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The theologian who labours without joy is not a theologian at all.

Karl Barth

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Karl Barth
Age: 82 †
Born: 1886
Born: May 10
Died: 1968
Died: December 10
Pastor
Theologian
University Teacher
Basle
Without
Sulky
Morose
Labours
Theologian
Labour
Joy

More quotes by Karl Barth

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I have read many books, but the Bible reads me.
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Mozart's music always sounds unburdened, effortless, and light. This is why it unburdens, releases, and liberates us.
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When we speak of our virtues we are competitors, when we confess our sins we become brothers.
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We have before us the fiendishness of business competition and the world war, passion and wrongdoing, antagonism between classes and moral depravity within them, economic tyranny above and the slave spirit below.
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I had to show that the Bible dealt with an encounter between God and Man. I thought only of the apartness of God. What I had to learn after that was the togetherness of Man and God - a union of two totally different kinds of beings.
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Faith in God's revelation has nothing to do with an ideology which glorifies the status quo.
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Faith is never identical with piety even if it were the purest and finest.
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Mozart creates music from a mysterious center, and so knows the limits to the right and the left, above and below. He maintains moderation.
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There will be no song on our lips if there be no anguish in our hearts.
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This much is certain, that we have no theological right to set any sort of limits to the loving-kindness of God which has appeared in Jesus Christ. Our theological duty is to see and understand it as being still greater than we had seen before.
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What is offered to man's apprehension in any specific revelation of Christ is the living God himself.
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It may be that when the angels go about their task praising God, they play only Bach. I am sure, however, that when they are together en famille they play Mozart.
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God listens to Bach while the angels listen to Mozart.
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Grace and gratitude go together like heaven and earth.
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A free theologian works in communication with other theologians...He waits for them and asks them to wait for him. Our sadly lacking yet indispensable theological co-operation depends directly or indirectly on whether or not we are wiling to wait for one another, perhaps lamenting, yet smiling with tears in our eyes.
Karl Barth
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The enterprise of Adolf Hitler, with all its clatter and fireworks, and all its cunning and dynamic energy, is the enterprise of an evil spirit, which is apparently allowed its freedom for a time in order to test our faith in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Karl Barth
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To be a Christian and to pray are one and the same thing it is a matter that cannot be left to our caprice. It is a need, a kind of breathing necessary to life.
Karl Barth
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As ministers we ought to speak of God. We are human, however, and so cannot speak of God. We ought therefore to recognize both our obligation and our inability and by that very recognition give glory to God
Karl Barth
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Man can certainly flee from God... but he cannot escape him. He can certainly hate God and be hateful to God, but he cannot change into its opposite the eternal love of God which triumphs even in his hate.
Karl Barth
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Dogmatics is the testing of Church doctrine and proclamation.
Karl Barth