Of God's love we can say two things: it is poured out universally for everyone from the Pope to the loneliest wino on the planet; and secondly, God's love doesn't seek value, it creates value. It is not because we have value that we are loved, but because we are loved that we have value. Our value is a gift, not an achievement.

Compassion and justice are companions, not choices.

Truth is always in danger of being sacrificed on the altars of good taste and social stability.

It is one thing to say with the prophet Amos, "Let justice roll down like mighty waters," and quite another to work out the irrigation system.

Without love, violence will change the world; it will change it into a more violent one.

Only reverence can restrain violence - reverence for human life and the environment.

The temptation to moralize is strong; it is emotionally satisfying to have enemies rather than problems, to seek out culprits rather than the flaws in the system.