Charles Williams

Poet

Charles Williams was a British writer and theologian known for his unique blend of fantasy and spiritual themes, particularly in works like 'The Place of the Lion.'

Born
July 15, 1886
Died
March 15, 1965
Quotes
22
Rank
#3017

About Charles Williams

Charles Williams — Life and Legacy

Charles Williams was a significant figure in 20th-century literature, renowned for his intricate narratives that weave together fantasy and theology. His notable work, 'The Place of the Lion,' explores the interplay of love and imagination, reflecting his belief that these elements are essential to human experience. Williams's core thinking revolves around the idea that imagination is a powerful tool for understanding and transforming reality. He famously stated, 'The imagination is the only thing that can save us,' highlighting his conviction that creative thought can lead to profound insights and connections. This perspective challenges the notion of a purely rational worldview, suggesting that emotional and imaginative engagement is vital for personal and spiritual growth. Williams's exploration of love as a binding force in human relationships further underscores his belief in the necessity of emotional depth. His quotes continue to resonate today, inviting readers to reflect on the importance of imagination and love in navigating life's complexities.

Quote collection

Charles Williams quotes (page 1 of 2)

22 quotes — follow a thought to its full quote page.

Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"Many promising reconciliations have broken down because while both parties come prepared to forgive, neither party come prepared to be forgiven."

Read quote 54 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"The strong hands of God twisted the crown of thorns into a crown of glory; and in such hands we are safe."

Read quote 21 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"Unless devotion is given to the thing which must prove false in the end, the thing that is true in the end cannot enter."

Read quote 15 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"Play and pray; but on the whole do not pray when you are playing and do not play when you are praying."

Read quote 12 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"You can have money piled to the ceiling but the size of your funeral is still going to depend on the weather."

Read quote 12 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"The beginning of Christendom, is, strictly, at a point out of time. A metphysical trigonometry finds it among the spiritual Secrets, at the meeting of two heavenward lines, one drawn from Bethany along the Ascent of the Messias, the other from Jerusalem against the Descent of the Paraclete. That measurement, the measurement of eternity in operation, of the bright cloud and the rushing wind, is, in effect, theology."

Read quote 11 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"I think in order to move forward into the future, you need to know where you've been"

Read quote 11 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"To forgive and to be forgiven are the two points of holy magnificence and holy modesty; round these two centres the whole doctrine of largesse revolves."

Read quote 10 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"An hour's conversation on literature between two ardent minds with a common devotion to a neglected poet is a miraculous road to intimacy."

Read quote 10 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"The famous saying 'God is love', it is generally assumed, means that God is like our immediate emotional indulgence, not that the meaning of love ought to have something of the 'otherness' and terror of God"

Read quote 10 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"It is as pleasant as it is unusual to see thoroughly good people getting their deserts."

Read quote 9 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"It’s said that the shuffling of the cards is the earth, and the pattering of the cards is the rain, and the beating of the cards is the wind, and the pointing of the cards is the fire. That’s of the four suits. But the Greater Trumps, it’s said, are the meaning of all process and the measure of the everlasting dance."

Read quote 9 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"It may be a movement towards becoming like little children to admit that we are generally nothing else."

Read quote 8 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"It is easier often to forgive than to be forgiven; yet it is fatal to be willing to be forgiven by God and to be reluctant to be forgiven by men"

Read quote 7 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"You will all know that in the Middle Ages there were supposed to be various classes of angels. these hierarchized celsitudes are but the last traces in a less philosophical age of the ideas which Plato taught his disciples existed in the spiritual world."

Read quote 6 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"How can one bargain for anything that is worth while? And what else is worth bargaining for?"

Read quote 6 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"The most he would do was to promise that the gates of hell should not prevail against it. It is about all that, looking back on the history of the Church, one can feel that they have not done."

Read quote 4 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

"The Divine Thing that made itself the foundation of the Church does not seem, to judge by his comments on the religious leadership of his day, to have hoped much from officers of a church."

Read quote 4 likes
Charles Williams Poet
Popular

""Nought usually comes at the beginning," Ralph said. "Not necessarily," said Sibyl. "It might come anywhere. Nought isn't a number at all. It's the opposite of number." Nancy looked up from the cards. "Got you, aunt," she said. "What about ten? Nought's a number there - it's part of ten." "Well, if you say that any mathematical arrangement of one and nought really makes ten - " Sibyl smiled. "Can it possibly be more than a way of representing ten?""

Read quote 3 likes