“I think you are falling into the very general error of confining the spiritual world to the supremely good; but the supremely wicked, necessarily, have their portion in it. The merely carnal, sensual man can no more be a great sinner than he can be a great saint. Most of us are just indifferent, mixed-up creatures; we muddle through the world without realizing the meaning and the inner sense of things, and consequently, our wickedness and our goodness are alike second-rate, unimportant.” EvilGoodSinner Book:The White People and Other Weird Stories Source: The White People and Other Weird Stories
“It appears to me that it [sin] is simply an attempt to penetrate into another and higher sphere in a forbidden manner. You can understand why it is so rare. There are few, indeed, who wish to penetrate into other spheres, higher or lower, in ways allowed or forbidden. Men, in the mass, are amply content with life as they find it. Therefore there are few saints, and sinners (in the proper sense) are fewer still.” MenWayStillsWishSinHigherMassSaintSinnerSpheresFewerForbiddenPenetrateSaints And Sinners Book:The White People and Other Stories: The Best Weird Tales of Arthur Machen Source: The White People and Other Stories: The Best Weird Tales of Arthur Machen
“The saint endeavors to recover a gift which he has lost; the sinner tries to obtain something which was never his. In brief, he repeats the Fall.” TryingFallLostSaintRepeatsSinnerEndeavor Book:The House of Souls: Horror Stories Collections Source: The House of Souls: Horror Stories Collections
