--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Yet I returned to the central values of…" description: "\"“Yet I returned to the central values of Christianity - sacrifice, redemption, forgiveness - because I found them so compelling. There is a tension in ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/055/paul-kalanithi-5204_bible_yet-i-returned-to-the-central-values-of_1618440.jpg" --- # Yet I returned to the central values of Christianity… ![“Yet I returned to the central values of Christianity - sacrifice, redemption, forgiveness - because I found them so compelling. There is a tension in the Bible between justice and mercy, between the Old Testament and the New Testament. And the New testament says you can never be good enough…” quote by Paul Kalanithi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/055/paul-kalanithi-5204_bible_yet-i-returned-to-the-central-values-of_1618440.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/055/paul-kalanithi-5204_bible_yet-i-returned-to-the-central-values-of_1618440.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/055/paul-kalanithi-5204_bible_yet-i-returned-to-the-central-values-of_1618440.jpg) > ““Yet I returned to the central values of Christianity - sacrifice, redemption, forgiveness - because I found them so compelling. There is a tension in the Bible between justice and mercy, between the Old Testament and the New Testament. And the New testament says you can never be good enough: goodness is the thing and you can never live up to it. The main message of Jesus, I believed, is that mercy trumps justice every time.”” [Paul Kalanithi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kalanithi/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker emphasizes that Christian core values—sacrifice, redemption, forgiveness—are compelling, highlighting a tension between justice and mercy, and asserting that mercy ultimately overrides justice. **In simple terms:** Christian values are compelling; mercy outweighs justice. Key Takeaway Prioritize mercy over strict justice. Themes faith ethics redemption forgiveness justice Mood reflective hopeful serene Type philosophical inspirational theological When to use this quote - personal crisis - ethical decision making - interfaith dialogue - counseling Key Concepts theology humanism spiritual tension Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance mercy with the need for accountability? - When might justice be more appropriate than mercy? A Different Perspective Mercy can be seen as subjective and may conflict with legal fairness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Believed Mercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believed-mercy-236469/) [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bible/) [Bible Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bible-justice-236468/) [Christianity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) [Compassion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compassion/) [Forgiveness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forgiveness/) [Good enough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-enough/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) [Justice and mercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice-and-mercy/) [Justice Mercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice-mercy-236470/) [Mercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mercy/) [New testament](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-testament/) [Old testament](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-testament/) [Values Christianity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values-christianity-236467/) ## Related quotes > [The living God is a God of justice and mercy and He will be satisfied with nothing less than a people in whom his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lesslie-newbigin/the-living-god-is-a-god-of-justice-and-mercy-and-he-will-be-satisfied/) [Lesslie Newbigin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lesslie-newbigin/) > [Justice and mercy/ Are human dreams, they do not concern the birds nor the fish nor eternal God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/justice-and-mercy-are-human-dreams-they-do-not-concern-the-birds-nor/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [By definition, the big difference between mercy and justice is that mercy is never ever obligatory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-c-sproul/by-definition-the-big-difference-between-mercy-and-justice-is-that/) [R. 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Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-t-wright-2/) > [If we could just figure out how to have more fun at it, maybe more of us would join the ranks of those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-fulghum/if-we-could-just-figure-out-how-to-have-more-fun-at-it-maybe-more-of/) [Robert Fulghum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-fulghum/) > [The point of justice and mercy anyway is not ‘they deserve it’ but ‘this is the way God’s world should be’, and we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-t-wright-2/the-point-of-justice-and-mercy-anyway-is-not-they-deserve-it-but-this/) [N. T. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-t-wright-2/) > [There are some great values in Christianity, but I think the values are located more deeply in our humanity than they are in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-shelby-spong/there-are-some-great-values-in-christianity-but-i-think-the-values/) [John Shelby Spong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-shelby-spong/) > [Temper justice with mercy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/temper-justice-with-mercy/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [“Justice without mercy is tyranny ~ ©1978”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-j-i-osborne/justice-without-mercy-is-tyranny-1978/) [E'Jéi Osborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-j-i-osborne/) > [The essence of justice is mercy. Making a child suffer for wrong-doing is merciful to the child. There is no mercy in letting the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-hubbel-chapin/the-essence-of-justice-is-mercy-making-a-child-suffer-for-wrong-doing/) [Edwin Hubbel Chapin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-hubbel-chapin/) > [“Thankfully, God has shown us that hope, in its million different forms, always springs from three primary colors: justice, mercy, and love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dahlstrom/thankfully-god-has-shown-us-that-hope-in-its-million-different-forms/) [Richard Dahlstrom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dahlstrom/) > [... justice is mercy's highest self.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-hodgson-burnett/justice-is-mercy-s-highest-self/) [Frances Hodgson Burnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-hodgson-burnett/) > [I do believe, with all my heart and mind and spirit, that I, not as President but as a humble servant of God, will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-r-ford/i-do-believe-with-all-my-heart-and-mind-and-spirit-that-i-not-as/) [Gerald R. Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-r-ford/) ## More by Paul Kalanithi > [“operative risk, it was the best kind of tumor to have, and the best place to have it; surgery would almost certainly eliminate her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kalanithi/operative-risk-it-was-the-best-kind-of-tumor-to-have-and-the-best/) [Paul Kalanithi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kalanithi/) > [“If the unexamined life was not worth living, was the unlived life worth examining?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kalanithi/if-the-unexamined-life-was-not-worth-living-was-the-unlived-life/) [Paul Kalanithi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kalanithi/) > [“Yet the paradox is that scientific methodology is the product of human hands and thus cannot reach some permanent truth. 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No philosopher can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kalanithi/to-the-east-the-full-light-of-day-beamed-toward-you-to-the-west-night/) [Paul Kalanithi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kalanithi/) > [“I acted not, as I most often did, as death’s enemy, but as its ambassador. I had to help those families understand that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kalanithi/i-acted-not-as-i-most-often-did-as-death-s-enemy-but-as-its/) [Paul Kalanithi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kalanithi/) > [“A scan showed that a benign brain tumor was pressing on her right frontal lobe. In terms of operative risk, it was the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kalanithi/a-scan-showed-that-a-benign-brain-tumor-was-pressing-on-her-right/) [Paul Kalanithi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kalanithi/) > [“Now more than ever, you have to be there for each other. I don’t want either of you staying up all night at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kalanithi/now-more-than-ever-you-have-to-be-there-for-each-other-i-don-t-want/) [Paul Kalanithi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kalanithi/) > [“The funny thing about time in the OR, whether you race frenetically or proceed steadily, is that you have no sense of it passing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kalanithi/the-funny-thing-about-time-in-the-or-whether-you-race-frenetically-or/) [Paul Kalanithi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kalanithi/) > [“Learn to be fast now. You can learn to be good later.” In the OR, everyone’s eyes are always on the clock. For the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kalanithi/learn-to-be-fast-now-you-can-learn-to-be-good-later-in-the-or/) [Paul Kalanithi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kalanithi/) > [“I felt that the last thing he needed was the obligation to service a new friendship.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kalanithi/i-felt-that-the-last-thing-he-needed-was-the-obligation-to-service-a/) [Paul Kalanithi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kalanithi/) [Explore all 100 Paul Kalanithi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kalanithi/) ## More Bible quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [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/) > [“God hates Hell. 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