The two-fold principle requiring Christians to love
God and one another is foundational to the Christian faith. This
principle is immediately followed in the gospel of Matthew with the
admonition to be perfect in the accomplishment of this requirement and, by
implication, all others. The successful application of this principle is
demanded by Jesus Christ, affirmed by his disciples, and practiced by all
those who affirm the discipline of the Christian. The foundation of this
paper is constructed on the assumption that principles, such as this one,
establish the basis for productive moral response. From this strong
Principlist assumption, the purpose of this paper is to develop four
linked propositions: first, the accomplishment of moral change is
maximized with an increase in moral tension; second, the greater the
increase in moral tension, the greater the potential of moral change;
third, moral tension results in emotional energy that powers moral change;
and fourth, paradox facilitates the tension energizing moral change. The
paper explores the moral tension that flows from the paradox of the
practice of Christian discipline in general and Christian love in
particular. The intersection of the perfection required to love God and
man provides adequate content for exploration of the above moral
propositions. The paper extends the discussion on John Wesley’s use of
paradox initiated by Manfred Marquardt in his text, John Wesley’s Social
Ethics. The paper also argues that the social environment mitigates
against the potential to maximize these propositions. As well, this paper
will argue that the tendency of significant portions of American value
construction mitigates against the desire to increase social tension. As
a result, positive moral change will be minimized. This social defect
will also minimize the potential power of perfection and the power of
paradox inherent in Christian love. By describing the energy developed in
paradox, this paper attempts to define moral energy, moral tension, and
the power of perfection and Christian love that is demanded of the
Christian. With these definitions articulated, the concept comes into
view on how we can love “nonperfectly” to love perfectly. (Jointly
published with Didache.)
