---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When the frontier between God and man…"
description: "\"When the frontier between God and man, the last inexorable barrier and obstacle, is not closed, the barrier between what is normal and what is perverse..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26b/karl-barth-3434_barriers_when-the-frontier-between-god-and-man-th_1719980.jpg"
---

#  When the frontier between God and man, the last inexorable…

![“When the frontier between God and man, the last inexorable barrier and obstacle, is not closed, the barrier between what is normal and what is perverse is opened.” quote by Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26b/karl-barth-3434_barriers_when-the-frontier-between-god-and-man-th_1719980.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26b/karl-barth-3434_barriers_when-the-frontier-between-god-and-man-th_1719980.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26b/karl-barth-3434_barriers_when-the-frontier-between-god-and-man-th_1719980.jpg)

> “When the frontier between God and man, the last inexorable barrier and obstacle, is not closed, the barrier between what is normal and what is perverse is opened.”

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The quote suggests that when divine limits are not absolute, moral boundaries become fluid, allowing what was once seen as normal to be seen as perverse.

**In simple terms:** When God’s limits aren’t fixed, moral lines blur.

Key Takeaway

Question rigid moral absolutes.

Themes

theology ethics philosophy

Mood

reflective provocative

Type

analytical theological

When to use this quote

- Debates on religious doctrine
- Legal reforms
- Cultural shifts
- Personal moral decisions
- Social activism

Key Concepts

Divine-human relation Moral relativism

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you define “normal” when divine authority is questioned?
- What are the risks of blurring moral boundaries?

A Different Perspective

Assumes a clear distinction between divine and human realms, which may not hold universally.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Barrier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/barrier/) [Barriers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/barriers/) [Closed Barrier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/closed-barrier-1327586/) [Frontier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frontier/) [Frontier God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frontier-god-1327587/) [Frontiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frontiers/) [God and man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-and-man/) [Inexorable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inexorable/) [Inexorable Barrier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inexorable-barrier-1327585/) [Lasts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lasts/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Normal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/normal/) [Obstacles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obstacles/)

## Related quotes

> [Oppression that is clearly inexorable and invincible does not give rise to revolt but to submission.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/oppression-that-is-clearly-inexorable-and-invincible-does-not-give/)

[Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/)

> [The laws of God, like the law of gravity, do not depend upon how I feel about them. They are inexorable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-hahn/the-laws-of-god-like-the-law-of-gravity-do-not-depend-upon-how-i-feel/)

[Scott Hahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-hahn/)

> [I live alone, perhaps for no good reason, for the reason that I am an impossible creature, set apart by a temperament I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-live-alone-perhaps-for-no-good-reason-for-the-reason-that-i-am-an/)

[May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/)

> [“Fortunate is he whose mind has the power to probe the causes of things and trample underfoot all terrors and inexorable fate.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virgil/fortunate-is-he-whose-mind-has-the-power-to-probe-the-causes-of/)

[Virgil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virgil/)

> [However fragmented the world, however intense the national rivalries, it is an inexorable fact that we become more interdependent every day. I believe that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-yves-cousteau/however-fragmented-the-world-however-intense-the-national-rivalries/)

[Jacques Yves Cousteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-yves-cousteau/)

> [Regardless of nationality, all men are brothers. God is "our Father who art in heaven." The commandment "Thou shalt not kill" is unconditional and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-salmon/regardless-of-nationality-all-men-are-brothers-god-is-our-father-who/)

[Ben Salmon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-salmon/)

> [I have long been alarmed by people's sheeplike acceptance of the term 'computer technology' - it sounds so objective and inexorable - when most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-nelson/i-have-long-been-alarmed-by-people-s-sheeplike-acceptance-of-the-term/)

[Ted Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-nelson/)

> [An almost inexorable baseball law: A Red Sox ship with a single leak will always find a way to sink No team is worshipped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-boswell/an-almost-inexorable-baseball-law-a-red-sox-ship-with-a-single-leak/)

[Thomas Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-boswell/)

> [When I began my career as a cosmologist some twenty years ago, I was a convinced atheist. I never in my wildest dreams imagined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-j-tipler/when-i-began-my-career-as-a-cosmologist-some-twenty-years-ago-i-was-a/)

[Frank J. Tipler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-j-tipler/)

> [I'm convinced after spending three weeks in China and Tibet, unless the United States gets its act together, our grandchildren will be living in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mort-kondracke/i-m-convinced-after-spending-three-weeks-in-china-and-tibet-unless/)

[Mort Kondracke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mort-kondracke/)

> [Nature . . . is inexorable and immutable; she never transgresses the laws imposed upon her, nor cares a whit whether her abstruse reasons…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galileo-galilei/nature-is-inexorable-and-immutable-she-never-transgresses-the-laws/)

[Galileo Galilei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galileo-galilei/)

> [Hitler was no inexorable product of a German 'special path', no logical culmination of long-term trends in specifically German culture and ideology. Nor was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-kershaw/hitler-was-no-inexorable-product-of-a-german-special-path-no-logical/)

[Ian Kershaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-kershaw/)

> [The universe appears to me like an immense, inexorable torture-garden…Passions, greed, hatred, and lies; social institutions, justice, love, glory, heroism, and religion: these are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octave-mirbeau/the-universe-appears-to-me-like-an-immense-inexorable-torture-garden/)

[Octave Mirbeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octave-mirbeau/)

> [If China someday gains a more fair, just, and accountable system of government, it will be due to the hard work and efforts of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-mackinnon/if-china-someday-gains-a-more-fair-just-and-accountable-system-of/)

[Rebecca MacKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-mackinnon/)

> [Wyrd bith ful araed (Fate is inexorable).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/wyrd-bith-ful-araed-fate-is-inexorable/)

[Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/)

## More by Karl Barth

> [If I have a system it is limited to a recognition of what Kierkegaard called 'the infinite qualitative distinction' between time and eternity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/if-i-have-a-system-it-is-limited-to-a-recognition-of-what-kierkegaard/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [Humor is the opposite of all self-admiration and self-praise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/humor-is-the-opposite-of-all-self-admiration-and-self-praise/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [“Godlessness is not… a possibility, but an ontological impossibility for man. Man is not without, but with God. This is not to say, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/godlessness-is-not-a-possibility-but-an-ontological-impossibility-for/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [When we are at our wits' end for an answer, then the Holy Spirit can give us an answer. But how can He give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/when-we-are-at-our-wits-end-for-an-answer-then-the-holy-spirit-can/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [Radically and basically, all sin is simply ingratitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/radically-and-basically-all-sin-is-simply-ingratitude/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [Dogmatics is the testing of Church doctrine and proclamation,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/dogmatics-is-the-testing-of-church-doctrine-and-proclamation/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [God listens to Bach while the angels listen to Mozart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/god-listens-to-bach-while-the-angels-listen-to-mozart/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [“Holy Communion is offered to all, as surely as the living Jesus Christ is for all, as surely as all of us are not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/holy-communion-is-offered-to-all-as-surely-as-the-living-jesus-christ/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [I don’t believe in universalism, but I do believe in Jesus Christ, the reconciler of all](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/i-don-t-believe-in-universalism-but-i-do-believe-in-jesus-christ-the/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [In Jesus, God wills to be true God not only in the height but also in the depth - in the depth of human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/in-jesus-god-wills-to-be-true-god-not-only-in-the-height-but-also-in/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [The term 'laity' is one of the worst in the vocabulary of religion and ought to be banished from the Christian conversation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/the-term-laity-is-one-of-the-worst-in-the-vocabulary-of-religion-and/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [No one can be saved - in virtue of what he can do. Everyone can be saved - in virtue of what God can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/no-one-can-be-saved-in-virtue-of-what-he-can-do-everyone-can-be-saved/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [Society is now really ruled by its own logos; say rather by a whole pantheon of its own hypostases and powers... we are beginning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/society-is-now-really-ruled-by-its-own-logos-say-rather-by-a-whole/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [There will be no song on our lips if there be no anguish in our hearts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/there-will-be-no-song-on-our-lips-if-there-be-no-anguish-in-our-hearts/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [With an ear open to your musical dialectic, one can be young and become old, can work and rest, be content and sad: in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/with-an-ear-open-to-your-musical-dialectic-one-can-be-young-and/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

[Explore all 131 Karl Barth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

## More Barrier quotes

> [France has not only built a bureaucratic barrier against American culture, it has constructed a notorious intellectual case against it as well. The French…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/france-has-not-only-built-a-bureaucratic-barrier-against-american/)

[Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/)

> [“The only barrier to Self-realization or enlightenment is the ego. The ego is the false identification with names and forms. Once this barrier dissolves,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akshay-kulkarni/the-only-barrier-to-self-realization-or-enlightenment-is-the-ego-the/)

[Akshay Kulkarni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akshay-kulkarni/)

> [I'd probably play games obsessively if I didn't write, although I admit I don't read novels partly because I don't enjoy it, not just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-traviss/i-d-probably-play-games-obsessively-if-i-didn-t-write-although-i/)

[Karen Traviss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-traviss/)

> [I am a romantic, but I do put up a barrier around myself, so it is hard for people to get in and to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-mercury/i-am-a-romantic-but-i-do-put-up-a-barrier-around-myself-so-it-is-hard/)

[Freddie Mercury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-mercury/)

> [“The greatest barrier of success is the fear of failure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-potter/the-greatest-barrier-of-success-is-the-fear-of-failure/)

[J.K. Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-potter/)

> [“I really hope there is a language barrier thing going on here.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-ward/i-really-hope-there-is-a-language-barrier-thing-going-on-here/)

[Annie Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-ward/)

> [Do you know there is always a barrier between me and any man or woman who does not like dogs?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-glasgow/do-you-know-there-is-always-a-barrier-between-me-and-any-man-or-woman/)

[Ellen Glasgow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-glasgow/)

> [Friendship, on the other hand, serves a great host of different purposes all at the same time. In whatever direction you turn, it still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/friendship-on-the-other-hand-serves-a-great-host-of-different/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [I've never really had any barrier to break I guess. I don't really have anything to rebel against. I'm quite lucky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-watson/i-ve-never-really-had-any-barrier-to-break-i-guess-i-don-t-really/)

[Emma Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-watson/)

> [The biggest barrier to starting a company isn't ideas, funding or experience. It's excuses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-lacy/the-biggest-barrier-to-starting-a-company-isn-t-ideas-funding-or/)

[Sarah Lacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-lacy/)

> [“I tis hopeless to try to convert some borders into seams. Expressways and their ramps are examples. Moreover, even in the case of large…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-jacobs/i-tis-hopeless-to-try-to-convert-some-borders-into-seams-expressways/)

[Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/)

> [It's amazing that something only an atom thick can be an impenetrable barrier. You can have gas on one side and vacuum or liquid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-mceuen/it-s-amazing-that-something-only-an-atom-thick-can-be-an-impenetrable/)

[Paul McEuen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-mceuen/)

> [At a certain point, when there's a barrier between you and what's right, eventually you have to decide you're not going to allow yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/at-a-certain-point-when-there-s-a-barrier-between-you-and-what-s/)

[Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/)

> [Arafat was a barrier to peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/arafat-was-a-barrier-to-peace/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Mind doesn't work properly when taken into a higher level where fear dominates the will.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/mind-doesn-t-work-properly-when-taken-into-a-higher-level-where-fear/)

[Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/)

[Browse all 158 Barrier quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/barrier/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "When the frontier between God and man, the last inexorable barrier and obstacle, is not closed, the barrier between what is normal and what is perverse is opened.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Karl Barth"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/when-the-frontier-between-god-and-man-the-last-inexorable-barrier-and/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Barrier"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/when-the-frontier-between-god-and-man-the-last-inexorable-barrier-and/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26b/karl-barth-3434_barriers_when-the-frontier-between-god-and-man-th_1719980.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26b/karl-barth-3434_barriers_when-the-frontier-between-god-and-man-th_1719980.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26b/karl-barth-3434_barriers_when-the-frontier-between-god-and-man-th_1719980.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“When the frontier between God and man, the last inexorable barrier and obstacle, is not closed, the barrier…” — Karl Barth",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Karl Barth",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "When the frontier between God and...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/when-the-frontier-between-god-and-man-the-last-inexorable-barrier-and/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/when-the-frontier-between-god-and-man-the-last-inexorable-barrier-and/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
