Quotes from intriguing people

I had the following email this morning and it has alot of great people with great ideas so I thought I'd post it. I would say that some of these people are labeled "controversial" which makes them even more intriguing. I personally loved the guy who followed the bible literally and wore white. His quote about Wimbledon and P.Diddy cracked me up :^)





The latest issue of RELEVANT marks our fifth anniversary, so we took the time to look back and reflect on some of our favorite interviews, stories and issues we’ve covered over the years. In our cover story, “35 Ideas That Changed the World,” we included quotes and excerpts from articles that not only helped define our generation, but also changed the direction of the world …


Bono—Rock Star Activist, 2004
> Bono’s long-held opinions of the Church weren’t exactly complimentary before they were challenged by some positive encounters he had with the Christian community in 2002 and 2003. That’s when he was first raising awareness of the epidemics facing Africa, and he found strong support where he, admittedly, least expected it. “I kind of thought the Church was asleep and [had] turned into a ‘holy bless-me club’ or whatever you want to call it, [but] I’m glad to say I was wrong,” he said. “Particularly evangelicals, who seemed very judgmental to me over the years, turned out to be incredibly generous in their time and their support of the AIDS awareness effort. I’ve really had my view of the Church turned upside down, but I will be honest ... it’s ruined things for me now. People are ! asking me, why aren’t I at mass? It’s a b-----, but it’s [also] given me great faith in the Church. I have always had it in God.”

Sufjan Stevens—Singer/Songwriter, Sept. 2006
> “Even if I’m not willing to admit it, or I’m embarrassed by it, or haven’t reckoned with the social aspect of it, there is inherent in songwriting the desire to communicate something and share it with other people. Knowing that there is an audience, you’ll have a greater respect for your work and greater respect for the listener. There’s a greater accountability to what I write or record.”

Derek Webb—Singer/Songwriter, May 2006
> “The way that moral issues have been co-opted by a political party for nothing else but to develop a constituency whose votes they can depend on is really dangerous. I feel like it is nearly impossible t! o walk a party line—especially in a two-party system —and follow Jesus.”

Anne Rice—Author, March 2006
> On leaving her popular horror novels behind after finding faith: “I can’t continue vampire stories because they don’t work for me anymore. The vampires are not metaphors for the outsider for me, because I don’t feel like an outsider anymore. I’m included in a great big wonderful family.”

Lou Engle—Leader of The Call, Nov. 2006
> “The Bible says that before a child is formed in his mother’s womb, God knows him. It’s a life, a dream of God—which means that, since 1973, there have been 47 million dreams of God shattered in this country alone.”

> “God thrust me into praying for justice, specifically justice for the unborn.”

Son of Sam, May 2004
> “It took a whil! e to accept that God loved me and forgave me. It wasn’t instantaneous. It took a while to burn the whispers of doubt. I was always trying to show people I was a Christian, making an effort to seem sincere. I thought forgiveness was a feeling.”

Chris Martin—Musician, Jan. 2006
> Coldplay frontman Chris Martin put Fair Trade on the social justice radar for many when he began championing the cause prominently in 2005. The equal sign that is a symbol of Fair Trade can be seen markered onto his hand. Martin was drawn to the movement after visiting Haiti to learn about Fair Trade. “We were like, ‘Fair what?” Martin said in an interview with Mother Jones magazine. “But you go on a trip and learn how the importing and exporting of goods around the world works, and you realize it’s a huge crisis.”

Anne Lamott—Author, July 2007
> “Our common ground is this disease of a convicti on that we are right. I don’t want to try to convince people to come to Jesus. I just try to tell my truth and share my story and the stories of daily salvation.”

Laying it Down: Learning to Live with Less in a Culture of Excess, by Jesse Carey, May 2007
> Whether it’s a conscious choice to eliminate personal debt, embrace authentic community or rethink the way we give, Tony Campolo says that we’re called to disengage from a dependence on consumerism. “To live in a Christlike manner is to reject the lifestyle being prescribed by the media, to reject the affluent lifestyle that has become normative in America and embrace simplicity. There’s the word: simplicity.”

Shane Claiborne—Author/Activist, Jan. 2007
> We fight terrorism—the terrorism within each of us, the terrorism of corporate greed, of American consumerism, of war. And it i! s on the cross that we see what love looks like when it stares evil in the face. It is that cross that has led many of us to war zones like Iraq as extremists for love, as people who believe that there is something worth dying for but nothing worth killing for.

Ben Harper—Musician, Sept. 2007
> “Modern politicians only know about polarization of culture. There are intelligent solutions; they’re just not talked about enough.”

> “It’s not like you have to or can do everything, but do something. Do anything other than nothing.”

My Biblical Year, by A.J. Jacobs, Nov. 2007
> One Unexpectedly Wise & Life-Enhancing Rule: Let your garments be always white (Ecclesiastes 9:8). I chose to follow this literally—I wore white pants, a white shirt and a white jacket. This was one of the best things I did all year. I felt li! ghter, happier, purer. Clothes make the man: You can’ ;t be in a bad mood when you’re dressed like you’re about to play the semifinals at Wimbledon or go to P. Diddy’s party.

Excerpted from "35 Issues That Changed the World" (RELEVANT) and featured in the current issue of RELEVANT.

Author: RELEVANT