---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: this preoccupation with order, control,"
description: "\"“this preoccupation with order, control,”\" — Richard Rohr"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32b/richard-rohr-618_control_this-preoccupation-with-order-control-15_1505029.png"
---

#  this preoccupation with order, control,

![“this preoccupation with order, control,” quote by Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32b/richard-rohr-618_control_this-preoccupation-with-order-control-15_1505029.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32b/richard-rohr-618_control_this-preoccupation-with-order-control-15_1505029.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32b/richard-rohr-618_control_this-preoccupation-with-order-control-15_1505029.png)

> ““this preoccupation with order, control,””

[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.

An obsessive focus on order and control limits spiritual freedom.

**In simple terms:** Obsession with order restricts freedom.

Key Takeaway

Release need for total control.

Themes

spirituality order control freedom balance

Mood

contemplative balanced hopeful

Type

philosophical spiritual

When to use this quote

- meditation
- creative work
- leadership
- personal growth

Key Concepts

Chaos theory mindfulness detachment

Questions to Reflect On

- How does control manifest in your life?
- What practices help you embrace uncertainty?

A Different Perspective

Some structure is necessary for stability.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Control](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/control/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Order Control](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order-control-5526934/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Preoccupation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preoccupation/) [Preoccupation Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preoccupation-order-5526933/)

## Related quotes

> [“The very unfortunate result of this preoccupation with order, control, safety, pleasure, and certitude is that a high percentage of people never get to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/the-very-unfortunate-result-of-this-preoccupation-with-order-control/)

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

> [Citizens of liberal welfare states become increasingly narcissistic. The great preoccupations of vast numbers of Brits, Frenchmen, Germans and other Western Europeans are how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-prager/citizens-of-liberal-welfare-states-become-increasingly-narcissistic/)

[Dennis Prager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-prager/)

> [When we let go of yearning for the future, preoccupation with the past, and strategies to protect the present, there is nowhere left to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/when-we-let-go-of-yearning-for-the-future-preoccupation-with-the-past/)

[Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/)

> [I have a very simple mantra and it's this: I want to make black cinema with the power, beauty, and alienation of black music.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-jafa/i-have-a-very-simple-mantra-and-it-s-this-i-want-to-make-black-cinema/)

[Arthur Jafa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-jafa/)

> [To wait for hours to buy a train ticket or to see a doctor is accepted as a normal way of doing things. Privacy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-travis/to-wait-for-hours-to-buy-a-train-ticket-or-to-see-a-doctor-is/)

[Nancy Travis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-travis/)

> [A priest is a man vowed, trained, and consecrated, a man belonging to a special corps, and necessarily with an intense esprit de corps.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/a-priest-is-a-man-vowed-trained-and-consecrated-a-man-belonging-to-a/)

[H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/)

> [Buddhism resonated very powerfully with a lot of my preoccupations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/buddhism-resonated-very-powerfully-with-a-lot-of-my-preoccupations/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [This constant, unproductive preoccupation with all the things we have to do is the single largest consumer of time and energy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-gleeson/this-constant-unproductive-preoccupation-with-all-the-things-we-have/)

[Kerry Gleeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-gleeson/)

> [There's a preoccupation with memory and the operation of memory and a rather rapacious interest in history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penelope-lively/there-s-a-preoccupation-with-memory-and-the-operation-of-memory-and-a/)

[Penelope Lively](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penelope-lively/)

> [My major preoccupation is the question, 'What is reality?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/my-major-preoccupation-is-the-question-what-is-reality/)

[Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/)

> [Notions of chance and fate are the preoccupations of men engaged in rash undertakings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/notions-of-chance-and-fate-are-the-preoccupations-of-men-engaged-in/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [If you have an over-preoccupation with perception and trying to please people's expectations, then you can go mad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/if-you-have-an-over-preoccupation-with-perception-and-trying-to/)

[Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/)

> [Go to the pine if you want to learn about the pine, or to the bamboo if you want to learn about the bamboo.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matsuo-basho/go-to-the-pine-if-you-want-to-learn-about-the-pine-or-to-the-bamboo/)

[Matsuo Basho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matsuo-basho/)

> [One response was given by the innkeeper when Mary and Joseph wanted to find a room where the Child could be born. The innkeeper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/one-response-was-given-by-the-innkeeper-when-mary-and-joseph-wanted/)

[Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/)

> [I'm simply saying that our deepest thoughts, desires and preoccupations manifest themselves in art, whether we intend them to or not. That's what art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-pegg/i-m-simply-saying-that-our-deepest-thoughts-desires-and/)

[Simon Pegg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-pegg/)

## 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 Control quotes

> [We have to get control of our borders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-coffman/we-have-to-get-control-of-our-borders/)

[Mike Coffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-coffman/)

> [Grit and self-control are related, but they're not the same thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-duckworth/grit-and-self-control-are-related-but-they-re-not-the-same-thing/)

[Angela Duckworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-duckworth/)

> [“You can't control who loves you...you can't let someone love you anymore than you can make someone love you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-harmon/you-can-t-control-who-loves-you-you-can-t-let-someone-love-you/)

[Amy Harmon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-harmon/)

> [I thought I fought a really good Orlando Salido. I never let him get into his fight. I knew what I needed to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikey-garcia/i-thought-i-fought-a-really-good-orlando-salido-i-never-let-him-get/)

[Mikey Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikey-garcia/)

> [Don't think you can...know you can! You human body is the most impressive tool you'll ever own. Even if you can't control everything, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-hardy/don-t-think-you-can-know-you-can-you-human-body-is-the-most/)

[Jeff Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-hardy/)

> [If you have everything under control, you're not moving fast enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-andretti/if-you-have-everything-under-control-you-re-not-moving-fast-enough/)

[Mario Andretti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-andretti/)

> [“Without time management, you lose control of your life and do what other people tell you to do. You lose control and become a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-miller/without-time-management-you-lose-control-of-your-life-and-do-what/)

[Thomas Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-miller/)

> [I started off as a model maker, so the first part of my career was a model maker and then a motion control camera…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-knoll/i-started-off-as-a-model-maker-so-the-first-part-of-my-career-was-a/)

[John Knoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-knoll/)

> [Many of us rely on our own illusion of control. But when God makes it known to you that you're not the one steering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmin-mogahed/many-of-us-rely-on-our-own-illusion-of-control-but-when-god-makes-it/)

[Yasmin Mogahed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasmin-mogahed/)

> [In Congress, Florida Republicans worked with the Trump administration to secure funding for coastal restoration projects following the devastating impacts of Hurricanes Irma and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-waltz/in-congress-florida-republicans-worked-with-the-trump-administration/)

[Michael Waltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-waltz/)

> [“He who can destroy a thing has the real control of it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/he-who-can-destroy-a-thing-has-the-real-control-of-it/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [Sometimes you have to laugh to keep from crying or getting overly angry or to maintain control.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-haysbert/sometimes-you-have-to-laugh-to-keep-from-crying-or-getting-overly/)

[Dennis Haysbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-haysbert/)

> [My sister-in-law works for a group that supports orphanages in Cairo. She and her colleagues take care of children left behind by circumstances beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-elbaradei/my-sister-in-law-works-for-a-group-that-supports-orphanages-in-cairo/)

[Mohamed ElBaradei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-elbaradei/)

> [Some nights I'm funny with the between-song commentary, some nights I'm not. I have no control over this. I pace the stage a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-berman/some-nights-i-m-funny-with-the-between-song-commentary-some-nights-i/)

[David Berman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-berman/)

> [“Control never be a means to any practical end. It can never be a means to anything but more control… Like punk.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/control-never-be-a-means-to-any-practical-end-it-can-never-be-a-means/)

[William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/)

[Browse all 6,032 Control quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/control/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“this preoccupation with order, control,”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Richard Rohr"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/this-preoccupation-with-order-control/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Control"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/this-preoccupation-with-order-control/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32b/richard-rohr-618_control_this-preoccupation-with-order-control-15_1505029.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32b/richard-rohr-618_control_this-preoccupation-with-order-control-15_1505029.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32b/richard-rohr-618_control_this-preoccupation-with-order-control-15_1505029.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“this preoccupation with order, control,” — 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": "“this preoccupation with order, control,”",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/this-preoccupation-with-order-control/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/this-preoccupation-with-order-control/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
