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No sacrifice which a lover would make for his beloved is too great for us to make for our enemy.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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Interpretation

What this quote means

This quote highlights the deep commitment lovers have for each other and challenges us to extend that same level of devotion and sacrifice to our enemies.

In this quote, Dietrich Bonhoeffer emphasizes the profound sacrifices that lovers are often willing to make for one another, suggesting that if we can show such dedication to those we hold dear, we should also be prepared to offer similar sacrifices for our enemies. This idea serves as a call to elevate our moral and ethical standards by portraying a love that transcends personal connection, advocating for compassion and selflessness even in the face of conflict.

Themes

SacrificeLoveEnemyDevotionCompassion

In practice

Example use cases

During a wedding speech, one might use this quote to emphasize the power of love and commitment.

More from Dietrich Bonhoeffer

A home is a kingdom of it's own in the midst of the world, a stronghold amid life's storms and stresses, a refuge, even a sanctuary.
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In normal life we hardly realize how much more we receive than we give, and life cannot be rich without such gratitude. It is so easy to overestimate the importance of our own achievements compared with what we owe to the help of others.
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Sometimes we just need a firm kick in the pants. An unsmiling expectation that if we mean all these wonderful things we talk about and sing about, then let’s see something to prove it.
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It is God's earth out of which man is taken. From it he has his body. His body belongs to his essential being. Man's body is not his prison, his shell his exterior, but man himself. Man does not "have" a body; he does not "have" a soul; rather he "is" body and soul. Man in the beginning is really his body. He is one. He is his body, as Christ is completely his body, as the Church is the body of Christ
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...And then, just when everything is bearing down on us to such an extent that we can scarcely withstand it, the Christmas message comes to tell us that all our ideas are wrong, and that what we take to be evil and dark is really good and light because it comes from God. Our eyes are at fault, that is all.
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Anyone who thinks that his time is too valuable to spend keeping quiet will eventually have no time for God and his brother, but only for himself and for his own follies.
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