Monday, December 20, 2010
The "Shiver of Fear" That Should Come With the Glad Tidings
“We have become so accustomed to the idea of divine love and of God’s coming at Christmas that we no longer feel the shiver of fear that God’s coming should arouse in us. We are indifferent to the message, taking only the pleasant and agreeable out of it and forgetting the serious aspect, that the God of the world draws near to the people of our little earth and lays claim to us. The coming of God is truly not only glad tidings, but first of all frightening news for everyone who has a conscience.” (Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Lutheran Christian pastor martyred for his opposition to the Third Reich in Germany)
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"for everyone who has a conscience": Most especially when that conscience is bound, as Luther put it in his defense at Wurms, "to the Word of God."
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