Desmond Tutu Quotes

Desmond Tutu is a South African Anglican bishop and social rights activist who played a significant role in the fight against apartheid in South Africa. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in promoting equality and justice in his country.

Hope is being able to see that there is light desp... -Desmond Tutu

Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.

Discovering the context

The quote expresses the essence of hope as the ability to perceive a glimmer of light or positivity even in the midst of darkness, despair, or difficult circumstances. It conveys the optimistic perspective that hope enables us to find rays of hopefulness.

Forgiveness says you are given another chance to m... -Desmond Tutu

Forgiveness says you are given another chance to make a new beginning.

Discovering the context

Portraying forgiveness as an opportunity for individuals to start anew or mend relationships, suggesting that through forgiveness, people can move forward and embrace the chance to rebuild or heal.

Because forgiveness is like this: a room can be dank because you have closed the windows, you've closed the curtains. But the sun is shining outside, and the air is fresh outside. In order to get that fresh air, you have to get up and open the window and draw the curtains apart.

Peace comes when you talk to the guy you most hate. And that's where the courage of a leader comes, because when you sit down with your enemy, you as a leader must already have very considerable confidence from your own constituency.

When we see the face of a child, we think of the future. We think of their dreams about what they might become, and what they might accomplish.

Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.

Without forgiveness, there's no future.

Before Nelson Mandela was arrested in 1962, he was an angry, relatively young man. He founded the ANC's military wing. When he was released, he surprised everyone because he was talking about reconciliation and forgiveness and not about revenge.

I don't think I've ever felt that same kind of peace, the kind of serenity that I felt after acknowledging that maybe I was going to die of this TB.

It is our moral obligation to give every child the... -Desmond Tutu

It is our moral obligation to give every child the very best education possible.

Your ordinary acts of love and hope point to the extraordinary promise that every human life is of inestimable value.

In God's family, there are no outsiders, no enemie... -Desmond Tutu

In God's family, there are no outsiders, no enemies.

We may be surprised at the people we find in heaven. God has a soft spot for sinners. His standards are quite low.

The God who existed before any religion counts on you to make the oneness of the human family known and celebrated.

But God can only smile because only God can know w... -Desmond Tutu

But God can only smile because only God can know what is coming next.

Discovering the context

This quote conveys the idea that God possesses omniscience or divine knowledge about the future. It suggests that human beings, in contrast, are uncertain about what lies ahead. It implies a sense of trust in God's wisdom and an acknowledgment of the limitations of human understanding.

I am not interested in picking up crumbs of compassion thrown from the table of someone who considers himself my master. I want the full menu of rights.

Exclusion is never the way forward on our shared p... -Desmond Tutu

Exclusion is never the way forward on our shared paths to freedom and justice.

You don't choose your family. They are God's gift ... -Desmond Tutu

You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them.

Discovering the context

This quote suggests that family relationships are not a matter of personal choice but rather a divine gift. It emphasizes the reciprocal nature of family bonds and highlights the significance of familial connections.

God is not upset that Gandhi was not a Christian, because God is not a Christian! All of God's children and their different faiths help us to realize the immensity of God.

The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.

Inclusive, good-quality education is a foundation ... -Desmond Tutu

Inclusive, good-quality education is a foundation for dynamic and equitable societies.

When the missionaries came to Africa they had the Bible and we had the land. They said 'Let us pray.' We closed our eyes. When we opened them we had the Bible and they had the land.

God's dream is that you and I and all of us will realize that we are family, that we are made for togetherness, for goodness, and for compassion.

In my country of South Africa, we struggled for years against the evil system of apartheid that divided human beings, children of the same God, by racial classification and then denied many of them fundamental human rights.

If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.

In South Africa, we could not have achieved our freedom and just peace without the help of people around the world, who through the use of non-violent means, such as boycotts and divestment, encouraged their governments and other corporate actors to reverse decades-long support for the Apartheid regime.

Universal education is not only a moral imperative but an economic necessity, to pave the way toward making many more nations self-sufficient and self-sustaining.

If you want peace, you don't talk to your friends.... -Desmond Tutu

If you want peace, you don't talk to your friends. You talk to your enemies.

Discovering the context

This quote suggests that resolving conflicts and achieving peace may require engaging in dialogue or negotiations with adversaries or opponents rather than confining discussions to like-minded individuals. It implies that dialogue and understanding are essential in finding common ground and fostering reconciliation.

Isn't it amazing that we are all made in God's image, and yet there is so much diversity among his people?

God's love is too great to be confined to any one ... -Desmond Tutu

God's love is too great to be confined to any one side of a conflict or to any one religion.

Desmond Tutu Quotes

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