Quotes About Relationships

There is certainly a place for the college and the clinic, but really, do we need a Ph.D. in motherhood or a master's degree in friendship?

Interestingly, one of the most important times to listen well is when you disagree with the message, especially as it relates to how we affect others.

The body of Christ is about doing life together, and by doing life together sin is revealed.

Men who are cut off, careful, and closed are also lonely and just as vulnerable in a different way as their wives alone in a dark alley after midnight.

In our homes, where we work, in our friendships, we come inevitably to a fork in the road where we must decide, "Will I forgive that?" If the answer is yes, we go forward together in love. If we choose "no, I will not forgive," at that point we will tend to amplify the fault we observe to excuse our withdrawal into bitterness. Everyone loses—and the gospel most of all.

Love is what we need in friendship when we stumble, and truth is what we need when we stray.

Plain and simple, men need community with other men. Loving, you-before-me, dedicated relationship. If you have never had it, you don't really get it yet, and if you had that community and lost it, you know the cavity it leaves in your soul until you discover it again.

Men need to know that you don't need to become a woman to love others as God designed for the benefit of all.

Instead of seeing ourselves as people trying to connect with people, let's see the church as people trying to connect with God and help others do the same.

Scripture is so clear that love for God must translate into love for those closest to us.2

Spending too much time in one's individual silo can produce pride, isolation, and a stagnated ministry.

It lies not only in recognizing that not all human influences are necessarily coercive and exploitative, that not all transactions among persons are mechanical, impersonal, ephemeral. It lies in seeing that the most powerful influences consist of deeply human relationships in which two or more persons engage with one another.

The circulation of confidence is better than the circulation of money.

Finding God often happens in the midst of a community—with a "we" as often as an "I.

It is impossible to experience a person's life, or to be compassionate, if you do not listen to the person or if you do not ask questions.

Looking at our personal relationships can help us get our prayer life in order.

mine what we know about human relationships for ways to understand our relationship with God.

lies, illusions, and self-serving excuses that cloud our minds make us less able to give and receive love.

Not only do I have good friends, but I also have friends who are good.

Some of the best advice from Jesuits on human relationships comes in earthy ways. When John O'Malley was a Jesuit novice, an older priest told him three things to remember when living in community: First, you're not God. Second, this isn't heaven. Third, don't be an ass. Had I followed those guidelines earlier, I could have saved myself years of self-induced heartache.

I was friends with all different people and all different groups. And that led me to being friends with a few people who didn't even go to my school. Now I have the most amazing collection of friends of all ethnic backgrounds and upbringing and financial backgrounds.

Let no one who loves be called unhappy. Even love unreturned has its rainbow.

I was so sorry, deep in my heart I was sorry, but all your "sorrys" are gone when a person dies. She was gone. Gone. That's why you have to say all your "sorrys" and "I love yous" while a person is living, because tomorrow isn't promised.

But at the end of the day, there are some questions that have no answers, and then one answer that has no question: love rules the game. Every time. All the time. That's what counts.