If Christian love is unconditional, it is also ubiquitous. St. Paul describes it as the only virtue that is essential in all Christian actions. In I Corinthians 12- 14, he is describing the Church as a community in which each individual shares her spiritual gifts with others. In the very middle of the passage, he […]
Once we define Christian love as unconditional compassion and unconditional forgiveness, we recognize it is gracious. Christians have no trouble speaking of God’s love as the grace that saves us. We are hesitant, however, to see our own loving behavior as grace that transforms the world, especially since Freud created a culture of suspicion. Nonetheless, […]
Understanding Christian love from the perspective of the crucifixion highlights Jesus’ most radical words. Compassion becomes unconditional compassion. Love your neighbor becomes love your enemy. The same goes for forgiveness, the second characteristic. Hearing Jesus pray from the Cross that God would forgive his executioners reminds us that during his ministry he advocated forgiving our […]
Lupe has prompted me to make clear that I do not mean to advocate 16th century concepts. When I refer to Martin Luther’s theology of the cross helping me understand the problems of the contemporary church, I don’t mean much more than the need to consider the implications of Jesus’ crucifixion when talking about Christian […]
About ten weeks ago, I started using a theology of the cross in an attempt to understand the deep divisions in our church and society. I consistently found myself examining two different kinds of Christianity whose characteristics could surprisingly also be applied to the divisions in society. One group described our relationship, whether with God […]
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