Quotes about Community

The idea of a wanton woman is something I have inserted into almost all of my books. An outlaw figure who is disallowed in the community because of her imagination or activity or status — that kind of anarchic figure has always fascinated me.

When good people take you in and treat you good, you ought to try to be good back.

Nothing in this world loves a black man more than another black man. You hear of solitary white men, but niggers? Can't stay away from one another a whole day. So. It looks to me like you the envy of the world.

And then she knew. Her friends and neighbors were angry at her because she had overstepped, given too much, offended them by excess.

I want to do good work. I want to be involved in other people's doing good work.

Pauline felt uncomfortable with the few black women she met. They were amused by her because she did not straighten her hair. When she tried to make up her face as they did, it came off rather badly. Their goading glances and private snickers at her way of talking (saying "chil'ren") and dressing developed in her a desire for new clothes.

At first the people in the town were frightened; they knew Shadrack was crazy but that did not mean that he didn't have any sense or, even more important, that he had no power. [...] Once the people understood the boundaries and nature of his madness, they could fit him, so to speak, into the scheme of things.

Church is not for spectators.

Too many of us are too comfortable in our "Jesus lifeboat." Instead of the church preparing its members to reach out to other people who are still in the water and pulling them into the boat, we have settled in for the ride to heaven and are busy coming up with ways to make the trip more comfortable. We go to church each week and worship God because we are saved and safe, forgetting that the lifeboat is not yet full.

God is a God of unity, and where there is disunity and division, His Spirit is not free to dwell.

But the true test of a church—and of a man—is not how good it looks, but the kind of impact it makes in the community.

Many men have come to view the church for its convenience—help me, bless me, serve me, preach to me, sing to me, pray for me, but don't expect me to be a vehicle to minister to anyone else or join with you to impact the world.