Saturday, March 17, 2012

From Books Worth Reading

From “Not the Cross but the Crucified” by Herman Emiel Mertens (page 35)
“Christians know their love of God is inextricably bound up with the love of their neighbor. This love has many forms, ranging from respect for life and social justice to gratitude and reconciliation, the finest art of love. Also respect for one another, tolerance, hospitality, friendliness, affection, loyalty, generosity, peace, complaisance, social commitment, national solidarity, and even sound social criticism have got to do with it. In short, humanity has many forms and variants. Freedom has many names as well: truthfulness, sincerity, self-respect, privacy, self-determination, autonomy of conscience, consistency, firmness of principle, will-power, courage… not to forget modesty. Paul has listed all these virtues in order in Galatians 5:22-23a: “The harvest of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, fidelity, gentleness, and self-control.”

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