Tomáš Halík > Quotes

“Mystery, unlike a mere dilemma, cannot be overcome; one must wait patiently at its threshold and persevere in it—must carry it in one's heart—just as Jesus's mother did according to the Gospel, and allow it to mature there and lead one in turn to maturity.”
― Tomáš Halík, Patience with God: The Story of Zacchaeus Continuing In Us

“Christianity offers a different vision, the vision of a merciful and loving God, whose “silence” about our sins need not be interpreted as a sign of His nonexistence, but instead as an expression of His patience and readiness to forgive. But”
― Tomáš Halík, Night of the Confessor: Christian Faith in an Age of Uncertainty

“The only person capable of addressing Zacchaeus, however, is someone for whom those people hidden in the branches of a fig tree are not strangers or aliens—someone who doesn't disdain them, who has concern for them, someone who can respond to what happens in their hearts and minds.”
― Tomáš Halík, Patience with God: The Story of Zacchaeus Continuing In Us

“I have always found it odd and even comical when the Christian vision of eternal life is described as “a crutch” or “cheap solace.” After all, according to Christian belief the first thing awaiting us beyond the gates of death is God’s judgment. On the contrary, isn’t “cheap solace” precisely the notion that death is the end of everything and we don’t have to answer to anyone for our lives?”
― Tomáš Halík, Night of the Confessor: Christian Faith in an Age of Uncertainty

“Pan jest blisko - czasami tam, gdzie byśmy się Go w ogóle nie spodziewali. Tam, gdzie wszystkie ludzkie możliwości zawiodły, wtedy, gdy nasze zwykłe ludzkie siły już nie wystarczają, nagle uświadamiamy sobie, że nie wszystko jest jeszcze dla nas stracone.”
― Tomáš Halík, Oslovit Zachea

“Bożkiem jest każda rzecz, która domaga się od nas, byśmy traktowali ją poważniej niż na to zasługuje.”
― Tomáš Halík, Oslovit Zachea

“In the spirit of Paul the apostle, we should not ask for the body of Christianity to be freed from the thorn of atheism. That thorn should instead constantly awaken our faith from the complacency of false certainties, so that we rely more on the power of grace—a grace that shows itself most in our times of weakness.”
― Tomáš Halík, Patience with God: The Story of Zacchaeus Continuing In Us

“Nie ma większej i głębszej radości niż przemieniony ból.”
― Tomáš Halík, Oslovit Zachea

“Ik ben zelf tot geloof gekomen door eindeloos te twijfelen. Ik respecteer het feit dat iemand voor de intensivering van zijn geloof massa’s gelijkgestemden nodig heeft, maar ik zou mijn geloof in dat gedrang juist eerder verliezen. Een scheutje scepsis, ironie en trouw aan het kritische verstand als voortdurende correctie van elke neiging tot oppervlakkig religieus enthousiasme, beschouw ik niet alleen als noodzakelijke voorwaarde voor geestelijke gezondheid, maar ook als voorwaarde om Gods stem niet in het eigen gejuich verloren te laten gaan.”
― Tomáš Halík

“Truth happens in the course of dialogue. There is always a temptation to allow our answers to bring to an end the process of searching, as if the topic of the conversation was a problem that has now been solved. But when a fresh question arrives, the unexhausted depths of mystery show through once more. Let it be said over and over again: faith is not a question of problems but of mystery, so we must never abandon the path of seeking and asking. Yes,”
― Tomáš Halík, Patience with God: The Story of Zacchaeus Continuing In Us

“Jestem głęboko przekonany, że do realnej obecności Chrystusa w Eucharystii konieczna jest realna obecność wierzącej zbiorowości”
― Tomáš Halík, Čas prázdných kostelů