#494: “The Sinfulness of Power”

In the simple and decadent individualism of the Oxford group movement there is no understanding of the fact that the man of power is always to a certain degree an anti-Christ. "All power," said Lord Acton with cynical realism, "corrupts; and absolute power corrupts absolutely." If the man of power were to take a message of absolute honesty and absolute love seriously he would lose his power, or would divest himself of it. This is not to imply that the world can get along without power and that it is not preferable that men of conscience should wield it rather than scoundrels. But if men of power had not only conscience but also something of the gospel's insight into the intricacies of social sin in the world, they would know that they could never extricate themselves completely from the sinfulness of power, even while they were wielding it ostensibly for the common good.*

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*Christianity and Power Politics (1936) (Chapter 29: "Hitler and Buchman") (Bold emphasis from Wikiquote).)
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Reinhold_Niebuhr

Karl Paul Reinhold Niebuhr[a] (1892–1971) was an American Reformed theologian, ethicist, commentator on politics and public affairs, and professor at Union Theological Seminary for more than 30 years. Niebuhr was one of America's leading public intellectuals for several decades of the 20th century and received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1964. A public theologian, he wrote and spoke frequently about the intersection of religion, politics, and public policy, with his most influential books including Moral Man and Immoral Society and The Nature and Destiny of Man. The latter is ranked number 18 of the top 100 non-fiction books of the twentieth century by Modern Library.[26] Andrew Bacevich labelled Niebuhr's book The Irony of American History "the most important book ever written on U.S. foreign policy."[27] The historian Arthur Schlesinger Jr. described Niebuhr as "the most influential American theologian of the 20th century"[28][29] and Time posthumously called Niebuhr "the greatest Protestant theologian in America since Jonathan Edwards."[30]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reinhold_Niebuhr

#493: “Man’s Inclination to Injustice”

“Man's capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man's inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary.”*

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*Reinhold Niebuhr, The Children of Light and the Children of Darkness (1944) https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Reinhold_Niebuhr

Karl Paul Reinhold Niebuhr[a] (1892–1971) was an American Reformed theologian, ethicist, commentator on politics and public affairs, and professor at Union Theological Seminary for more than 30 years. Niebuhr was one of America's leading public intellectuals for several decades of the 20th century and received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1964. A public theologian, he wrote and spoke frequently about the intersection of religion, politics, and public policy, with his most influential books including Moral Man and Immoral Society and The Nature and Destiny of Man. The latter is ranked number 18 of the top 100 non-fiction books of the twentieth century by Modern Library.[26] Andrew Bacevich labelled Niebuhr's book The Irony of American History "the most important book ever written on U.S. foreign policy."[27] The historian Arthur Schlesinger Jr. described Niebuhr as "the most influential American theologian of the 20th century"[28][29] and Time posthumously called Niebuhr "the greatest Protestant theologian in America since Jonathan Edwards."[30] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reinhold_Niebuhr

#492: “Renouncing the Use of Brute Force”

“All religions, arts and sciences are branches of the same tree. All these aspirations are directed toward ennobling man's life, lifting it from the sphere of mere physical existence and leading the individual towards freedom. It is no mere chance that our older universities developed from clerical schools. Both churches and universities — insofar as they live up to their true function — serve the ennoblement of the individual. They seek to fulfill this great task by spreading moral and cultural understanding, renouncing the use of brute force.

“The essential unity of ecclesiastical and secular institutions was lost during the 19th century, to the point of senseless hostility. Yet there was never any doubt as to the striving for culture. No one doubted the sacredness of the goal. It was the approach that was disputed.”*

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* "Moral Decay" (1937); Later published in Out of My Later Years (1950) https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein (Bold emphasis in the original Wikiquote)

Albert Einstein[a] (14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical phy.sicist who is widely held as one of the most influential scientists. Best known for developing the theory of relativity, Einstein also made important contributions to quantum mechanics.[1][6] His mass–energy equivalence formula E = mc2, which arises from special relativity, has been called "the world's most famous equation".[7] He received the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics "for his services to theoretical physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect",[8] a pivotal step in the development of quantum theory. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein

#491: “Those Who Look On and Do Nothing”

“The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing.”

Variation:
“The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything.”

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From Einstein's tribute to Pablo Casals (30 March 1953), in Conversations with Casals (1957), page 11, by Josep Maria Corredor, translated from Conversations avec Pablo Casals : souvenirs et opinions d'un musicien (1955)
• Variant translations or paraphrasing:
   • The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it.
       ◦ As quoted in The Harper Book of Quotations by Robert I. Fitzhenry (1993), p. 356
   • The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing.
     ◦ As quoted in Conscious Courage : Turning Everyday Challenges Into Opportunities (2004) by Maureen Stearns, p. 99
   • The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything.
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein_and_politics
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein

Albert Einstein[a] (14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist who is widely held as one of the most influential scientists. Best known for developing the theory of relativity, Einstein also made important contributions to quantum mechanics.[1][6] His mass–energy equivalence formula E = mc2, which arises from special relativity, has been called "the world's most famous equation".[7] He received the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics "for his services to theoretical physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect",[8] a pivotal step in the development of quantum theory. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein