Forgiveness Quote by Miroslav Volf
““Forgiveness flounders because I exclude the enemy from the community of humans even as I exclude myself from the community of sinners. But no one can be in the presence of the God of the crucified Messiah for long without overcoming this double exclusion — without transposing the enemy from the sphere of the monstrous… into the sphere of shared humanity and herself from the sphere of proud innocence into the sphere of common sinfulness. When one knows [as the cross demonstrates] that the torturer will not eternally triumph over the victim, one is free to rediscover that person’s humanity and imitate God’s love for him. And when one knows [as the cross demonstrates] that God’s love is greater than all sin, one is free to see oneself in the light of God’s justice and so rediscover one’s own sinfulness.””
About This Quote
Source Book: The Many Faces of Christian Faith by Miroslav Volf, 2000
Forgiveness requires seeing the enemy as human and sharing in common sin, which frees us to love as God does.
In simple terms: Seeing others as human enables true forgiveness.
Key Takeaway
Recognize shared humanity to forgive.
Themes
forgiveness
humanity
spirituality
Mood
hopeful
introspective
Type
theological
inspirational
When to use this quote
- personal conflict resolution
- reconciliation work
- interfaith dialogue
- mental health counseling
Key Concepts
theology
psychology
Questions to Reflect On
- Can we truly see the enemy as human?
- What steps help transform resentment into empathy?
A Different Perspective
Hard to practice when pain is deep.
![“In my opinion, I'm quite certain that Dr. Miroslav Volf most always means simply what he says and says exactly what he means and he no more speaks in 'code' than I do". ~R. Alan Woods [2012]” quote by R. Alan Woods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/81b/r-alan-woods-1455_miroslav-volf_in-my-opinion-i-m-quite-certain-that-dr_888652.jpg)
