"From the very beginning, God loved us. The Holy Trinity gave itself in the creation of all things and made us, body and soul, in infinite love. We were fashioned most nobly."
— Mechtild of Magdeburg

"Some religious leaders teach that at the beginning humans were ugly and evil and full of something called 'original sin.' Jesus does not teach that. Nor does Mechtild, who reminds us that we were 'fashioned most nobly' from the get-go. We were loved from the beginning. And this nobility and lovability includes our body and soul. We were made, not in sin, but in 'infinite love.' That is a lot of love. Have you experienced this also? Do you agree with Mechtild?"

"As the Creator loves his creation, so creation loves the creator. Creation, of course, was fashioned to be adorned, to be showered, to be gifted with the love of the creator. The entire world has been embraced by this kiss."
— Hildegard of Bingen

"Hildegard is picturing an erotic relationship between creation and the creator, one that spreads to the 'entire world' because the entire world 'has been embraced by this kiss.' How far this is from the Newtonian notion that God is up in the sky with an oilcan, keeping the mechanical universe running. Instead, God is involved intimately and sensually and erotically with creation, out of love for creation."

"I saw that God never began to love us. . . . We have always been in God's foreknowledge, known and loved from without beginning. . . . We were made for love."
— Julian of Norwich

"To say we have been 'loved from without beginning' is to speak of original blessing rather than original sin. Julian breaks with Augustine and others who have preached about an original sin, and she sides with all those who know we have been loved before the beginning.

"Do you agree with Julian that we were made for love? How are we doing? What levels and kinds of love have you tasted? What do you still have to learn about love?"