“A line has to be drawn somewhere between what is essential and what is peripheral.”

“Any idealist who tries to join the Peace Corps must realize he is not going to change the world overnight.”

“As far as I was concerned, the Depression was an ill wind that blew some good. If it hadn't occurred, my parents would have given me my college education. As it was, I had to scrabble for it.”

“Being accused of enthusiasm is something I'll never live down.”

“Christian virtues unite men. Racism separates them.”

“Do the job first. Worry about the clearance later.”

“Do we talk about the dignity of work? Do we give our students any reason for believing it is worthwhile to sacrifice for their work because such sacrifices improve the psychological and mental health of the person who makes them?”

“Does politics have to be injected into everything?”

“He who knows all things and believes nothing is damned.”

“I can remember at college, living on 30-cent meals.”

“I never ride just to ride. I ride to catch a fox. I play baseball to make the team.”

“If education does not create a need for the best in life, then we are stuck in an undemocratic, rigid caste society.”

“In the Peace Corps, the volunteer must be a fully developed, mature person. He must not join to run abroad or escape problems.”

“It is precisely our job as Catholics to speak the truth as plainly and precisely as we can.”

“It is well to be prepared for life as it is, but it is better to be prepared to make life better than it is.”

“Jews have suffered persecution from misguided Christians who tortured the Jews for their part in killing Christ. These Christians forgot that Christ died because of the sins of all men.”

“Just to travel is rather boring, but to travel with a purpose is educational and exciting.”

“My parents were second cousins. That is enough to explain all of my peculiarities.”

“Racism cannot be cured solely by attacking some of the results it produces, like discrimination in housing or in education.”

“Racists are irrational and illogical in their attempts to justify their prejudices.”

“Respect for another man's opinion is worthy. It is the realization that any opinion is valuable, for it is the sign of a rational being.”

“The only genuine elite is the elite of those men and women who gave their lives to justice and charity.”

“The Peace Corps is guilty of enthusiasm and a crusading spirit. But we're not apologetic about it.”

“The roots of racism lie deep in man's nature, wounded and bruised by original sin.”

“We must treat the disease of racism. This means we must understand the disease.”

“Working in an underdeveloped land for two or three years, the volunteer will often find that his work is routine and full of frustration.”