Quotes by Jacques Ellul

“No matter what God's power may be, the first aspect of God is never that of the absolute Master, the Almighty. It is that of the God who puts himself on our human level and limits himself.”

“Prayer holds together the shattered fragments of creation. It makes history possible.”

“Modern technology has become a total phenomenon for civilization, the defining force of a new social order in which efficiency is no longer an option but a necessity imposed on all human activity.”

“For when man is faced with a curse he answers, "I'll take care of my problems." And he puts everything to work to become powerful, to keep the curse from having its effects. He creates the arts and...”

“The propagandist naturally cannot reveal the true intentions of the principal for whom he acts... That would be to submit the projects to public discussion, to the scrutiny of public opinion, and t...”

“Prayer holds together the shattered fragments of the creation. It makes history possible.”

“The Holy Spirit alone can do this, the Holy Spirit alone can establish this link with one's neighbor.”

“Mass media provides the essential link between the individual and the demands of the technological society.”

“If man--if each one of us--abdicates his responsibilities with regard to values; if each one of us limits himself to leading a trivial existence in a technological civilization, with greater adapta...”

“The fact of knowing how to read is nothing the whole point is knowing what to read.”

“The fact of knowing how to read is nothing the whole point is knowing what to read.”

“Faith lived in the incognito is one which is located outside the criticism coming from society, from politics, from history, for the very reason that it has itself the vocation to be a source of cr...”

“I describe a world with no exit, convinced that God accompanies man throughout his history.”

“This is why there is such an incredible stress on information in our schools. The important thing is to prepare young people to enter the world of information, able to handle computers, but knowing...”

“There are different forms of anarchy and different currents in it. I must, first say very simply what anarchy I have in view. By anarchy I mean first an absolute rejection of violence. Hence I cann...”

“Anarchism can teach Christian thinkers to see the realities of our societies from a different standpoint than the dominant one of the state. What seems to be one of the disasters of our time is tha...”

“If people lose their motive for living, two things can happen. It only seldom happens that they can accept that fact. In that case, they develop suicidal tendencies. Either they try to find refuge ...”

“I can very well say without hesitation that all those who have political power, even if they use it well have acquired it by demonic mediation and even if they are not conscious of it, they are wor...”

“There remains the problem of Goebbels' reputation. He wore the title of Big Liar (bestowed by Anglo-Saxon propaganda) and yet he never stopped battling for propaganda to be as accurate as possible....”

“The will of the world is always a will to death, a will to suicide. We must not accept this suicide, and we must so act that it cannot take place.”