---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The saint is precisely one who has no “I”…"
description: "\"“The saint is precisely one who has no “I” to protect or project. His or her “I” is in conscious union with the “I AM” of God, and that is more than en..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/224/richard-rohr-618_conscious_the-saint-is-precisely-one-who-has-no-i_994861.png"
---

#  The saint is precisely one who has no “I” to protect or…

![“The saint is precisely one who has no “I” to protect or project. His or her “I” is in conscious union with the “I AM” of God, and that is more than enough. Divine” quote by Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/224/richard-rohr-618_conscious_the-saint-is-precisely-one-who-has-no-i_994861.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/224/richard-rohr-618_conscious_the-saint-is-precisely-one-who-has-no-i_994861.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/224/richard-rohr-618_conscious_the-saint-is-precisely-one-who-has-no-i_994861.png)

> ““The saint is precisely one who has no “I” to protect or project. His or her “I” is in conscious union with the “I AM” of God, and that is more than enough. Divine””

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

## About This Quote

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

The saint transcends personal ego, merging identity with divine consciousness, suggesting true spirituality is selfless unity with God.

**In simple terms:** Saints lose ego, unite with God.

Key Takeaway

Seek selfless connection with the divine.

Themes

spirituality ego divine union humility identity

Mood

contemplative inspirational

Type

aphilosophical spiritual

When to use this quote

- meditation retreats
- counseling sessions
- personal crises
- ritual worship

Key Concepts

mysticism theology self-transcendence

Questions to Reflect On

- What does losing the “I” feel like?
- How can one practice conscious union?

A Different Perspective

Self‑effort may be insufficient without community support.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine/) [God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god/) [Saint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saint/)

## Related quotes

> [What we can do with these means (our own unassisted strength) is still very small compared to what we could do in acting in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-willard/what-we-can-do-with-these-means-our-own-unassisted-strength-is-still/)

[Dallas Willard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-willard/)

> [Real prayer is union with God,...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/real-prayer-is-union-with-god/)

[Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/)

> [They deceive themselves who believe that union with God consists in ecstasies or raptures, and in the enjoyment of Him. For it consists in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-of-vila/they-deceive-themselves-who-believe-that-union-with-god-consists-in/)

[Teresa of Avila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-of-vila/)

> [Religion is not an end in itself. One's union with God is the ultimate goal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peace-pilgrim/religion-is-not-an-end-in-itself-one-s-union-with-god-is-the-ultimate-2/)

[Peace Pilgrim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peace-pilgrim/)

> [“Union with God is the only heaven there is, and it begins here on earth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/macrina-wiederkehr/union-with-god-is-the-only-heaven-there-is-and-it-begins-here-on-earth/)

[Macrina Wiederkehr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/macrina-wiederkehr/)

> [Faith is the union of God and the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-the-cross/faith-is-the-union-of-god-and-the-soul/)

[John of the Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-the-cross/)

> [The soul is restored through union with God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leanne-payne/the-soul-is-restored-through-union-with-god/)

[Leanne Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leanne-payne/)

> [An act of renunciation is an act of union with God. The Divine Master looks lovingly upon a person who gains a victory over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-sophie-barat/an-act-of-renunciation-is-an-act-of-union-with-god-the-divine-master/)

Madeleine Sophie Barat

> [“St. John of the Cross writes in The Living Flame of Love: “And here it ought to be pointed out why so few reach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-rossini/st-john-of-the-cross-writes-in-the-living-flame-of-love-and-here-it/)

[Connie Rossini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-rossini/)

> [“The word Levi runs its course throughout the Bible, and in the Old Testament, this word ends in the book of the prophet Zechariah…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-m-stendal/the-word-levi-runs-its-course-throughout-the-bible-and-in-the-old/)

[Russell M. Stendal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-m-stendal/)

> [Union with God is really possible. Unity with God I presume, is what is meant by Heaven, but that too is available in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-keating/union-with-god-is-really-possible-unity-with-god-i-presume-is-what-is/)

[Thomas Keating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-keating/)

> [True religion is a union of God with the soul, a real participation of the divine nature, the very image of God drawn upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-scougal/true-religion-is-a-union-of-god-with-the-soul-a-real-participation-of/)

[Henry Scougal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-scougal/)

> [Perfect love of God means the complete union of our will with God's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alphonsus-liguori/perfect-love-of-god-means-the-complete-union-of-our-will-with-god-s/)

[Alphonsus Liguori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alphonsus-liguori/)

> [The deepest desire of our hearts is for union for God. God created us for union with himself. This is the original purpose of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/the-deepest-desire-of-our-hearts-is-for-union-for-god-god-created-us/)

[Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/)

> [Happiness is neither within us only, or without us; it is the union of ourselves with God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/happiness-is-neither-within-us-only-or-without-us-it-is-the-union-of/)

[Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/)

## More by Richard Rohr

> [“We have become human doings more than human beings, and the verb “rest,” as Jesus uses it, is largely foreign to us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/we-have-become-human-doings-more-than-human-beings-and-the-verb-rest/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [In my opinion, most organized religion does neither agentic service nor relational nurturance very well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/in-my-opinion-most-organized-religion-does-neither-agentic-service/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [If we do not transform our pain, we will most assuredly transmit it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/if-we-do-not-transform-our-pain-we-will-most-assuredly-transmit-it/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [In solitude, at last, we’re able to let God define us the way we are always supposed to be defined—by relationship: the I-thou relationship,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/in-solitude-at-last-we-re-able-to-let-god-define-us-the-way-we-are/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [Pain and suffering that are not transformed are usually projected onto others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/pain-and-suffering-that-are-not-transformed-are-usually-projected/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [You cannot grow in the integrative dance of action and contemplation without a strong tolerance for ambiguity, an ability to allow, forgive, and contain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/you-cannot-grow-in-the-integrative-dance-of-action-and-contemplation/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [“In the end, we do not so much reclaim what we have lost as discover a significantly new self in and through the process.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/in-the-end-we-do-not-so-much-reclaim-what-we-have-lost-as-discover-a/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [All great spirituality is about what we do with our pain. If we do not transform our pain, we will transmit it to those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/all-great-spirituality-is-about-what-we-do-with-our-pain-if-we-do-not/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [“I would wonder if you could be a hero or heroine if you did not live in deep time, that is, Past, present, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/i-would-wonder-if-you-could-be-a-hero-or-heroine-if-you-did-not-live/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [Nature is the one song of praise that never stops singing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/nature-is-the-one-song-of-praise-that-never-stops-singing/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [“I believe contemplation shows us that nothing inside us is as bad as our hatred and denial of the bad. Hating and denying it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/i-believe-contemplation-shows-us-that-nothing-inside-us-is-as-bad-as/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [We don't have much wisdom about the second half when things really open up and end up looking a lot more progressive. In my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/we-don-t-have-much-wisdom-about-the-second-half-when-things-really/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [If you do not transform your wounds you will transmit them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/if-you-do-not-transform-your-wounds-you-will-transmit-them/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [The real spiritual journey is work. You can make a naïve assertion that you trust in Jesus, but until it is tested a good,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/the-real-spiritual-journey-is-work-you-can-make-a-na-ve-assertion/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [“The soul needs meaning as much as the body needs food.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/the-soul-needs-meaning-as-much-as-the-body-needs-food/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

[Explore all 443 Richard Rohr quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

## More Conscious quotes

> [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/)

[John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/)

> [Woman, in short, has an unconscious life, man a conscious life, and the genius the most conscious life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/woman-in-short-has-an-unconscious-life-man-a-conscious-life-and-the/)

[Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/)

> [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/)

[Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/)

> [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/)

[Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/)

> [Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. Believe in good fortune, divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-murphy/whatever-your-conscious-mind-assumes-and-believes-to-be-true-your/)

[Joseph Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-murphy/)

> [To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-a-negro-in-this-country-and-to-be-relatively-conscious-is-to-be/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Just as everybody has the vote including women, I think children should, because as a child is conscious of itself then it has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/just-as-everybody-has-the-vote-including-women-i-think-children/)

[Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/)

> [If you are not conscious of all of the different parts of yourself, the part of yourself that is the strongest will win out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-zukav/if-you-are-not-conscious-of-all-of-the-different-parts-of-yourself/)

[Gary Zukav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-zukav/)

> [One of the noblest words in our language is "grace," defined as "unearned blessing." We live by grace far more than by anything else.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-elton-trueblood/one-of-the-noblest-words-in-our-language-is-grace-defined-as-unearned/)

[D. Elton Trueblood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-elton-trueblood/)

> [Repugnant is a creature who would squander the ability To lift an eye to heaven, conscious of his fleeting time here](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/repugnant-is-a-creature-who-would-squander-the-ability-to-lift-an-eye/)

[Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/)

> [The goal of the Creator is for each entity to make a conscious choice to again seek Oneness, out of our own free will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wilcock/the-goal-of-the-creator-is-for-each-entity-to-make-a-conscious-choice/)

[David Wilcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wilcock/)

> [I know one thing: that you can do a lot of things but if you don't educate people into conscious anarchism it gets frittered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/i-know-one-thing-that-you-can-do-a-lot-of-things-but-if-you-don-t/)

[Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/)

> [All black people who are even minimally conscious, black people who have ever experienced Europe's technological power crusading in the vanguard of a civilizing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-nkosi/all-black-people-who-are-even-minimally-conscious-black-people-who/)

[Lewis Nkosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-nkosi/)

> [ A mind conscious of right laughs at the falsehoods of rumour. \[Lat., Conscia mens recti famae mendacia risit.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/a-mind-conscious-of-right-laughs-at-the-falsehoods-of-rumour-lat/)

[Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/)

> [I don't think my paintings are self-conscious but you feel the consciousness of them. Without them being self-conscious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-don-t-think-my-paintings-are-self-conscious-but-you-feel-the/)

[Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/)

Browse all 3,716 Conscious quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“The saint is precisely one who has no “I” to protect or project. His or her “I” is in conscious union with the “I AM” of God, and that is more than enough. Divine”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Richard Rohr"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/the-saint-is-precisely-one-who-has-no-i-to-protect-or-project-his-or/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Conscious"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/the-saint-is-precisely-one-who-has-no-i-to-protect-or-project-his-or/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/224/richard-rohr-618_conscious_the-saint-is-precisely-one-who-has-no-i_994861.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/224/richard-rohr-618_conscious_the-saint-is-precisely-one-who-has-no-i_994861.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/224/richard-rohr-618_conscious_the-saint-is-precisely-one-who-has-no-i_994861.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The saint is precisely one who has no “I” to protect or project. His or her “I” is in conscious union with…” — Richard Rohr",
                "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": "Richard Rohr",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“The saint is precisely one who...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/the-saint-is-precisely-one-who-has-no-i-to-protect-or-project-his-or/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/the-saint-is-precisely-one-who-has-no-i-to-protect-or-project-his-or/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
