Throughout the centuries, there has been an alarming contradiction between the idea of all-encompassing divine love and the acts of violence committed in the name of faith.

The Paradox of Divine Love: From Compassion to Conflict

Throughout the centuries, there has been an alarming contradiction between the idea of all-encompassing divine love and the acts of violence committed in the name of faith. The beginning of this dichotomy can be traced back to the abandonment of the original message of unconditional compassion, when religious rituals and dogmatism replaced the genuine sense of love and mutual support. Today, when power and political motives often prevail over spiritual values, religious symbols are used to justify bloodshed, aggravating historical wounds and divisions in society. These perspectives remind us that when dogma replaces the authentic attachment to one’s neighbor, ideological enmity intensifies, leading to conflicts that undermine the sacred commandment of love. In conclusion, it can be said that the true message of an all-forgiving God has become lost amid the labyrinths of institutional and national ideologies, where the desire to divide and control overshadows genuine love.

How can one explain the contradiction between the calls for the love of a universal God and the fact that people kill each other in the name of faith?

The answer can be formulated as follows: the contradiction between proclaiming God’s universal love and the violence committed in His name points to a profound distortion of the original message of love. The notion that God loves everyone loses its power when religious norms and rituals are transformed into excuses for bloodshed. As one source notes, for nearly two millennia people have killed in the name of Christ, driven by narrow, often politicized motivations rather than by a true understanding of love and compassion:

"And why do both sides share the same oblivion of world history? For almost two millennia, people have done nothing but kill in the name of Christ, seeing it not as sacrilege but as sanctity. […] But here, people without kin, without tribe, today's murderers, tomorrow's hanged ones, ask about sacrilege where the saints did not question it..." (source: link txt)

Another perspective suggests that at the root of these conflicts is the forgotten commandment of love. When fervent adherence to dogma replaces a sincere feeling of love for one’s neighbor, ideological divisions emerge, turning religious teachings into arguments for violence. One of the texts encapsulates the essence of the problem:

"But in all these divisions there was one fundamental sin: the commandment of love was forgotten. And as a result, something incredible happened: where division began and self-serving jealousy was born, enmity arose – enmity in the name of the Gospel, hatred toward 'nonconformists' in order to uphold the pure teaching of Christ, who taught about love..." (source: link txt)

Thus, the primary explanation for the contradiction may lie in the fact that the true message of universal love has been lost amid the formation of institutions, ideologies, and even national identities, where the interest in power and in dividing people has prevailed over the commandment of unconditional love. This results in people using religious symbols and narratives as justifications for violence and enmity, thereby losing the essence of spiritual teaching.