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A Jew must be sensitive to the pain of all human beings. A Jew cannot remain indifferent to human suffering… The mission of the Jewish people has never been to make the world more Jewish, but to make it more human.

Elie Wiesel

Most people think that shadows follow, precede or surround beings or objects. The truth is that they also surround words, ideas, desires, deeds, impulses and memories.
ELIE WIESEL

Desire Ideas Memories People Shadow Surround Thinking Truth
In the beginning there was faith – which is childish; trust – which is vain; and illusion – which is dangerous.
ELIE WIESEL

Beginning Children Dangerous Faith Illusion Trust
In the word question, there is a beautiful word – quest. I love that word.
ELIE WIESEL

Beautiful Love Myself Question Word
Every Jew, somewhere in his being, should set apart a zone of hate – healthy virile hate – for what the German personifies and for what persists in the German.
ELIE WIESEL

Hate Health Persistence Religious
We are all teachers, or should be. Anyone who relays experience to another person is a teacher. Not to transmit your experience is to betray it.
ELIE WIESEL

Betrayal Experience Person Teacher
Eternity is the place where questions and answers become one.
ELIE WIESEL

Forever Oneself Place Question
Today, as yesterday, a nation is judged by its attitude towards refugees.
ELIE WIESEL

Attitude Judgement Nation Refugee
Ultimately, the only power to which man should aspire is that which he exercises over himself.
ELIE WIESEL

Exercise Himself Man Power Ultimate
Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.
ELIE WIESEL

Encouragement Silence Torment
The most important question a human being has to face. What is it? The question, Why are we here?
ELIE WIESEL

Face Human Important Philosophy Question
Our obligation is to give meaning to life and in doing so to overcome the passive, indifferent life.
ELIE WIESEL

Life Meaning Obligation Ourselves Passive
I decided to devote my life to telling the story because I felt that having survived I owe something to the dead. and anyone who does not remember betrays them again.
ELIE WIESEL

Betrayal Decision Life Myself Remember Story Survive
I was there when God was put on trial. At the end of the trial, they used the word chayav, rather than ‘guilty’. It means ‘He owes us something’. Then we went to pray.
ELIE WIESEL

Death End God Guilty Himself Prayer Trial
My faith is a wounded faith, but my life is not without faith. I didn’t divorce God, but I’m quarrelling and arguing and questioning, it’s a wounded faith.
ELIE WIESEL

Divorce Faith God Life Myself Question Wound
Human beings should be held accountable. Leave God alone. He has enough problems.
ELIE WIESEL

Accountability Enough Human Leaving Problem
I marvel at the resilience of the Jewish people. Their best characteristic is their desire to remember. No other people has such an obsession with memory.
ELIE WIESEL

Memories Myself Obsession People Remember Resilience
Suffering pulls us farther away from other human beings. It builds a wall made of cries and contempt to separate us.
ELIE WIESEL

Build Cry Human Separate Suffering Wall
Once upon a time refugee meant somebody who has a refuge, found a place, a haven where he could find refuge.
ELIE WIESEL

Himself Place Refugee Time
My faith is a wounded faith, but it’s not without faith. My life is not without faith.
ELIE WIESEL

Faith Life Myself Religious Wound
To forget the dead would be akin to killing them a second time.
ELIE WIESEL

Death Forget Kill Time
A Jew must be sensitive to the pain of all human beings. A Jew cannot remain indifferent to human suffering… The mission of the Jewish people has never been to make the world more Jewish, but to make it more human.
ELIE WIESEL

Human Mission Pain People Religion Suffering
Even in darkness it is possible to create light.
ELIE WIESEL

Creation Darkness Light Possible
Just as man cannot live without dreams, he cannot live without hope. If dreams reflect the past, hope summons the future.
ELIE WIESEL

Dreams Future Hope Live Man Reflection
Bite your lips, little brother…Don’t cry. Keep your anger, your hate, for another day, for later. The day will come but not now…Wait. Clench your teeth and wait.
ELIE WIESEL

Angry Bite Cry Day Lips Wait
This is the role of writers: to turn their tears into a story – and perhaps into a prayer.
ELIE WIESEL

Pain Prayer Role Tears Writing
Human beings all change. Not what they are but who they are. We have the power to change what we do with our life and turn it into our destiny.
ELIE WIESEL

Change Destiny Human Ourselves Power
Every moment contains a spark of eternity.
ELIE WIESEL

Forever Moments Myself Spark Time

A Jew must be sensitive to the pain of all human beings. A Jew cannot remain indifferent to human suffering… The mission of the Jewish people has never been to make the world more Jewish, but to make it more human.

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A Jew must be sensitive to the pain of all human beings. A Jew cannot remain indifferent to human suffering… The mission of the Jewish people has never been to make the world more Jewish, but to make it more human.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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