--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If the earth does grow inhospitable…" description: "\"If the earth does grow inhospitable toward human presence, it is primarily because we have lost our sense of courtesy toward the earth and its inhabita..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/thomas-berry-7391_courtesy_if-the-earth-does-grow-inhospitable-towa_2063867.png" --- # If the earth does grow inhospitable toward human presence… ![“If the earth does grow inhospitable toward human presence, it is primarily because we have lost our sense of courtesy toward the earth and its inhabitants.” quote by Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/thomas-berry-7391_courtesy_if-the-earth-does-grow-inhospitable-towa_2063867.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/thomas-berry-7391_courtesy_if-the-earth-does-grow-inhospitable-towa_2063867.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/thomas-berry-7391_courtesy_if-the-earth-does-grow-inhospitable-towa_2063867.png) > “If the earth does grow inhospitable toward human presence, it is primarily because we have lost our sense of courtesy toward the earth and its inhabitants.” [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Humanity's loss of courtesy toward Earth makes it hostile; respect and stewardship are essential for habitability. **In simple terms:** Lack of respect harms Earth; courtesy needed. Key Takeaway Cultivate respect for nature. Themes environment ethics stewardship Mood thoughtful hopeful Type ethical inspirational When to use this quote - urban planning - education - personal lifestyle Key Concepts sustainability interconnectedness Questions to Reflect On - What daily habits show courtesy to Earth? - How can societies embed respect for nature? A Different Perspective Changing deep cultural attitudes is difficult. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Courtesy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courtesy/) [Courtesy Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courtesy-earth-3951443/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Earth Inhabitants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth-inhabitants-1132670/) [Empathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empathy/) [Grow Inhospitable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grow-inhospitable-3951445/) [Grows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grows/) [Human Presence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-presence-2013119/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Kindness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kindness/) [Lost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lost/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Sense Courtesy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sense-courtesy-3951447/) ## Related quotes > [In contact with materials, I can see so much more with my hands than I can just with my eyes. I'm a participant, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-goldsworthy/in-contact-with-materials-i-can-see-so-much-more-with-my-hands-than-i/) [Andy Goldsworthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-goldsworthy/) > [There is a hunger to see the human presence acted out. As long as that need remains, people will find a way to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zelda-fichandler/there-is-a-hunger-to-see-the-human-presence-acted-out-as-long-as-that/) [Zelda Fichandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zelda-fichandler/) > [I think you can photograph a certain sliver of human presence in its absence... images taken in the empty rooms, the marks left on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-kuhn/i-think-you-can-photograph-a-certain-sliver-of-human-presence-in-its/) [Mona Kuhn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-kuhn/) > [Therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore earth's inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaiah/therefore-a-curse-consumes-the-earth-its-people-must-bear-their-guilt/) [Isaiah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaiah/) > [The real survivors are the Earth inhabitants that have lived millions of years without consuming their ecological capital, the base from which all abundance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janine-benyus/the-real-survivors-are-the-earth-inhabitants-that-have-lived-millions/) [Janine Benyus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janine-benyus/) > [“The earth lies defiled         under its inhabitants;     for they have transgressed the laws,         violated the statutes,         broken the everlasting covenant.     6 Therefore a curse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crossway/the-earth-lies-defiled-under-its-inhabitants-for-they-have/) [Crossway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crossway/) > [I don’t know how to save the world. I don’t have the answers or The Answer. I hold no secret knowledge as to how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-peltier/i-don-t-know-how-to-save-the-world-i-don-t-have-the-answers-or-the/) [Leonard Peltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-peltier/) > [Most of the earth's inhabitants work to get by. They work because they have to. They didn't pick this or that kind of job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wislawa-szymborska/most-of-the-earth-s-inhabitants-work-to-get-by-they-work-because-they/) [Wislawa Szymborska](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wislawa-szymborska/) > [Less of your courtesy and more of your purse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/proverb/less-of-your-courtesy-and-more-of-your-purse/) [Proverb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/proverb/) > [Lobbying' is the activity of attempting to influence legislation by privately influencing the legislators. It is the result and creation of a mixed economy-of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/lobbying-is-the-activity-of-attempting-to-influence-legislation-by/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [Dullness is a courteous fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammad-mustafa/dullness-is-a-courteous-fear/) [Mohammad MUSTAFA](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammad-mustafa/) > [The greater the man the greater the courtesy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-the-great/the-greater-the-man-the-greater-the-courtesy/) [Alfred the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-the-great/) > [“I would court you, with all the grace and courtesy that you deserve,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-pacat/i-would-court-you-with-all-the-grace-and-courtesy-that-you-deserve/) [C.S. Pacat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-pacat/) > [“...a great man who is vicious will only be a great doer of evil, and a rich man who is not liberal will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-cervantes/a-great-man-who-is-vicious-will-only-be-a-great-doer-of-evil-and-a/) [Miguel Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-cervantes/) > [If we accept being talked to any kind of a way, then we are telling ourselves we are not quite worth the best. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/if-we-accept-being-talked-to-any-kind-of-a-way-then-we-are-telling/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) ## More by Thomas Berry > [Teaching children about the natural world should be seen as one of the most important events in their lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/teaching-children-about-the-natural-world-should-be-seen-as-one-of/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [All human activities, professions, programs, and institutions must henceforth be judged primarily by the extent to which they inhibit, ignore, or foster a mutually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/all-human-activities-professions-programs-and-institutions-must/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [The universe must be experienced as the Great Self. Each is fulfilled in the other: the Great Self is fulfilled in the individual self,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/the-universe-must-be-experienced-as-the-great-self-each-is-fulfilled/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [To attain peace among the nations in any dynamic or enduring form requires not simply political negotiation but a new mode of consciousness. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/to-attain-peace-among-the-nations-in-any-dynamic-or-enduring-form/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [The divine communicates to us primarily through the language of the natural world. Not to hear the natural world is not to hear the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/the-divine-communicates-to-us-primarily-through-the-language-of-the/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [ During this period (of technological confinement / \[and language\]) the human mind has been placed in its narrowest confines it has experienced since consciousness… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/during-this-period-of-technological-confinement-and-language-the/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [As humans we are born of the Earth, nourished by the Earth, healed by the Earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/as-humans-we-are-born-of-the-earth-nourished-by-the-earth-healed-by/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [Our present urgency is to recover a sense of the primacy of the Universe as our fundamental context, and the primacy of the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/our-present-urgency-is-to-recover-a-sense-of-the-primacy-of-the/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [There is an ultimate wildness in all this, for the universe, as existence itself, is a terrifying as well as a benign mode of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/there-is-an-ultimate-wildness-in-all-this-for-the-universe-as/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [The Universe is a unity, an interacting and genetically-related community of beings bound together in an inseparable relationship in space and time... The human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/the-universe-is-a-unity-an-interacting-and-genetically-related/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [The future rests in the religious, political, economic and cultural capacity of humans to establish this larger context in which the particular traditions will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/the-future-rests-in-the-religious-political-economic-and-cultural/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [We see quite clearly that what happens to the nonhuman, happens to the human. What happens to the outer world, happens to the inner…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/we-see-quite-clearly-that-what-happens-to-the-nonhuman-happens-to-the/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [Because of this erotic bond, the earth becomes luxuriant in its every aspect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/because-of-this-erotic-bond-the-earth-becomes-luxuriant-in-its-every/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [Our fulfillment is not in our isolated human grandeur, but in our intimacy with the larger earth community, for this is also the larger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/our-fulfillment-is-not-in-our-isolated-human-grandeur-but-in-our/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) > [We can break the mountains apart; we can drain the rivers and flood the valleys. We can turn the most luxuriant forests into throw-away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/we-can-break-the-mountains-apart-we-can-drain-the-rivers-and-flood/) [Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) [Explore all 91 Thomas Berry quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/) ## More Courtesy quotes > [If we accept being talked to any kind of a way, then we are telling ourselves we are not quite worth the best. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/if-we-accept-being-talked-to-any-kind-of-a-way-then-we-are-telling/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [Less of your courtesy and more of your purse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/proverb/less-of-your-courtesy-and-more-of-your-purse/) [Proverb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/proverb/) > [Dullness is a courteous fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammad-mustafa/dullness-is-a-courteous-fear/) [Mohammad MUSTAFA](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammad-mustafa/) > [Lobbying' is the activity of attempting to influence legislation by privately influencing the legislators. It is the result and creation of a mixed economy-of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/lobbying-is-the-activity-of-attempting-to-influence-legislation-by/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“...a great man who is vicious will only be a great doer of evil, and a rich man who is not liberal will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-cervantes/a-great-man-who-is-vicious-will-only-be-a-great-doer-of-evil-and-a/) [Miguel Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-cervantes/) > [“I would court you, with all the grace and courtesy that you deserve,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-pacat/i-would-court-you-with-all-the-grace-and-courtesy-that-you-deserve/) [C.S. Pacat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-pacat/) > [The greater the man the greater the courtesy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-the-great/the-greater-the-man-the-greater-the-courtesy/) [Alfred the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-the-great/) > [“Out of all its squalor and human decay, its eruptions of butchery, India produced so many people of grace and beauty, ruled by elaborate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/out-of-all-its-squalor-and-human-decay-its-eruptions-of-butchery/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Show some mercy to this chair which has stretched out its arms to you for so long; please satisfy its desire to embrace you!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/show-some-mercy-to-this-chair-which-has-stretched-out-its-arms-to-you/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [Manners are a sensitive awareness of the feelings of others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-post/manners-are-a-sensitive-awareness-of-the-feelings-of-others/) [Emily Post](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-post/) > [His courtesy was somewhat extravagant. He would write and thank people who wrote to thank him for wedding presents and when he encountered anyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/his-courtesy-was-somewhat-extravagant-he-would-write-and-thank-people/) [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) > [They who sow courtesy reap friendship, and they who plant kindness gather love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-basil/they-who-sow-courtesy-reap-friendship-and-they-who-plant-kindness/) [Saint Basil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-basil/) > [“If a lady offers you a kindness, you absolutely have to accept”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-wallingford/if-a-lady-offers-you-a-kindness-you-absolutely-have-to-accept/) [Maria Wallingford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-wallingford/) > [though I be but the prince of Wales, yet I am king of courtesy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/though-i-be-but-the-prince-of-wales-yet-i-am-king-of-courtesy/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Princes of courtesy, merciful, proud and strong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-newbolt/princes-of-courtesy-merciful-proud-and-strong/) [Henry Newbolt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-newbolt/) [Browse all 527 Courtesy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courtesy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If the earth does grow inhospitable toward human presence, it is primarily because we have lost our sense of courtesy toward the earth and its inhabitants.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Berry" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/if-the-earth-does-grow-inhospitable-toward-human-presence-it-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Courtesy" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/if-the-earth-does-grow-inhospitable-toward-human-presence-it-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/thomas-berry-7391_courtesy_if-the-earth-does-grow-inhospitable-towa_2063867.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/thomas-berry-7391_courtesy_if-the-earth-does-grow-inhospitable-towa_2063867.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/thomas-berry-7391_courtesy_if-the-earth-does-grow-inhospitable-towa_2063867.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If the earth does grow inhospitable toward human presence, it is primarily because we have lost our sense of…” — Thomas Berry", "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": "Thomas Berry", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If the earth does grow inhospitable...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/if-the-earth-does-grow-inhospitable-toward-human-presence-it-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/if-the-earth-does-grow-inhospitable-toward-human-presence-it-is/#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 } } ] } ```