MacDonald (as selected by Lewis)

Yes - that is what I see him getting “hot” about too (and indeed mirroring what he views as the loving Father’s indignation).

Is this what you’re referring to when you later write:

Yes - I suppose so. It’s a good observation, and bears reflection. Assuming I read you correctly, I would make a distinction between the wrath of a loving parent toward their own child (who perhaps has just done something, that if let go on, would threaten to separate that Parent from others of their children. No good parent will show favoritism among their kids. They still love the naughty one even though they are having to deal with the behavior. There is a difference (I think) between that kind of wrath, and the wrath they may feel against a complete outsider (total stranger) who is threatening their loved ones. That latter case has no boundary of love to circumscribe or govern it - or at least not for most of us most of the time. It takes a very mature, steadfast Christian indeed to step up completely into Christ’s recognition that for God, there is no outsider to God’s family. We are all children of God, even if we can only live into that in our most steadfast moments, if we ever even reach such moments at all in this life.

1 Like