--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To keep the middle coming back, you can't…" description: "\"To keep the middle coming back, you can't say some radically conservative or radically progressive things. That's been the bane of organized religion. ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/richard-rohr-618_bane_to-keep-the-middle-coming-back-you-can-t_1258257.png" --- # To keep the middle coming back, you can't say some… ![“To keep the middle coming back, you can't say some radically conservative or radically progressive things. That's been the bane of organized religion. It makes me wonder if Jesus' first definition of the church as "two or three gathered in my name" is not still the best way.” quote by Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/richard-rohr-618_bane_to-keep-the-middle-coming-back-you-can-t_1258257.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/richard-rohr-618_bane_to-keep-the-middle-coming-back-you-can-t_1258257.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/richard-rohr-618_bane_to-keep-the-middle-coming-back-you-can-t_1258257.png) > “To keep the middle coming back, you can't say some radically conservative or radically progressive things. That's been the bane of organized religion. It makes me wonder if Jesus' first definition of the church as "two or three gathered in my name" is not still the best way.” [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 quote argues that extreme political positions alienate moderate believers, suggesting early Christian community size may be a better model for unity. **In simple terms:** Extremes push people away; small groups unite. Key Takeaway Seek middle ground for inclusive community. Themes religion politics moderation Mood thoughtful hopeful Type theological philosophical When to use this quote - church leadership - community building - interfaith dialogue - political discourse Key Concepts theology social cohesion Questions to Reflect On - How can institutions stay inclusive? - What practices foster genuine unity? A Different Perspective Extremes may be necessary for change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bane/) [Best way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/best-way/) [Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/) [Coming back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coming-back/) [Conservative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservative/) [Conservative Radically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservative-radically-3990862/) [Definitions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/definitions/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Jesus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jesus/) [Middle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle/) [Middle Coming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-coming-3990860/) [Names](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/names/) [Organized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organized/) [Organized religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organized-religion/) [Progressive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/progressive/) [Radically Conservative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/radically-conservative-3990861/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Three](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/three/) [Two](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonder/) ## Related quotes > [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/) > [“Perhaps the True Self--and the full Christ Mystery (not the same as organized Christianity)--will always live in the backwaters of any empire and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/perhaps-the-true-self-and-the-full-christ-mystery-not-the-same-as/) [Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/) > [“...organized religion is no longer good news for most people, but bad news indeed. It set us up for the massive atheism, agnosticism, hedonism,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/organized-religion-is-no-longer-good-news-for-most-people-but-bad/) [Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/) > [“The Sunday service alone seldom leads people on deeper or even real journeys; we must begin to be honest about this. All that organized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/the-sunday-service-alone-seldom-leads-people-on-deeper-or-even-real/) [Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/) > [Seek for the Sword that was broken In Imladris it dwells; There shall be counsels taken Stronger than Morgul-spells. There shall be shown a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/seek-for-the-sword-that-was-broken-in-imladris-it-dwells-there-shall/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The bane of sects, especially in Bengal, is that if any one happens to have a different opinion, he immediately starts a new sect,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/the-bane-of-sects-especially-in-bengal-is-that-if-any-one-happens-to/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [Hair, in fact, is probably the bane of most women's lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-collins/hair-in-fact-is-probably-the-bane-of-most-women-s-lives/) [Joan Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-collins/) > [ \[Sherlock Holmes:\] The temptation to form premature theories upon insufficient data is the bane of our profession. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/sherlock-holmes-the-temptation-to-form-premature-theories-upon/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [As you are entered with the class of Nat. philosophy, give to it the hours of lecture, but devote all your other time to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/as-you-are-entered-with-the-class-of-nat-philosophy-give-to-it-the/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Women, you overheated dipsomaniacs, never passing up a chance to wangle a drink, a great boon to bartenders but a bane to us--not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/women-you-overheated-dipsomaniacs-never-passing-up-a-chance-to-wangle/) [Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/) > [Captcha is the bane of the Internet. I can't figure them out myself half the time!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-mullenweg/captcha-is-the-bane-of-the-internet-i-can-t-figure-them-out-myself/) [Matt Mullenweg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-mullenweg/) > [Suspicion is the companion of mean souls, and the bane of all good society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/suspicion-is-the-companion-of-mean-souls-and-the-bane-of-all-good/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [Losing is the bane and bugbear of every professional athlete's existence, but in baseball the monster seems to hang closer than in other sports,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-angell/losing-is-the-bane-and-bugbear-of-every-professional-athlete-s/) [Roger Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-angell/) > [Tedium is the bane of immortality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-lowe/tedium-is-the-bane-of-immortality/) [Neil Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-lowe/) > [“Fear is the bane of all creatures and bubbles inside all forming a rock of solidifying darkness, sucking all will power to act or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-irini-poretsis/fear-is-the-bane-of-all-creatures-and-bubbles-inside-all-forming-a/) [Isabella Irini Poretsis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-irini-poretsis/) ## 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 Bane quotes > [The bane of sects, especially in Bengal, is that if any one happens to have a different opinion, he immediately starts a new sect,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/the-bane-of-sects-especially-in-bengal-is-that-if-any-one-happens-to/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [Hair, in fact, is probably the bane of most women's lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-collins/hair-in-fact-is-probably-the-bane-of-most-women-s-lives/) [Joan Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-collins/) > [Suspicion is the companion of mean souls, and the bane of all good society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/suspicion-is-the-companion-of-mean-souls-and-the-bane-of-all-good/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [Seek for the Sword that was broken In Imladris it dwells; There shall be counsels taken Stronger than Morgul-spells. There shall be shown a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/seek-for-the-sword-that-was-broken-in-imladris-it-dwells-there-shall/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Tedium is the bane of immortality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-lowe/tedium-is-the-bane-of-immortality/) [Neil Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-lowe/) > [Losing is the bane and bugbear of every professional athlete's existence, but in baseball the monster seems to hang closer than in other sports,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-angell/losing-is-the-bane-and-bugbear-of-every-professional-athlete-s/) [Roger Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-angell/) > [“Fear is the bane of all creatures and bubbles inside all forming a rock of solidifying darkness, sucking all will power to act or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-irini-poretsis/fear-is-the-bane-of-all-creatures-and-bubbles-inside-all-forming-a/) [Isabella Irini Poretsis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-irini-poretsis/) > [Captcha is the bane of the Internet. I can't figure them out myself half the time!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-mullenweg/captcha-is-the-bane-of-the-internet-i-can-t-figure-them-out-myself/) [Matt Mullenweg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-mullenweg/) > [Women, you overheated dipsomaniacs, never passing up a chance to wangle a drink, a great boon to bartenders but a bane to us--not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/women-you-overheated-dipsomaniacs-never-passing-up-a-chance-to-wangle/) [Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/) > [As you are entered with the class of Nat. philosophy, give to it the hours of lecture, but devote all your other time to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/as-you-are-entered-with-the-class-of-nat-philosophy-give-to-it-the/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [ \[Sherlock Holmes:\] The temptation to form premature theories upon insufficient data is the bane of our profession. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/sherlock-holmes-the-temptation-to-form-premature-theories-upon/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [ The comic book \[is\] the marijuana of the nursery, the bane of the bassinet, the horror of the home, the curse of the kids… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mason-brown/the-comic-book-is-the-marijuana-of-the-nursery-the-bane-of-the/) [John Mason Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mason-brown/) > [It's just me and the Bane. And I'm fighting him because he killed all of those innocent mice and people, and I have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-just-me-and-the-bane-and-i-m-fighting-him-because-he-killed-all/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [A family can be the bane of one's existence. A family can also be most of the meaning of one's existence. I don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keri-hulme/a-family-can-be-the-bane-of-one-s-existence-a-family-can-also-be-most/) [Keri Hulme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keri-hulme/) > [It is a singular capriciousness of the human mind, that after all the admonitions we have had from experience on this head, there should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/it-is-a-singular-capriciousness-of-the-human-mind-that-after-all-the/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) [Browse all 137 Bane quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bane/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To keep the middle coming back, you can't say some radically conservative or radically progressive things. That's been the bane of organized religion. 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