--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: God must be allowed the right to speak…" description: "\"God must be allowed the right to speak unpredictably… We must find him in our enemy, or we may lose him even in our friend. We must find him in the pag..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/thomas-merton-231_abstraction_god-must-be-allowed-the-right-to-speak-u_2141238.jpg" --- # God must be allowed the right to speak unpredictably… We… ![“God must be allowed the right to speak unpredictably… We must find him in our enemy, or we may lose him even in our friend. We must find him in the pagan or we will lose him in our own selves, substituting for his living presence an empty abstraction.” quote by Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/thomas-merton-231_abstraction_god-must-be-allowed-the-right-to-speak-u_2141238.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/thomas-merton-231_abstraction_god-must-be-allowed-the-right-to-speak-u_2141238.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08e/thomas-merton-231_abstraction_god-must-be-allowed-the-right-to-speak-u_2141238.jpg) > “God must be allowed the right to speak unpredictably… We must find him in our enemy, or we may lose him even in our friend. We must find him in the pagan or we will lose him in our own selves, substituting for his living presence an empty abstraction.” [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Divine presence is unpredictable; we must seek God in adversaries, outsiders, and even within ourselves, avoiding abstract emptiness. **In simple terms:** Look for God in unexpected places, not just in ideas. Key Takeaway Seek the divine beyond comfort zones. Themes spirituality search paradox Mood contemplative thought‑provoking Type philosophical theological When to use this quote - interfaith dialogue - personal meditation - ethical decision‑making - conflict resolution Key Concepts theology mysticism self‑discovery Questions to Reflect On - Where might you already hold the divine? - How do you balance external and internal spiritual quests? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on external search may neglect inner reflection. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abstraction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/) [Christian inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christian-inspirational/) [Enemy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enemy/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Inspiration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspiration/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Pagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pagan/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) ## Related quotes > [“We discover our true selves in love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/we-discover-our-true-selves-in-love/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [“When the light of God's truth begins to find its way through the mists of illusion and self-deception with which we have unconsciously surrounded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/when-the-light-of-god-s-truth-begins-to-find-its-way-through-the/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [“Knowing now I would never be alone again never lonely again as in those years God allowed me to be thus as if He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/knowing-now-i-would-never-be-alone-again-never-lonely-again-as-in/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [“I needed to decide if I would still worship God if he allowed Matt to lose his eye.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-howard-joslin/i-needed-to-decide-if-i-would-still-worship-god-if-he-allowed-matt-to/) [K. Howard Joslin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-howard-joslin/) > [One is most dishonest to one's god: he is not allowed to sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-is-most-dishonest-to-one-s-god-he-is-not-allowed-to-sin/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God not only allowed for joyful worship but also commanded it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-anders/god-not-only-allowed-for-joyful-worship-but-also-commanded-it/) [Max Anders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-anders/) > [I am what I am. I love me! And I don't mean that egotistically - I love that God has allowed me to take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-wonder/i-am-what-i-am-i-love-me-and-i-don-t-mean-that-egotistically-i-love/) [Stevie Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-wonder/) > [If God has allowed a disruptive moment in your life, walk through it by faith rather than by sight and be prepared to say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/if-god-has-allowed-a-disruptive-moment-in-your-life-walk-through-it/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [“If you are in a pit of stress or despair, don’t succumb to defeat. Don’t accept that difficult place as your fate. 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For you to be free of it, God must be allowed to hurt whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-chambers/never-become-attached-to-anything-that-continues-to-hurt-god-for-you/) [Oswald Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-chambers/) > [“Faith is the only vehicle the angels of God,can allowed to enter through the gate of heaven.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ekere-chimaraoke-prospect/faith-is-the-only-vehicle-the-angels-of-god-can-allowed-to-enter/) Ekere chimaraoke prospect > [One day it's all going to be clear. It's all going to make sense. You're going to be able to say, "So that's why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/one-day-it-s-all-going-to-be-clear-it-s-all-going-to-make-sense-you/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) ## More by Thomas Merton > [“Let no one hope to find in contemplation an escape from conflict, from anguish or from doubt. On the contrary, the deep, inexpressible certitude…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/let-no-one-hope-to-find-in-contemplation-an-escape-from-conflict-from/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [If nothing that can be seen can either be God or represent Him to us as He is, then to find God we must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/if-nothing-that-can-be-seen-can-either-be-god-or-represent-him-to-us/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [It is almost impossible to overestimate the value of true humility and its power in the spiritual life. For the beginning of humility is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/it-is-almost-impossible-to-overestimate-the-value-of-true-humility/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [We are not perfectly free until we live in pure hope. 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The rigidity of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/the-mission-of-christian-humility-in-social-life-is-not-merely-to/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [Peace cannot be built on exclusivism, absolutism, and intolerance. But neither can it be built on vague liberal slogans and pious programs gestated in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/peace-cannot-be-built-on-exclusivism-absolutism-and-intolerance-but/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [Things that are good are good, and if one is responding to that goodness one is in contact with a truth from which one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/things-that-are-good-are-good-and-if-one-is-responding-to-that/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [Love winter when the plant says nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/love-winter-when-the-plant-says-nothing/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [The logic of worldly success rests on a fallacy: the strange error that our perfection depends on the thoughts and opinions and applause of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/the-logic-of-worldly-success-rests-on-a-fallacy-the-strange-error/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [“The wisdom of the flesh is a judgement that the ordinary ends of our natural appetites are the goods to which the whole of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/the-wisdom-of-the-flesh-is-a-judgement-that-the-ordinary-ends-of-our/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [I will no longer wound myself with the thoughts and questions that have surrounded me like thorns: that is a penance You do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/i-will-no-longer-wound-myself-with-the-thoughts-and-questions-that/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [If you write for God you will reach many men and bring them joy. 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