No one can get inner peace by pouncing on it.

Fosdick’s line suggests that “inner peace” is not something the will can seize through force, impatience, or aggressive self-control. The verb “pouncing” evokes a sudden, predatory grab—an image for the modern tendency to treat serenity as a goal to be captured quickly through techniques, resolutions, or frantic striving. The paradox is that the very grasping after calm can intensify anxiety and self-consciousness, pushing peace further away. The quote aligns with a spiritual-psychological insight common in pastoral writing: peace tends to emerge indirectly—through trust, acceptance, disciplined habits, and a reorientation of desire—rather than through compulsive pursuit.