--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It was a miracle; it was all a miracle…" description: "\"It was a miracle; it was all a miracle: and one ought to have known, from the sufferings of saints, that miracles are horror.\" — Nadine Gordimer" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/nadine-gordimer-3358_horror_it-was-a-miracle-it-was-all-a-miracle-an_220494.jpg" --- # It was a miracle; it was all a miracle: and one ought to… ![“It was a miracle; it was all a miracle: and one ought to have known, from the sufferings of saints, that miracles are horror.” quote by Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/nadine-gordimer-3358_horror_it-was-a-miracle-it-was-all-a-miracle-an_220494.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/nadine-gordimer-3358_horror_it-was-a-miracle-it-was-all-a-miracle-an_220494.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/nadine-gordimer-3358_horror_it-was-a-miracle-it-was-all-a-miracle-an_220494.jpg) > “It was a miracle; it was all a miracle: and one ought to have known, from the sufferings of saints, that miracles are horror.” [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Miracles coexist with suffering; they can be terrifying as they reveal deep pain. **In simple terms:** Miracles can be frightening. Key Takeaway Recognize the darkness in awe. Themes miracle uffering paradox faith horror Mood thoughtful somber Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal crisis - spiritual reflection - artistic analysis Key Concepts existentialism theology human condition Questions to Reflect On - What makes a miracle feel horrific? - How do we reconcile awe with suffering? A Different Perspective Miracles may be romanticized, ignoring pain. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Horror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horror/) [Miracle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miracle/) [Miracles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miracles/) [Saint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saint/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) ## Related quotes > [All saints can do miracles, but few of them can keep a hotel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/all-saints-can-do-miracles-but-few-of-them-can-keep-a-hotel/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“To Father Rothschild no passage was worse than any other. He thought of the sufferings of the saints, the mutability of human nature, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/to-father-rothschild-no-passage-was-worse-than-any-other-he-thought/) [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) > [Does there exist a single instance of a saint asserting that he himself possessed the gift of miracles?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-gibbon/does-there-exist-a-single-instance-of-a-saint-asserting-that-he/) [Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-gibbon/) > [Highest Providence often works a wonderful miracle: that of having evil men make others who are evil to become good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/severinus-of-noricum/highest-providence-often-works-a-wonderful-miracle-that-of-having/) Severinus of Noricum > [To become a saint in the Catholic Church, the normal procedure is, beatification, requiring one miracle in your name, then canonization, roughly in five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-matthews/to-become-a-saint-in-the-catholic-church-the-normal-procedure-is/) [Chris Matthews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-matthews/) > [We can use our art to become political, to become something you want to talk about. We make clothes, but we have the chance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivier-rousteing/we-can-use-our-art-to-become-political-to-become-something-you-want/) [Olivier Rousteing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivier-rousteing/) > [It takes all sorts to make a world - saints as well as soldiers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-anderson/it-takes-all-sorts-to-make-a-world-saints-as-well-as-soldiers/) [Anthony Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-anderson/) > [“Everything about me sounds wonderful and kind. (I'm pretty much a fuckin' saint).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-edwards/everything-about-me-sounds-wonderful-and-kind-i-m-pretty-much-a/) [Helen Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-edwards/) > [I think being raised within a Mexican Catholic family made magical realism a very natural part of who I am as a person and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-olivas/i-think-being-raised-within-a-mexican-catholic-family-made-magical/) [Daniel Olivas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-olivas/) > [Every Latter-day Saint should make the study of this book a lifetime pursuit. Otherwise, he is placing his soul in jeopardy and neglecting that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/every-latter-day-saint-should-make-the-study-of-this-book-a-lifetime/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) > [God has often given His people favor in the sight of heathen masters (as Joseph and Daniel), and has magnified the sufficiency of His…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-w-pink/god-has-often-given-his-people-favor-in-the-sight-of-heathen-masters/) [Arthur W. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-w-pink/) > [Pray, Hope, and Don't Worry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pio-of-pietrelcina/pray-hope-and-don-t-worry/) [Pio of Pietrelcina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pio-of-pietrelcina/) > [Pray to Saint Philomena, What ever you ask from her, She will obtain for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-gregory-xvi/pray-to-saint-philomena-what-ever-you-ask-from-her-she-will-obtain/) [Pope Gregory XVI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-gregory-xvi/) > [I knew a girl so ugly, she had a face like a saint-a Saint Bernard!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-dangerfield/i-knew-a-girl-so-ugly-she-had-a-face-like-a-saint-a-saint-bernard/) [Rodney Dangerfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-dangerfield/) > [Whoever does not seek the cross of Christ doesn't seek the glory of Christ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-the-cross/whoever-does-not-seek-the-cross-of-christ-doesn-t-seek-the-glory-of/) [John of the Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-the-cross/) ## More by Nadine Gordimer > [Fiction is a way of exploring possibilities present but undreamt of in the living of a single life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/fiction-is-a-way-of-exploring-possibilities-present-but-undreamt-of/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [I'm a candle flame that sways in currents of air you can't see. You need to be the one who steadies me to burn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/i-m-a-candle-flame-that-sways-in-currents-of-air-you-can-t-see-you/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [The facts are always less than what really happened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/the-facts-are-always-less-than-what-really-happened/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [“Death's the discarder.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/death-s-the-discarder/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [Mostly I'm interviewed by white people, and identified with white society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/mostly-i-m-interviewed-by-white-people-and-identified-with-white/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [“I would be guilty only if I were innocent of working to destroy racism in my country.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/i-would-be-guilty-only-if-i-were-innocent-of-working-to-destroy/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [“Death is really the mystery of life, isn't it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/death-is-really-the-mystery-of-life-isn-t-it/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [Sincerity is never having an idea of oneself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/sincerity-is-never-having-an-idea-of-oneself/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [“you like to have some cup of tea?-July bent at the doorway and began that day for them as his kind has always done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/you-like-to-have-some-cup-of-tea-july-bent-at-the-doorway-and-began/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [Afrikaner women are lower than rats, closer related to plants, just fit enough to be raped in an act of genus preservation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/afrikaner-women-are-lower-than-rats-closer-related-to-plants-just-fit/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [The country of the tourist pamphlet always is another country, an embarrassing abstraction of the desirable that, thank God, does not exist on this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/the-country-of-the-tourist-pamphlet-always-is-another-country-an/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [Well, you know, in the fundamentalist milieu of the Afrikaners, there was a sense that they were a chosen people, that they were bringing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/well-you-know-in-the-fundamentalist-milieu-of-the-afrikaners-there/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [Sentiment is for those who don't know what to do next.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/sentiment-is-for-those-who-don-t-know-what-to-do-next/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [Success sometimes may be defined as a disaster put on hold. Qualified. Has to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/success-sometimes-may-be-defined-as-a-disaster-put-on-hold-qualified/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [Responsibility is what awaits outside the Eden of Creativity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/responsibility-is-what-awaits-outside-the-eden-of-creativity/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) [Explore all 131 Nadine Gordimer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) ## More Horror quotes > [“In the attempt to find the just measure of horror and terror, I came upon the writing of Carole Gill whose work revealed a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carole-gill/in-the-attempt-to-find-the-just-measure-of-horror-and-terror-i-came/) [Carole Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carole-gill/) > [I will say that when it comes to the horror genre, for me, the scariest thing is when something is actually in the frame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leigh-whannell/i-will-say-that-when-it-comes-to-the-horror-genre-for-me-the-scariest/) [Leigh Whannell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leigh-whannell/) > [Pakistan now is like a horror film franchise. You know, it's 'Friday the 13th, Episode 63: The Terrorist from Pakistan.' And each time we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/pakistan-now-is-like-a-horror-film-franchise-you-know-it-s-friday-the/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) > [“October 3, 2017 The clown, Hagarty said, looked like a cross between Ronald McDonald and that old TV clown, Bozo—or so he thought at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/october-3-2017-the-clown-hagarty-said-looked-like-a-cross-between/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [What I love about watching classic horror films is that they take you on a ride and they obviously make you scared because you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-holmes/what-i-love-about-watching-classic-horror-films-is-that-they-take-you/) [Katie Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-holmes/) > [One day, if I had to do a horror movie, it will be a very realistic war movie. For me, war is horror.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaspar-noe/one-day-if-i-had-to-do-a-horror-movie-it-will-be-a-very-realistic-war/) [Gaspar Noe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaspar-noe/) > [“Flakes of snow swirled and danced across the porch. The Overlook faced it as it had for nearly three-quarters of a century, its darkened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/flakes-of-snow-swirled-and-danced-across-the-porch-the-overlook-faced/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Damn it, it wasn’t quite fresh enough!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft-2/damn-it-it-wasn-t-quite-fresh-enough/) [H.P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft-2/) > [The ghost story movie that scared me the most was The Changeling with George C. Scott. I think that's sometimes overlooked, but it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-ghost-story-movie-that-scared-me-the-most-was-the-changeling-with/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Photojournalists know the horrors of war can only be exposed at close range. Kodak Film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nachtwey/photojournalists-know-the-horrors-of-war-can-only-be-exposed-at-close/) [James Nachtwey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-nachtwey/) > [“Other folk thought the Rage was simple bloodlust, a berserk savagery that neither knew nor cared what its target was, and so it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-weber/other-folk-thought-the-rage-was-simple-bloodlust-a-berserk-savagery/) [David Weber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-weber/) > [“When we mated I felt your heart stop beating and it was as if the world had stopped turning. It was only while surrounded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nenia-campbell/when-we-mated-i-felt-your-heart-stop-beating-and-it-was-as-if-the/) [Nenia Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nenia-campbell/) > [I'm generally never at a lack for words, but it's indescribable how poor the response was from our own government officials, ... We could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannibal/i-m-generally-never-at-a-lack-for-words-but-it-s-indescribable-how/) [Hannibal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannibal/) > [“Unlike the rest he had seen of the bungalow, the hall beyond the door was dark. He could see the glimmer of three doors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramsey-campbell/unlike-the-rest-he-had-seen-of-the-bungalow-the-hall-beyond-the-door/) [Ramsey Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramsey-campbell/) > [Some of my fondest and most impressionable movie memories are from those early sci-fi and horror films. I've always been a Dracula/vampire aficionado, being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-wise/some-of-my-fondest-and-most-impressionable-movie-memories-are-from/) [Ray Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-wise/) [Browse all 4,296 Horror quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horror/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It was a miracle; it was all a miracle: and one ought to have known, from the sufferings of saints, that miracles are horror.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nadine Gordimer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/it-was-a-miracle-it-was-all-a-miracle-and-one-ought-to-have-known/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Horror" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/it-was-a-miracle-it-was-all-a-miracle-and-one-ought-to-have-known/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/nadine-gordimer-3358_horror_it-was-a-miracle-it-was-all-a-miracle-an_220494.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/nadine-gordimer-3358_horror_it-was-a-miracle-it-was-all-a-miracle-an_220494.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/nadine-gordimer-3358_horror_it-was-a-miracle-it-was-all-a-miracle-an_220494.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It was a miracle; it was all a miracle: and one ought to have known, from the sufferings of saints, that…” — Nadine Gordimer", "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": "Nadine Gordimer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It was a miracle; it was...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/it-was-a-miracle-it-was-all-a-miracle-and-one-ought-to-have-known/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/it-was-a-miracle-it-was-all-a-miracle-and-one-ought-to-have-known/#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 } } ] } ```