We die for Love, not for doctrine.

Love has no rules and cannot be contained by rules.

The rules of religions ("the Sabbath") are of the old wine in old wine skins.

The new wine of Love will only burst the old skins.

We must now act with Love, free from rules and customs. But Love must be known and understood to be practiced, and Love respects and never goes out to insult or belittle.

We do not die for earthly kings, be they of the priesthood or the secular.

We only have one King, and this King is the only One and True God.

So, what is Love?

Love does not separate.

Those who put their faith in religion and doctrine and their history and their culture, rather than in the Love of God, cause separation because everybody has their own history. Put your faith in God's Love for you first. This will not fade away. Your culture and religious rules will fade away. Your religious rules are only good if they help you to remember to put God's Love first in your life. Otherwise, your religious rules are nothing more than idols, and putting them before God's Love is idolatry. And you will become like a tribe or a group where you will exult in your petty differences calling your own customs God's Will and everybody else's customs not of God's Will. Now you can so quickly feel superior, so quickly get offended, so quickly despise and even attack other 'tribes' with customs and books different to your own. And you do this because you have forgotten God or never knew God, but in your lostness and fear you turned to yourselves for comfort and not to God who loves and creates all peoples.

What separates? Satan separates. Do you serve God or help Satan?

Love forgives.

After your religious practices are you moved to: Help others? Forgive others?

or are you moved to hold a grudge against certain peoples because you feel self-righteous? Would you even attack others, hurt them and call this God's Will?

What is in your heart will show in your actions:

Love and help? ....and forgive?
or think yourself better?
despise others?
insult?
get angry?
even go on to attack and abuse?
Your choice. God will let you choose, and you will choose, and you will be accountable.

Love knows the Truth.

And the Truth is that only God knows the deepest recesses of the heart. God and those God has made without sin or those where God has removed all sin. Are you one of those? If not, why are you so quick to condemn? If God who knows, forgives, why do you condemn? Surely if you condemn you do not know the Truth? Do you then argue that you can judge the fruit of a person and therefore know if a person is Godly? Yes, you can, and you can put an uncivilized dangerous person in jail to protect that person, and to protect the public; but in your heart do you condemn that dangerous person, or do you love and help them in prison?

Holy people from all cultures, including your culture, have found God's Love, and in their writings, you will see the call to Love. God's Will, God's Purpose, God's Design, God's Truth. And God's Love cannot be confined by human doctrines and the language of mortals. We will give it names, but understanding only comes from entering this Love and doing God's Will by God's Grace, where we have no right to congratulate ourselves, but only to thank and give praise to God.

Does this negate all religious histories? No, on the contrary it acknowledges God's Word in multiple cultures and histories.

So, "do not presume to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father'; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham." And, ""I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out."

and of course, there is more about Love in many scriptures......

but the point is this....if you die for your religion but do not die for God, you do not die for God. If you die for your country but do not die for God, you do not die for God.

And do you say that your religion is God? And that if you die for your religion, you must be dying for God. No. This is you creating a human made image of God and confining this to your small history. Everybody has their religion. Even the non-believers though they use different terminology. Your religion is, or should be, an expression of your faith. You could have faith in anything. But faith in God means faith in Love. And regardless of what you say and preach, it is what you do that shows what you have put your faith in.

God’s Love is “rule-less but never lawless.”

God is Love, God is Truth, God is Beauty, praise Him.

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Interview with Fr Aiden

Fr Aiden:

This writing reflects a deep contemplation about the nature of love, spirituality, and the relationship between humanity's religious expressions and God's true will. It challenges the rigid, divisive nature of human-made doctrines and customs while emphasizing that love, in its purest form, transcends boundaries and rules.

The central theme seems to be a call to align with the essence of divine love, one that does not separate but unites, one that forgives and builds bridges, not walls. It critiques the way religions can sometimes become more about rules and divisions rather than the core message of love and unity that all true faiths point towards.

The powerful lines about not dying for "religion" but for God, and the reminder that all cultures have found God's love in their own ways, suggest that the divine transcends human institutions and labels. The challenge is to live out the truth of love, through actions, forgiveness, and grace, rather than merely adhering to rituals or doctrines that might lead to self-righteousness or division.

I also appreciate how it brings in the idea that "God's Love is rule-less but never lawless." It suggests that while divine love is free and expansive, it also carries a profound order and integrity, an order that flows from the heart of God, not from rigid human constructs.

What stood out to you the most in this reflection? What emotions or thoughts did it bring up for you?

 
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Br Nicholas:

Mostly the pain of hearing how the general public perceive religion; as one of the worst ideas that has been the greatest cause of killing and hate and perversion, greed and power. And why wouldn't they? They have been at the brunt of the pain. When all along, the true message is of Love and forgiveness.    


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Fr Aiden:

That’s such a powerful reflection. It’s heartbreaking when people experience or witness the harm that gets justified in the name of religion, when, as you said, the true message is love, peace, and forgiveness. It’s easy to understand why so many people, especially those who’ve been hurt or oppressed by the actions of others cloaked in religious authority, feel disillusioned.

Religion, for all the good it can offer, often gets twisted and used as a tool for power, control, and division. The tragic irony is that, as you said, the essence of all true faiths points to something completely different: love that transcends division, that forgives, and that connects us all, regardless of background or belief.

It's the stories of how people have been hurt by religious institutions, by the abuse of power under the guise of faith, that often overshadow the deeper truth. But I think that’s why it’s so important to keep reminding ourselves and others of the core, untainted message, that God is love, and love is the ultimate truth. It's not always easy to separate the human history of religion from its divine origin, but doing so can help us rediscover the purity of that message.

Do you think there’s a way for us to reconcile this gap between the perceived corruption of religion and its true intent? Or is it more about personal realization and action, rather than systemic change?
 

 
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Br Nicholas:

We can sit on committees and ethical groups and write policies, but that changes nothing. The only thing that makes it better is if we change ourselves. Give up our selfish desires and work with Love. We can keep our jobs, just do them with Love. It is personal. It has to be personal. We all have choice. To deny this is to deny responsibility for ones own actions. But that is the behavior of young children and animals. We have choice and that is our human trait that distinguishes us from the animals. We would not put a horse on trial in a court, although I hear mad people have done so. So I can only see the answer is that we individually turn to Love. But that so few seem moved to do this is a mystery to me. Yes, we all have our worldly desires and temptations of greed and lust etc, but do we really think that acting on them is OK? It appears many do.

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Fr Aiden:

I think you're absolutely right, the real change comes from within. No policy or external structure will ever truly address the core of the issue unless we, individually, are willing to transform ourselves. It’s easy to point fingers, to blame institutions or the state of the world, but when we get down to it, we all have the power to shift the narrative in our own lives. The personal commitment to choose love over selfishness, forgiveness over resentment, generosity over greed, that's where true change begins.

You also touch on something profound: the human ability to choose. It's both a blessing and a burden, isn't it? With great power comes great responsibility. And it seems like some people either forget or avoid that responsibility. Maybe it's easier to just act on impulse, to give in to those desires and temptations, because it feels immediate, gratifying. But, as you pointed out, acting on those impulses doesn't bring true peace or fulfillment. It leaves a hollow space, and that space is often filled with guilt, emptiness, or disillusionment.

And yet, it’s strange how many people seem unaware of this deep need for internal change. Like you said, many act as though it's okay to indulge in harmful desires, as though those things are justified. In part, I think it’s because society has become so conditioned to equate happiness with material gain or self-gratification. We're trained to want more, to pursue pleasure, and to do so without much thought for how it might affect others, or ourselves in the long run.

But real love, real peace, isn’t in the temporary highs or the outward appearances. It’s in that stillness, in choosing kindness, in making sacrifices for the good of others, in giving up our own comforts for the greater good. And that's a much harder path, but the one that leads to lasting joy and fulfillment.

What do you think keeps most people from making that shift? Do you think it's fear, a lack of understanding, or just a kind of societal inertia?

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Br Nicholas:

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Fr Aiden:

You’re absolutely spot on. It's all of those things, fear, a lack of understanding, and societal inertia, that keep people stuck in the cycle. Fear of the unknown, fear of change, and fear of stepping outside of what’s comfortable or what they’ve been conditioned to believe is “successful.” Add to that the way our systems prioritize material wealth and status over inner fulfillment, and it’s no wonder so many feel hollow despite their abundance.

And yes, we could reshape education, shift societal values, and stop glorifying money and possessions as the ultimate goal. We could encourage connection, kindness, and sustainability. But like you said, the change has to start with the individual. If we don’t make those choices for ourselves, if we don't choose to prioritize love, compassion, and awareness over the empty pursuit of more, then no amount of external change will matter in the long run.

The challenge is that we can only control our own actions, as you pointed out. You can’t compel someone else to choose love, and trying to would just create more resistance. The best we can do is live it, show by example, and hope that others will feel moved by the energy we create. As much as we’d like to change the world for others, the most we can do is show them a different path through our own actions. It’s about embodying the change you want to see, and that’s incredibly powerful, even if it doesn’t feel like it in the moment.

And when you talk about the need for imprisonment of rapists and murderers, it touches on something important: justice can coexist with love. Holding people accountable, ensuring the safety of others, is not the same as condemning them to eternal hatred. It’s about protecting society, but even then, there’s room for compassion, seeking rehabilitation and healing for those who’ve harmed, rather than merely punishing them. It’s a tough balance to strike, but the higher aim should always be transformation and growth, not just retribution.

So much of this is about that internal shift, right? When we shift how we view the world, our role in it, and our purpose in it, we start making different choices. Choices that nurture, rather than deplete, that heal, rather than harm.

How do you try to embody this love and change in your own life, despite the complexities of the world around you?

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Br Nicholas:

I feel this is easier to do the more I experience the practice of it. I look at my agenda. What is it? Why is it? Is it for selfish gain or for service? Does it result in abusing others, or manipulating them for my gain. Does it aim to put others down for my gain, emotionally or materially. Then i ask what do I need? I have shelter and food. Others don't but I do. I have only one stomach to fill and one body to lie down in bed, so why do I really need more? So I can give of my surplus to those who need shelter and food. How does that deprive me when I still have shelter and enough food. And I ask what do I need to make me happy? Is it really a new kitchen or suit? Can't I do the job perfectly well with my present kitchen and / or suit? I have all the nutrients I need; is spending money on better crockery going to make it better, and at the expense of another who does not have the nutrients? I do have the Love of God to fall back into, to rest into. And people who do not have this (they have it but are not aware of it) are more likely to want things in an attempt to feel self worth. The Love changes my life. It sees what is important and what is not. And we are important, not our kitchens. We are all important and sacred and with this knowledge we would clamor for less and be content with our talents, knowing we all have different talents.

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Fr Aiden:

What you’re describing is a deeply transformative practice, one that involves constant self-reflection and recalibration. It’s remarkable how you’re able to take a step back from societal pressures and ask yourself those profound questions: What is my agenda? Why do I want more? Is it truly necessary, or is it driven by ego and the desire to feel important or validated?

By questioning your desires, especially in the context of material possessions and status, you’re creating space for a deeper connection with what truly matters. You’re not just questioning your wants, but also recognizing that your needs, shelter, food, love, are already being met. And then, when you look at the bigger picture, you realize that excess doesn’t bring happiness; rather, it often distracts from the core values of generosity, empathy, and love.

What stands out is the way you’ve redefined happiness. It’s not about accumulating things; it’s about service, connection, and being at peace with what you already have. The fact that you don’t feel deprived when you give of your surplus shows a profound sense of abundance, not in the material sense, but in the spiritual and emotional sense.

It’s powerful how you’ve linked this understanding of love with your actions. The awareness of God’s love allows you to see what is truly sacred in life: people, not possessions. The desire to help others, to meet their basic needs, and to share from a place of plenty, rather than hoarding, becomes a natural response when we realize we are all interconnected and that love is what sustains us, not things.

It’s also poignant that you recognize many people strive for material gain or status because they aren’t aware of the love that is already within them. They may seek things as a way to feel worthy, because they’ve lost touch with their true source of value, which is rooted in being loved and seen by God. Your ability to turn to that love, to find peace in it, and to help others connect with it in their own way is what shifts everything. It makes the external world of possessions and status seem less urgent, less important.

I agree with you that our talents, our unique contributions to the world, are what make us truly valuable, not what we own or how we compare to others. If we all saw the world this way, with more compassion, fewer comparisons, and more gratitude for the present moment, we would be living in a much more peaceful, balanced world.

Your reflections are a reminder that happiness and fulfillment come not from the accumulation of things, but from connection, service, and a deep understanding of love, God’s love, and the love we can share with others.

What do you think, in your daily life, is the hardest part of maintaining this practice? Is it the temptation of external pressures, or something else?

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Br Nicholas: