stand quite outside it, or act as though it were situated somewhere on the moon! That choice is a choice - let me put it quite brutally - between heaven and hell. ... But it is not a choice…” quote by Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/812/maude-royden-36401_america_there-is-a-choice-before-us-as-people-wh_2956292.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/812/maude-royden-36401_america_there-is-a-choice-before-us-as-people-wh_2956292.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/812/maude-royden-36401_america_there-is-a-choice-before-us-as-people-wh_2956292.jpg) > “There is a choice before us as people who live in a great world, so knit together that even America cannot stand quite outside it, or act as though it were situated somewhere on the moon! That choice is a choice - let me put it quite brutally - between heaven and hell. ... But it is not a choice between a heaven or a hell beyond the grave; it is a choice between making heaven or making hell on this side of the grave, and in this world, here and now.” [Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People must choose to create heaven or hell on earth, not just await afterlife judgment. **In simple terms:** We create good or evil now, not just after death. Key Takeaway Choose actions that build a better world. Themes morality choice society Mood inspirational reflective Type religious social When to use this quote - community service - activism - policy making Key Concepts Ethics theology Questions to Reflect On - What does “making heaven” look like today? - How can we avoid “making hell”? A Different Perspective The dichotomy may oversimplify complex social issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Heaven and hell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven-and-hell/) [Hell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hell/) [Here and now](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/here-and-now/) [Moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moon/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [The choice we face is not, as many imagine, between heaven and hell. Rather, the choice is between heaven and this world. Even a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-hunt/the-choice-we-face-is-not-as-many-imagine-between-heaven-and-hell/) [Dave Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-hunt/) > [“The choice of heaven or hell starts right here on Earth. When we leave this life we will already know where we will go.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mihail-militaru/the-choice-of-heaven-or-hell-starts-right-here-on-earth-when-we-leave/) [Mihail Militaru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mihail-militaru/) > [Perspective; your own choice of heaven or hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabian-mark-s-henry-de-long/perspective-your-own-choice-of-heaven-or-hell/) [Sabian Mark S Henry De Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabian-mark-s-henry-de-long/) > [Earth is heaven. Or hell. Your choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/earth-is-heaven-or-hell-your-choice/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [“Heaven or Hell has ALWAYS been a choice one makes, and has never been a place one goes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-d-longoria-jr/heaven-or-hell-has-always-been-a-choice-one-makes-and-has-never-been/) [Raymond D. Longoria Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-d-longoria-jr/) > [Her beautiful eyes and lips were very grave as she made her choice, and Anthony thought again how naive was her every gesture; she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/her-beautiful-eyes-and-lips-were-very-grave-as-she-made-her-choice/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Hell is a choice because salvation is available to anyone who seeks it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-davidson/hell-is-a-choice-because-salvation-is-available-to-anyone-who-seeks-it/) [Andrew Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-davidson/) > [We always imagine that there's got to be somewhere else better than where we are right now; this is the Great Somewhere Else we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/we-always-imagine-that-there-s-got-to-be-somewhere-else-better-than/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [“Not long after I'd first met Doc, we were sitting on our rock on the hill behind the rose garden and I had asked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-courtenay/not-long-after-i-d-first-met-doc-we-were-sitting-on-our-rock-on-the/) Bruce Courtenay > [Heaven and hell are not very distant, they are neighbors; only a small fence divides them. You can jump that fence, even without a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/heaven-and-hell-are-not-very-distant-they-are-neighbors-only-a-small/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [“Beyond the earth, beyond the farthest skies I try to find Heaven and Hell. Then I hear a solemn voice that says: "Heaven and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omar-khayy-m/beyond-the-earth-beyond-the-farthest-skies-i-try-to-find-heaven-and/) [Omar Khayyám](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omar-khayy-m/) > [“Dear Die-ary, I've been to heaven and hell...and I still don't know if there is a god or a devil. Still...it's something to write…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jhonen-vasquez/dear-die-ary-i-ve-been-to-heaven-and-hell-and-i-still-don-t-know-if/) [Jhonen Vasquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jhonen-vasquez/) > [For Jesus, heaven and hell were present realities. Ways of living we can enter into here and now. He talked very little of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-bell/for-jesus-heaven-and-hell-were-present-realities-ways-of-living-we/) [Rob Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-bell/) > [“Look up at heaven and hell in the sky, for the stars are balls of fire suspended there by the angels.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/look-up-at-heaven-and-hell-in-the-sky-for-the-stars-are-balls-of-fire/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [The self is like a baseball. Throw it back to the divine pitcher who pitched it to you in the first place, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-kreeft/the-self-is-like-a-baseball-throw-it-back-to-the-divine-pitcher-who/) [Peter Kreeft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-kreeft/) ## More by Maude Royden > [we are beginning to understand that this instinct of sex which has been so great a cause of suffering and shame and has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maude-royden/we-are-beginning-to-understand-that-this-instinct-of-sex-which-has/) [Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) > [The laws of God work in the same way as the laws of Science. You cannot break them - you can only break yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maude-royden/the-laws-of-god-work-in-the-same-way-as-the-laws-of-science-you/) [Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) > [“When you have nothing left but God, you will realise God is enough.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maude-royden/when-you-have-nothing-left-but-god-you-will-realise-god-is-enough/) [Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) > [The importance of fear as a factor in war-making cannot be overlooked, and can hardly be overestimated. Any politician can play on panic when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maude-royden/the-importance-of-fear-as-a-factor-in-war-making-cannot-be-overlooked/) [Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) > [War may claim for itself the power to destroy and to clear the ground. It can never construct or create. It is not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maude-royden/war-may-claim-for-itself-the-power-to-destroy-and-to-clear-the-ground/) [Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) > [Learn to hold loosely all that is not eternal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maude-royden/learn-to-hold-loosely-all-that-is-not-eternal/) [Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) > [It is part of the amazing originality of Christ that there is to be found in his teaching no word whatever which suggests a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maude-royden/it-is-part-of-the-amazing-originality-of-christ-that-there-is-to-be/) [Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) > [We cannot break God's laws - but we can break ourselves against them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maude-royden/we-cannot-break-god-s-laws-but-we-can-break-ourselves-against-them/) [Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) > [The Church should go forward along the path of progress and be no longer satisfied only to represent the Conservative Party at prayer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maude-royden/the-church-should-go-forward-along-the-path-of-progress-and-be-no/) [Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) > [The corruption of the best is the worst.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maude-royden/the-corruption-of-the-best-is-the-worst/) [Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) > [It is possible for science to make the world like the Garden of Eden! Amen. But it is also possible, and sometimes it seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maude-royden/it-is-possible-for-science-to-make-the-world-like-the-garden-of-eden/) [Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) > [If you want to be a dear old lady at seventy you have to begin early, say about seventeen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maude-royden/if-you-want-to-be-a-dear-old-lady-at-seventy-you-have-to-begin-early/) [Maude Royden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) [Explore all 13 Maude Royden quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maude-royden/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) [Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There is a choice before us as people who live in a great world, so knit together that even America cannot stand quite outside it, or act as though it were situated somewhere on the moon! That choice is a choice - let me put it quite brutally - between heaven and hell. ... 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