'The darkest places in Hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis.'
This prefaces Dan Brown's Inferno, which I am currently reading.
Brown's books are entertaining but not academic, so I did an internet search for the exact source to check the implication that this comes from Dante's La Divina Commedia (Divine Comedy). Although this has been quoted often, most notably by President JF Kennedy, I have not found the precise canto in Dante's masterpiece this supposedly comes from. So until I re-read the original I am afraid I cannot vouch for its accuracy.
During my search I also came across another unauthenticated quote along similar lines, this one attributed to Edmund Burke:
'All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.'
And of course in a similar vein are the famous lines by Lutheran Pastor Dietrich Bonnhoeffer, but also ascribed to Evangelical Theologian Martin Niemoeller (I've conflated various versions below):
'First they came for the Communists
but I did not speak out, as I was not a Communist
Then they came for the Socialists/Trade Unionists/Catholics/Jews
but I was silent, as I was not a Socialist/Trade Unionist/Catholic/Jew
And when they came for me,
there was no-one left to speak out for me.'
All the above by way of reply to well-meaning friends who have warned me to be careful about what I blog about, lest GD or others retaliate.
This prefaces Dan Brown's Inferno, which I am currently reading.
Brown's books are entertaining but not academic, so I did an internet search for the exact source to check the implication that this comes from Dante's La Divina Commedia (Divine Comedy). Although this has been quoted often, most notably by President JF Kennedy, I have not found the precise canto in Dante's masterpiece this supposedly comes from. So until I re-read the original I am afraid I cannot vouch for its accuracy.
During my search I also came across another unauthenticated quote along similar lines, this one attributed to Edmund Burke:
'All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.'
And of course in a similar vein are the famous lines by Lutheran Pastor Dietrich Bonnhoeffer, but also ascribed to Evangelical Theologian Martin Niemoeller (I've conflated various versions below):
'First they came for the Communists
but I did not speak out, as I was not a Communist
Then they came for the Socialists/Trade Unionists/Catholics/Jews
but I was silent, as I was not a Socialist/Trade Unionist/Catholic/Jew
And when they came for me,
there was no-one left to speak out for me.'
All the above by way of reply to well-meaning friends who have warned me to be careful about what I blog about, lest GD or others retaliate.
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