William Sloane Coffin Quotes

If the end does not justify the means, what does?

We live in a world where everyone thinks they do the right thing, so they are entitled to do the wrong thing. So ends can justify the means.

That which is morally wrong will never be politically right.

I'm not saying you did the wrong thing. I'm not even saying it wasn't something I'd thought of doing, myself. But even if it was the just thing to do, or the fitting thing, it still wasn't the right thing.

There is but one right, and the possibilities of wrong are infinite.

If the end does not justify the means - what can?

We may draw good out of evil; we must not do evil, that good may come.

There is no equality between that which is right and that which is wrong.

If the ends don't justify the means, what does?

It is not easy to do something good, but it is extremely difficult to do something bad.

To do a great right do a little wrong.

I try not to do anything that's immoral.

A conscientious man ought not to regard what may happen to him in this world.

doing what is right is easy. The problem is knowing what is right

We ought to see clearly that the end does justify the means

The ends do not justify the means. The means are the ends.

All effective actions require the passport of morality.

To see the line between being good and bad is really thin. It's not easy for anyone, not the manager, the players or the staff.

In the end, you should always do the right thing, even if it's hard. I know that might not help you and that the right thing isn't always so easy to figure out.

Justice is the sum of all moral duty.

Without ethics, man has no future. This is to say, mankind without them cannot be itself. Ethics determine choices and actions and suggest difficult priorities.

Only when the voice of duty is silent, or when it has already spoken, may we allowably think of the consequences of a particular action.

The most ethical way to deal with an unethical situation would be to simply say: 'We did something wrong.' But nobody in a family like mine would ever respond like this.

There is nothing politically right that is morally wrong.

In Survivor and Finder's Fee, it is about what you would do if you could get away with it. Survivor is about your own integrity and where you draw your own ethical and moral lines. There are no rules.