Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy

“ We may bring forward, as an objection, the difficulty of always obeying such a law; we may even say, as unbelievers do, that it is a foolish teaching, that Christ was a dreamer, an idealist who gave precepts that are impossible to follow. But, whatever our objections may be, we cannot deny that Christ expressed the meaning most clearly and distinctly, namely, that man, according to his teaching, must not resist evil; he who fully accepts his teaching cannot resist evil. ”

“ He says, ‘Do not resist evil,’ and if you do not resist evil, you may meet with some who, having struck you on one cheek, and meeting with no resistance, will strike you on the other; after having taken away your coat, will take away your cloak also; having profited by your work, will oblige you to work on; will take, and will never give back. ‘Nevertheless, I say to you, do not resist evil. ”

“ I not only read the Sermon on the Mount, but the rest of the gospels, and all the Church’s commentaries upon them.
The theological explanations tell us that the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount are mere an indication of the perfection after which man must strive; but that man, being full of sin, cannot attain this perfection by his own unaided strength, and that the salvation of a man lies in faith, prayer, and the gifts of the grace of God ”

“ Elsewhere Christ tells that he who does not take up his cross, who is not willing to renounce all, cannot be his student, and he thus describes the man who is ready to bear the consequences that may result from the practice of the teaching of non-resistance. Christ says to his disciples, ‘Be poor, be ready to bear persecution, suffering, and even death, without resisting evil.’ He prepares for suffering and death himself without resisting evil ”

“ They seemed to enjoin an impossible self-denial that annulled life itself, as I understood it, and therefore it seemed to me that such self-denial could not be the essential requirement on which man’s salvation depended. ”

“ I have been engaged for some six years upon this work. Every year, every month, I find new clarifications and confirmations of the main thought, and I correct the defects that creep in through haste or impulse. ”