Quotes from Elmer Gantry

Sinclair Lewis ·  352 pages

Rating: (4.1K votes)


“He had learned how to assemble Jewish texts, Greek philosophy, and Middle-Western evangelistic anecdotes into a sermon. And he had learned that poverty was blessed, but that bankers make the best deacons.”
― Sinclair Lewis, quote from Elmer Gantry


“And though he had almost flunked in Greek, his thesis on 'Sixteen Ways of Paying a Church Debt' had won the ten-dollar prize in Practical Theology.”
― Sinclair Lewis, quote from Elmer Gantry


“Well, he'd get help from the Bible. It was all inspired, every word, no matter what scoffers like Jim said. He'd take the first text he turned to and talk on that.

He opened on: 'Now THEREFORE, Tatnai, governor beyond the river, Shethar-boznai, and your companions the Apharsachites, which ARE beyond the river, be ye far from thence,' an injunction spirited but not at present helpful.”
― Sinclair Lewis, quote from Elmer Gantry


“And when Elmer was about to slip out to the kitchen with her to make lemonade, Benham held him by demanding, 'What do you think of John Wesley's doctrine of perfection?'

'Oh, it's absolutely sound and proven,' admitted Elmer, wondering what the devil Mr. Wesley's doctrine of perfection might be.”
― Sinclair Lewis, quote from Elmer Gantry


“The Reverend Elmer Gantry was reading an illustrated pink periodical devoted to prize fighters and chorus girls in his room at Elizabeth J. Schmutz Hall late of an afternoon when two large men walked in without knocking.

"Why, good evening, Brother Bains—Brother Naylor! This is a pleasant surprise. I was, uh— Did you ever see this horrible rag? About actoresses. An invention of the devil himself. I was thinking of denouncing it next Sunday. I hope you never read it—won't you sit down, gentlemen?—take this chair— I hope you never read it, Brother Floyd, because the footsteps of—”
― Sinclair Lewis, quote from Elmer Gantry



“lead an almost irritatingly pure life, but who had no”
― Sinclair Lewis, quote from Elmer Gantry


“It was not an esthetic room. Though Frank Shallard might have come to admire pictures, great music, civilized furniture, he had been trained to regard them as worldly, and to content himself with art which 'presented a message,' to regard 'Les Miserables' as superior because the bishop was a kind man, and 'The Scarlet Letter' as a poor book because the heroine was sinful and the author didn't mind.”
― Sinclair Lewis, quote from Elmer Gantry


“Eddie Fislinger's church was an octagonal affair, with the pulpit in one angle, an arrangement which produced a fascinating, rather dizzy effect, reminiscent of the doctrine of predestination.”
― Sinclair Lewis, quote from Elmer Gantry


“Street, and she was able to give Elmer the three hundred”
― Sinclair Lewis, quote from Elmer Gantry


“Elmer Gantry never knew who set him thirty dimes, wrapped in a tract about holiness, nor why. But he found the sentiments in the tract useful in his sermon, and the thirty dimes he spent for lovely photographs of burlesque ladies.”
― Sinclair Lewis, quote from Elmer Gantry



“Elmer Gantry was drunk. He was eloquently drunk, lovingly and pugnaciously drunk.”
― Sinclair Lewis, quote from Elmer Gantry


About the author

Sinclair Lewis
Born place: in Sauk Centre, Minnesota, The United States
Born date February 7, 1885
See more on GoodReads

Popular quotes

“Sollte ein Muggel so unklug sein, einem anderen anzuvertrauen, er habe einen Hippogreif gesehen, der mit ausladenden Flügelschlägen nach Norden zog, wird er zumeist für betrunken oder für "bekloppt" erklärt. So unfair dies dem fraglichen Muggel gegenüber erscheinen mag, ist es doch besser, als auf dem Scheiterhaufen verbrannt oder im Dorfweiher ertränkt zu werden.”
― J.K. Rowling, quote from Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them


“No act is so private it does not seek applause.”
― John Updike, quote from Couples


“Look what happened the last time a Republican president tried to fix a doomed national economy. Remember Herbert Hoover?”
― Hunter S. Thompson, quote from Better Than Sex: Confessions of a Political Junkie


“—Conociéndonos —repitió Max, como si estuviera sopesando sus palabras—.¿Y vas a dejarme entrar, Sophie?

—Sí. —Algo muy dentro de ella se removió, algo a un mismo tiempo oscuro... y solitario. Infinita y absolutamente solitario—. Quédate conmigo, Max.”
― Nalini Singh, quote from Bonds of Justice


“العقائد هى المصدر الفكر للصراع المُحتدم بين الدين والعلم.”
― Bertrand Russell, quote from Religion and Science


Interesting books

Sharp Objects
(393.9K)
Sharp Objects
by Gillian Flynn
Ragtime
(32.3K)
Ragtime
by E.L. Doctorow
Love, Rosie
(83.7K)
Love, Rosie
by Cecelia Ahern
Garden Spells
(74.6K)
Garden Spells
by Sarah Addison Allen
Anne of the Island
(106.1K)
Anne of the Island
by L.M. Montgomery
The Dead Girls' Dance
(50.9K)
The Dead Girls' Danc...
by Rachel Caine

About BookQuoters

BookQuoters is a community of passionate readers who enjoy sharing the most meaningful, memorable and interesting quotes from great books. As the world communicates more and more via texts, memes and sound bytes, short but profound quotes from books have become more relevant and important. For some of us a quote becomes a mantra, a goal or a philosophy by which we live. For all of us, quotes are a great way to remember a book and to carry with us the author’s best ideas.

We thoughtfully gather quotes from our favorite books, both classic and current, and choose the ones that are most thought-provoking. Each quote represents a book that is interesting, well written and has potential to enhance the reader’s life. We also accept submissions from our visitors and will select the quotes we feel are most appealing to the BookQuoters community.

Founded in 2023, BookQuoters has quickly become a large and vibrant community of people who share an affinity for books. Books are seen by some as a throwback to a previous world; conversely, gleaning the main ideas of a book via a quote or a quick summary is typical of the Information Age but is a habit disdained by some diehard readers. We feel that we have the best of both worlds at BookQuoters; we read books cover-to-cover but offer you some of the highlights. We hope you’ll join us.