"Teach and practice, practice and teach - that is all we have; that is all we are good for; that is all we ever ought to do"
About this Quote
Ernest Holmes, founder of Science of Mind and a leading voice of New Thought, compresses a whole spiritual path into a simple loop: teach and practice, practice and teach. The order does not matter because the two are inseparable. Teaching clarifies what one believes; practice tests and refines it. Together they form a feedback cycle where insight becomes habit and habit deepens insight.
Holmes insisted that spiritual ideas mean little unless they are lived. His work centered on practical metaphysics: the conviction that consciousness participates in shaping experience and that methods such as meditation, affirmative prayer, and disciplined thought can align a person with constructive principles. Teaching, then, is not the transmission of dogma but the sharing of methods; practice is not private self-improvement but the embodiment that gives teaching credibility. Authority arises from demonstration, not from titles.
The three refrains, that is all we have, that is all we are good for, that is all we ever ought to do, add weight. All we have points to the simple tools always at hand: attention, intention, and action. All we are good for sounds like humility, even self-limitation, but it is a liberation from grandiosity. It rejects the craving to control outcomes or impress others, focusing instead on the steady work of application and service. All we ever ought to do sets an ethical boundary: do not exploit mystery, do not trade in abstractions detached from use; keep returning to the work that helps people.
Holmes built communities where students became practitioners by demonstrating principles in health, relationships, and prosperity. The rhythm he prescribes is as relevant beyond religion as within it. Leaders, artists, and teachers earn trust the same way: embody the lesson, then share it, then embody it again. The warning is clear about the dangers of theory without practice and practice without reflection. The invitation is to a life of continuous apprenticeship and shared mastery, where learning becomes living and living becomes a lesson for others.
Holmes insisted that spiritual ideas mean little unless they are lived. His work centered on practical metaphysics: the conviction that consciousness participates in shaping experience and that methods such as meditation, affirmative prayer, and disciplined thought can align a person with constructive principles. Teaching, then, is not the transmission of dogma but the sharing of methods; practice is not private self-improvement but the embodiment that gives teaching credibility. Authority arises from demonstration, not from titles.
The three refrains, that is all we have, that is all we are good for, that is all we ever ought to do, add weight. All we have points to the simple tools always at hand: attention, intention, and action. All we are good for sounds like humility, even self-limitation, but it is a liberation from grandiosity. It rejects the craving to control outcomes or impress others, focusing instead on the steady work of application and service. All we ever ought to do sets an ethical boundary: do not exploit mystery, do not trade in abstractions detached from use; keep returning to the work that helps people.
Holmes built communities where students became practitioners by demonstrating principles in health, relationships, and prosperity. The rhythm he prescribes is as relevant beyond religion as within it. Leaders, artists, and teachers earn trust the same way: embody the lesson, then share it, then embody it again. The warning is clear about the dangers of theory without practice and practice without reflection. The invitation is to a life of continuous apprenticeship and shared mastery, where learning becomes living and living becomes a lesson for others.
Quote Details
| Topic | Teaching |
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