Marilynne Robinson Quotes

I am very interested in theology. In fact, my first degree was in theology, so it's something that interests me greatly.

Theological writing is usually done in essays or books, but I hope to show that if we concentrate on sentences, we may well learn something we might otherwise miss.

I spend my life studying that book, and every book I've written has in some sense been a book about the Bible, and that's what I mean by reclaiming its value and its essence for a world that no longer treats it literally and no longer reads it traditionally.

I write all my sermons.

I'm a Methodist, but not as an actor.

I'm really passionate about God and religion, and I thought maybe I'm supposed to be a pastor.

Scripture is not inerrant; believers are called to interpret biblical texts in light of tradition and reason.

Yes I did study to be a preacher, but I didn't finish.

While Jews and Christians both agree on many religious issues, we disagree, and believe each other profoundly wrong, about others.

I deal with more practical issues of the Bible.

I am a pastor, and I teach and preach the Bible to my congregation every week. But the Bible is not a manufacturer's handbook. Neither is it a science textbook nor a guidebook for public policy.

I would be a pastor. It is something I think about doing when my playing days are over.

Nothing can be more contrary to religion and the clergy than reason and common sense.

I'm interested in the origins of the religious experience, how the history of religion has evolved over the last umpteen thousand years, and where religiosity is going in the future. I think that's a topic I've been chewing on for a few years; I would love to eventually work on and produce a book out of it.

Then I studied theology in college, and when I was getting a Ph.D. in literature, I took courses in New Testament studies and studied Greek versions of the Gospels.

The truth is that Christian theology, like every other theology, is not only opposed to the scientific spirit; it is also opposed to all other attempts at rational thinking.

All religious believers should be licensed to make sure that they are competent to hold opinions and viewpoints and that they don't believe in just any old thing, such as creationism or a flat tax.

My degree in theology was an important part of my formation.

Had I been more religious in my youth, I might have become a pastor, for it was the pastoral role I'd sought.

I put a lot of my studies into my music and my writing. I want to be able to address real life issues in a way that not only takes God into account but takes his perspective as we see in His Word. I have a strong desire to be pastor that - I do think it's in my future, but I'm not sure how soon. I do this as a season of preparation for that.

I dabbled with faith, and I explored religion quite thoroughly.

I haven't studied theology in any systematic way. I don't think I'd find certain subjects - canon law, for instance - terribly interesting. But I'm always picking around and finding different things.

I had been reading about [John] Calvin for years and had been studying the English Renaissance for many more years, and it had never occurred to me to think of them together. I learned that Calvin was the most widely read writer in England in Shakespeare's lifetime. He was translated and published in many editions.

What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.

The stone that was rolled before Christ's tomb might appropriately be called the philosopher's stone because its removal gave not only the pharisees but, now for 1800 years, the philosophers so much to think about.