There is no indication that any church official suggested or supported the emperor's action against gay people. On the contrary, the only persons known by name to have been punished for homosexual acts were prominent bishops.
The written word has its limits and its challenges, for the primal sound in the whole world is that made by the human voice, and the likeness of this human voice must be rendered in dots and strokes...Yet I never forget that the voice, too, is import...
'In our inmost and secret heart, which you ask us to bare to you, we wish to banish them as we were banished, to a cold and lonely house, in the charge of a man who hated us. And we wish them trapped there as we were trapped.' 'You consider that unju...
Once upon a time humans faced each other and pulled thoughts from minds, advanced rapidly, revolutionised industry and evolved explosively. Then one day they stopped, and stared at a box. They grew fat and awkward in public, stopped expressing emotio...
The poet, the artist, the sleuth - whoever sharpens our perception tends to be antisocial; rarely "well-adjusted", he cannot go along with currents and trends. A strange bond often exists between antisocial types in their power to see environments as...
What is it, what nameless, inscrutable, unearthly thing is it; what cozening, hidden lord and master, and cruel, remorseless emperor commands me; that against all natural loving and longings, I so keep pushing, and crowding, and jamming myself on all...
And what do you like to do, little man?" "I like-books," James had said. While standing in the bookshop, with a parcel of books under his arm. The lady had given him a pitying look. "I read-erm-rather a lot," James went on, dreary master of the obvio...
The "word" did not "offer itself" in a take-it-or-leave-it fashion, any more than Caesar's heralds would have said, "If you'd like a new kind of imperial experience, you might like to try giving allegiance to the new emperor.
On the Russian revolutionaries: To leave your parents, faithful and loyal subjects of the Emperor, to leave your profession, to desist from having children, to lose your fortune, and to give up your civil honor, all for revolutionary conviction, make...
Evil turned out not to be a grand thing. Not sneering Emperors with their world-conquering designs. Not cackling demons plotting in the darkness beyond the world. It was small men with their small acts and their small reasons. It was selfishness and ...
Books are the treasured wealth of the world and the fit inheritance of generations and nations. Books, the oldest and the best, stand naturally and rightfully on the shelves of every cottage. They have no cause of their own to plead, but while they e...
The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena. Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that, in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot. Think of the endless cruelt...
John Milton: You sharpen the human appetite to the point where it can split atoms with its desire; you build egos the size of cathedrals; fiber-optically connect the world to every eager impulse; grease even the dullest dreams with these dollar-green...
DJ Ruby Rhod: There's the Emperor and his lovely daughter. "I love to sing," she recently confessed to me! [aside to Korben] DJ Ruby Rhod: By the way, I have a recording of her talented voice... [He touches a button on his cane. A recording plays] Wo...
[last title card] Title card: The nameless warrior was executed as an assassin but buried as a hero. The King of Qin went on to conquer all of the six Kingdoms and unite the country. As China's first Emperor he completed the Great Wall to protect his...
Fa Zhou: I am ready to serve the emperor. Mulan: Father! You can't go! Fa Zhou: Mulan! Mulan: Please, sir. My father has already fought for... Chi Fu: Silence! You would do well to teach your daughter to hold her tongue in a man's presence. Fa Zhou: ...
Luke: Search your feelings, Father, you can't do this. I feel the conflict within you. Let go of your hate. Darth Vader: It is too late for me, son. The Emperor will show you the true nature of the Force. He is your master now. Luke: Then my father i...
[Referring to Vader] Princess Leia: But, why must you confront him? Luke: Because, there is good in him. I've felt it. He won't turn me over to the Emperor. I can save him. I can turn him back to the good side. I have to try.
Darth Vader: The Emperor has been expecting you. Luke: I know, father. Darth Vader: So, you have accepted the truth? Luke: I have accepted that you were once Anakin Skywalker, my father. Darth Vader: [angrily] That name no longer has any meaning for ...
The Emperor: [to the Senate] In order to ensure our security and continuing stability, the Republic will be reorganized into the first Galactic Empire, for a safe and secure society which I assure you will last for ten thousand years. [Senate fills w...
Yoda: I hear a new apprentice you have, Emperor... or should I say "Darth Sidious"? Darth Sidious: Master Yoda... you survived. Yoda: Surprised? Darth Sidious: Your arrogance blinds you, Master Yoda. Now you will experience the full power of the dark...