--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Do you think we're making a mistake?\"…" description: "\"“Do you think we're making a mistake?\" snapped the Bishop. \"Not at all,\" said Dom Cristao. \"I think we've taken a step toward something truly magnifice..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a6/orson-scott-card-134_bishop_do-you-think-we-re-making-a-mistake-snap_2806591.png" --- # Do you think we're making a mistake?" snapped the Bishop… ![“Do you think we're making a mistake?" snapped the Bishop. "Not at all," said Dom Cristao. "I think we've taken a step toward something truly magnificent. But humankind almost never forgives true greatness." "Fortunately," said the Bishop, "humankind isn't the judge that matters. And now I intend…” quote by Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a6/orson-scott-card-134_bishop_do-you-think-we-re-making-a-mistake-snap_2806591.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a6/orson-scott-card-134_bishop_do-you-think-we-re-making-a-mistake-snap_2806591.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a6/orson-scott-card-134_bishop_do-you-think-we-re-making-a-mistake-snap_2806591.png) > ““Do you think we're making a mistake?" snapped the Bishop. "Not at all," said Dom Cristao. "I think we've taken a step toward something truly magnificent. But humankind almost never forgives true greatness." "Fortunately," said the Bishop, "humankind isn't the judge that matters. And now I intend to pray for this boy, since medical science has obviously reached the boundary of its competence.”” [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Characters discuss moral implications of scientific boundaries, forgiveness, and humanity’s judgment of greatness. **In simple terms:** Great achievements often face moral dilemmas and societal judgment. Key Takeaway Balance ambition with ethical reflection. Themes ethics science humanity Mood thoughtful philosophical Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - research ethics committees - public debates - philosophical education - policy making Key Concepts moral philosophy technological limits Questions to Reflect On - What responsibilities accompany groundbreaking discoveries? - How should society judge extraordinary achievements? A Different Perspective Progress may outpace moral consensus, causing conflict. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bishop/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Medical science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medical-science/) [True greatness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true-greatness/) ## Related quotes > [“Let’s see what you’ve got—as the actress said to the bishop,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-charteris/let-s-see-what-you-ve-got-as-the-actress-said-to-the-bishop/) [Leslie Charteris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-charteris/) > [“Red is an all-embracing colour,' said the bishop. 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I will weep with you over the children of kings, provided that you will weep with me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/our-tears-must-begin-before-louis-xvii-i-will-weep-with-you-over-the/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“You can't be too careful about work. It's the most dangerous habit known to medical science.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-o-neill/you-can-t-be-too-careful-about-work-it-s-the-most-dangerous-habit/) [Eugene O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-o-neill/) > [“I began to come into close contact with poverty, with hunger, with disease, with the inability to cure a child because of a lack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernesto-che-guevara/i-began-to-come-into-close-contact-with-poverty-with-hunger-with/) [Ernesto Che Guevara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernesto-che-guevara/) > [If it weren't for greed, intolerance, hate, passion and murder, you would have no works of art, no great buildings, no medical science, no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasper-fforde/if-it-weren-t-for-greed-intolerance-hate-passion-and-murder-you-would/) [Jasper Fforde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasper-fforde/) > [Progress of medical science so what's the use? When my heart scan can not show you his recent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/progress-of-medical-science-so-what-s-the-use-when-my-heart-scan-can/) Mak\_786 ## More by Orson Scott Card > [“You underestimate yourself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/you-underestimate-yourself/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [We're like the wicked witch. We promise gingerbread, then eat the little brats alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-re-like-the-wicked-witch-we-promise-gingerbread-then-eat-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“Why did he hesitate? He finally admitted to himself that he was like an American child who was almost completely certain about Santa Claus,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/why-did-he-hesitate-he-finally-admitted-to-himself-that-he-was-like/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“I don't know of a soul who doesn't maintain two separate lists of doctrines - the ones they believe they believe; and the ones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-don-t-know-of-a-soul-who-doesn-t-maintain-two-separate-lists-of/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [Good people do not let others suffer needlessly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/good-people-do-not-let-others-suffer-needlessly/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“The devil?” Jason heaved the tick over his shoulder like a collier with his sack. “Satan. The adversary. The enemy of the plan of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/the-devil-jason-heaved-the-tick-over-his-shoulder-like-a-collier-with/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“What we've done is make the categories of science fiction and fantasy larger, freer, and more inclusive than any other genre of contemporary literature.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/what-we-ve-done-is-make-the-categories-of-science-fiction-and-fantasy/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [Where ideas are real and reality is shadow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/where-ideas-are-real-and-reality-is-shadow/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“Ender, for the past few months you have been the battle commander of our fleets. This was the Third Invasion. There were no games,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/ender-for-the-past-few-months-you-have-been-the-battle-commander-of/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [Science fiction is about what could be but isn't; fantasy is about what couldn't be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/science-fiction-is-about-what-could-be-but-isn-t-fantasy-is-about/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [Knowledge is just opinion that you trust enough to act upon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/knowledge-is-just-opinion-that-you-trust-enough-to-act-upon/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“Of course they accused Marcão of having done it without provocation—that’s the way of torturers of every age, to put the blame on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/of-course-they-accused-marc-o-of-having-done-it-without-provocation/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“Civilization is only a pretense; in the crisis, we become mere apes again, forgetting the rational biped of our pretensions and becoming instead the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/civilization-is-only-a-pretense-in-the-crisis-we-become-mere-apes/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“Where did this whole thing begin? If what we think of as reality is just a pattern that somebody brought Outside, and the universe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/where-did-this-whole-thing-begin-if-what-we-think-of-as-reality-is/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) [Explore all 1,158 Orson Scott Card quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) ## More Bishop quotes > [“Who among us can claim normalcy, Bishop?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-marusek/who-among-us-can-claim-normalcy-bishop/) [David Marusek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-marusek/) > [Only a good bishop can be sacrificed, a bad bishop can only be lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuri-razuvaev/only-a-good-bishop-can-be-sacrificed-a-bad-bishop-can-only-be-lost/) Yuri Razuvaev > [Once a bishop is appointed, in terms of governance, we are semi-autonomous. It's not like we are branch managers of a bank or something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blase-j-cupich/once-a-bishop-is-appointed-in-terms-of-governance-we-are-semi/) [Blase J. Cupich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blase-j-cupich/) > [“We are like the moon. The moon shines anyway, but it does not produce its own light. It reflects the light illuminated onto its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/we-are-like-the-moon-the-moon-shines-anyway-but-it-does-not-produce/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignatius-of-antioch/wherever-the-bishop-shall-appear-there-let-the-multitude-also-be-even/) [Ignatius of Antioch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignatius-of-antioch/) > [“There were many candidates for this office, but none, thought the bishop, of the stuff of which an archdeacon is made. And he went…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-nathan/there-were-many-candidates-for-this-office-but-none-thought-the/) [Robert Nathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-nathan/) > [“CHAPTER XII—THE BISHOP WORKS”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/chapter-xii-the-bishop-works/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [It is important that the Church of London, which has now lost its ruler, should receive for its new bishop a man whose personal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-becket/it-is-important-that-the-church-of-london-which-has-now-lost-its/) [Thomas Becket](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-becket/) > [“Does it have a name? All of these fancy magical weapons usually have names." Bishop glared at her. "Yeah. I like to call it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-rowen/does-it-have-a-name-all-of-these-fancy-magical-weapons-usually-have/) [Michelle Rowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-rowen/) > [I think that the Pope has trust in every bishop that is appointed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blase-j-cupich/i-think-that-the-pope-has-trust-in-every-bishop-that-is-appointed/) [Blase J. Cupich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blase-j-cupich/) > [“The Bishop blessed him and helped him to his feet. "May God have mercy on you," he said. And erased him from his heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/the-bishop-blessed-him-and-helped-him-to-his-feet-may-god-have-mercy/) [Gabriel García Márquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [How can a bishop marry? How can he flirt? The most he can say is "I will see you in the vestry after service."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/how-can-a-bishop-marry-how-can-he-flirt-the-most-he-can-say-is-i-will/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [“Chandler’s “She was blonde enough to make a bishop kick a hole through a stained-glass window”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/chandler-s-she-was-blonde-enough-to-make-a-bishop-kick-a-hole-through/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [“The power of self deception is great in the case of all men, but I incline to think that it is greatest in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hensley-henson/the-power-of-self-deception-is-great-in-the-case-of-all-men-but-i/) Herbert Hensley Henson > [I did think of becoming a priest quite late on, when other boys were thinking of knocking over fences and going out with girls.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colm-toibin/i-did-think-of-becoming-a-priest-quite-late-on-when-other-boys-were/) [Colm Toibin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colm-toibin/) [Browse all 108 Bishop quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bishop/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Do you think we're making a mistake?\" snapped the Bishop. \"Not at all,\" said Dom Cristao. \"I think we've taken a step toward something truly magnificent. 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