---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We may, perhaps, imagine that the…"
description: "\"We may, perhaps, imagine that the creation was finished long ago. But that would be quite wrong. It continues still more magnificently, and at the high..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin-134_creation_we-may-perhaps-imagine-that-the-creation_299848.jpg"
---

#  We may, perhaps, imagine that the creation was finished…

![“We may, perhaps, imagine that the creation was finished long ago. But that would be quite wrong. It continues still more magnificently, and at the highest levels of the world.” quote by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin-134_creation_we-may-perhaps-imagine-that-the-creation_299848.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin-134_creation_we-may-perhaps-imagine-that-the-creation_299848.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin-134_creation_we-may-perhaps-imagine-that-the-creation_299848.jpg)

> “We may, perhaps, imagine that the creation was finished long ago. But that would be quite wrong. It continues still more magnificently, and at the highest levels of the world.”

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

## About This Quote

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

Creation is an ongoing, evolving process that continues to develop magnificently at the highest levels of existence.

**In simple terms:** Creation is ongoing and ever‑more magnificent.

Key Takeaway

Embrace continual growth and evolution.

Themes

spirituality evolution cosmology

Mood

inspired hopeful

Type

philosophical spiritual

When to use this quote

- scientific research
- personal development
- environmental stewardship
- cultural evolution

Key Concepts

process philosophy systems theory theology

Questions to Reflect On

- How does this view affect our sense of purpose?
- What responsibilities arise from seeing creation as ongoing?

A Different Perspective

Human understanding may be limited.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Creation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creation/) [Long ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-ago/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/)

## Related quotes

> [Many patients imagine that they have tried everything. True, they have used many remedies, but they have never had the cause of their infirmity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-d-palmer/many-patients-imagine-that-they-have-tried-everything-true-they-have/)

[Daniel D. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-d-palmer/)

> [Do you know, I always imagine that the subway trains are dragons,' Rose said to Bear as they clung to his coat for support…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/regina-doman/do-you-know-i-always-imagine-that-the-subway-trains-are-dragons-rose/)

[Regina Doman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/regina-doman/)

> [The stories on standardized tests don't have one author, therefore they can never authentically be in the first person. Imagine that! Everywhere, there are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-zambra/the-stories-on-standardized-tests-don-t-have-one-author-therefore/)

[Alejandro Zambra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-zambra/)

> [It seems disrespectful to me to see ladies in church in very short skirts or skimpy, sleeveless tops. I would imagine that it could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-elliot/it-seems-disrespectful-to-me-to-see-ladies-in-church-in-very-short/)

[Elisabeth Elliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-elliot/)

> [In terms of earthly life as you understand it, it is overly optimistic to imagine that eventually all illnesses will be conquered, all relationships…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-roberts/in-terms-of-earthly-life-as-you-understand-it-it-is-overly-optimistic/)

[Jane Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-roberts/)

> [You must never imagine, that just because something is funny, it is not also dangerous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/you-must-never-imagine-that-just-because-something-is-funny-it-is-not/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [If you read the 'Daily Mail,' you would imagine that the British middle classes lead lives of unremitting misery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-hoggart/if-you-read-the-daily-mail-you-would-imagine-that-the-british-middle/)

[Simon Hoggart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-hoggart/)

> [Don't think of us as separate beings. Imagine that we are one body and it's been split into millions. When we sit in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/don-t-think-of-us-as-separate-beings-imagine-that-we-are-one-body-and/)

[Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/)

> [I imagine that in a closed, hermetic society like the mob, where everybody knows each other, it must be really, really unpleasant to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-dominik/i-imagine-that-in-a-closed-hermetic-society-like-the-mob-where/)

[Andrew Dominik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-dominik/)

> [Jane had that happy disposition which would like to imagine that every one really wishes the well-being of his neighbour and struggles, though sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-bottome/jane-had-that-happy-disposition-which-would-like-to-imagine-that/)

[Phyllis Bottome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-bottome/)

> [For many people it's Facebook, or sports on TV, whatever it is. I have my own demons that I battle. But whatever they are,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-walter/for-many-people-it-s-facebook-or-sports-on-tv-whatever-it-is-i-have/)

[Jess Walter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-walter/)

> [You imagine that I look back on my life's work with calm satisfaction. But from nearby it looks quite different. There is not a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/you-imagine-that-i-look-back-on-my-life-s-work-with-calm-satisfaction/)

[Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/)

> [ I can't imagine that I would be asked that by the president-elect \[Donald Trump\], or then-president \[Barack Obama\]. But it's - I'm very clear.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mattis/i-can-t-imagine-that-i-would-be-asked-that-by-the-president-elect/)

[James Mattis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mattis/)

> [It seems an insult to nature and to the Creator to imagine that pregnancy was ever intended to be a sickness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliza-bisbee-duffey/it-seems-an-insult-to-nature-and-to-the-creator-to-imagine-that/)

Eliza Bisbee Duffey

> [The thing I am most interested in is power relations - it is so easy in a relationship like that \[of an artist and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/the-thing-i-am-most-interested-in-is-power-relations-it-is-so-easy-in/)

[Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/)

## More by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

> [Long before the awakening of thought on earth, manifestations of cosmic energy must have been produced which have no parallel today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/long-before-the-awakening-of-thought-on-earth-manifestations-of/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [The longer I live, the more I feel that true repose consists in 'renouncing' one's own self, by which I mean making up one's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/the-longer-i-live-the-more-i-feel-that-true-repose-consists-in/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [Today, something is happening to the whole structure of human consciousness. A fresh kind of life is starting. Driven by the forces of love,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/today-something-is-happening-to-the-whole-structure-of-human/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [“We, mankind, contain the possibilities of the earth's immense future, and can realise more and more of them on condition that we increase our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/we-mankind-contain-the-possibilities-of-the-earth-s-immense-future/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [I think that man has a fundamental obligation to extract from himself and from the earth all that it can give; and this obligation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/i-think-that-man-has-a-fundamental-obligation-to-extract-from-himself/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [At the age when other children, I imagine, experience their first 'feeling' for a person, or for art, or for religion, I was affectionate,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/at-the-age-when-other-children-i-imagine-experience-their-first/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [The most empowering relationships are those in which each partner lifts the other to a higher possession of their own being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/the-most-empowering-relationships-are-those-in-which-each-partner/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/we-are-not-human-beings-having-a-spiritual-experience-we-are/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [“In the shadow of death may we not look back to the past, but seek in utter darkness the dawn of God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/in-the-shadow-of-death-may-we-not-look-back-to-the-past-but-seek-in/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [The stars are laboratories in which the evolution of matter proceeds in the direction of large molecules.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/the-stars-are-laboratories-in-which-the-evolution-of-matter-proceeds/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [It is not our heads or our bodies which we must bring together, but our hearts. . . . Humanity. . . is building…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/it-is-not-our-heads-or-our-bodies-which-we-must-bring-together-but/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [Each elect soul ... possesses God directly and finds in that unique possession the fulfillment of his own individuality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/each-elect-soul-possesses-god-directly-and-finds-in-that-unique/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [You have told me, O God, to believe in hell. But you have forbidden me to think...of any man as damned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/you-have-told-me-o-god-to-believe-in-hell-but-you-have-forbidden-me/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [In the final analysis, the questions of why bad things happen to good people transmutes itself into some very different questions, no longer asking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/in-the-final-analysis-the-questions-of-why-bad-things-happen-to-good/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

> [When humans truly discover the power of love, it will prove more important than the harnessing of fire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/when-humans-truly-discover-the-power-of-love-it-will-prove-more/)

[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

[Explore all 253 Pierre Teilhard de Chardin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/)

## More Creation quotes

> [“am not suggesting that successes in academics, athletics, or vocation somehow stand outside God’s good plan. Learning and play are joys that God himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-paul-jones/am-not-suggesting-that-successes-in-academics-athletics-or-vocation/)

[Timothy Paul Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-paul-jones/)

> [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/)

[Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/)

> [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/)

[John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/)

> [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/)

[Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/)

> [Like many other scientists who hold the Catholic faith, I see the Creator's plan and purpose fulfilled in our universe. I see a planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-r-miller/like-many-other-scientists-who-hold-the-catholic-faith-i-see-the/)

[Kenneth R. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-r-miller/)

> [And wheresoever, in his rich creation, Sweet music breathes--in wave, or bird, or soul-- 'Tis but the faint and far reverberation Of that great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-sargent-osgood/and-wheresoever-in-his-rich-creation-sweet-music-breathes-in-wave-or/)

[Frances Sargent Osgood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-sargent-osgood/)

> [I believe if there is a creator it will basically ask me two questions, how well did you enjoy my creation and what did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-victor-paskavich/i-believe-if-there-is-a-creator-it-will-basically-ask-me-two/)

[Stanley Victor Paskavich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-victor-paskavich/)

> [With no other choices open to us, we'd turned our gaze seaward. The oceans were our America: they reached farther than any prairie, untamed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carsten-jensen/with-no-other-choices-open-to-us-we-d-turned-our-gaze-seaward-the/)

[Carsten Jensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carsten-jensen/)

> [In the quiet moments of your day, what do you think and do? When you are with your Self and no one else, how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/in-the-quiet-moments-of-your-day-what-do-you-think-and-do-when-you/)

[Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/)

> [The creation lives as genesis beneath the visible surface of the work. All intelligent people see this after the fact, but only the creative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-klee/the-creation-lives-as-genesis-beneath-the-visible-surface-of-the-work/)

[Paul Klee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-klee/)

> [When I was in my teens I had a series of intensely religious experiences. They deepened my sense of God as the creator of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-linzey/when-i-was-in-my-teens-i-had-a-series-of-intensely-religious/)

[Andrew Linzey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-linzey/)

> [If you are trying to live a life in accordance with the Bible, the concept and call to justice are inescapable. We do justice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-you-are-trying-to-live-a-life-in-accordance-with-the-bible-the/)

[Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/)

> [I think that storytelling and creation are very close to what the center of what magic is about. I think not just for me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/i-think-that-storytelling-and-creation-are-very-close-to-what-the/)

[Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/)

> [To be part of the creation, I must act humbly. I'll take that over a goddess any day!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-o-hara/to-be-part-of-the-creation-i-must-act-humbly-i-ll-take-that-over-a/)

[Maureen O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-o-hara/)

> [The country of Iraq is somewhat of an artificial creation going back to colonial days. And so you have the Kurds and then the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-clapper/the-country-of-iraq-is-somewhat-of-an-artificial-creation-going-back/)

[James Clapper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-clapper/)

[Browse all 5,225 Creation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creation/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "We may, perhaps, imagine that the creation was finished long ago. But that would be quite wrong. It continues still more magnificently, and at the highest levels of the world.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Pierre Teilhard de Chardin"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/we-may-perhaps-imagine-that-the-creation-was-finished-long-ago-but/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Creation"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/we-may-perhaps-imagine-that-the-creation-was-finished-long-ago-but/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin-134_creation_we-may-perhaps-imagine-that-the-creation_299848.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin-134_creation_we-may-perhaps-imagine-that-the-creation_299848.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin-134_creation_we-may-perhaps-imagine-that-the-creation_299848.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“We may, perhaps, imagine that the creation was finished long ago. But that would be quite wrong. It…” — Pierre Teilhard de Chardin",
                "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": "Pierre Teilhard de Chardin",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "We may, perhaps, imagine that the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/we-may-perhaps-imagine-that-the-creation-was-finished-long-ago-but/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin/we-may-perhaps-imagine-that-the-creation-was-finished-long-ago-but/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
