text: Good morning, Justmaybe - I agree that some close their minds to mercy because it makes them feel good/righteous to do so. But I don't think the argument against the theology of unconditional love/mercy is that it's too big a risk. I think it's that there is no basis for a theology of unconditional love/mercy in either the Old or New Testaments, nor in Catholic tradition.  I don't think we should confuse the slogans of the 70s with the biblical witness or traditional teaching, which are all grounded in the biblical theology of retribution: if we are faithful to the Lord, the Lord will be faithful to us. We can, in my opinion, argue that these sources got it wrong, but then we have to provide something to support that conclusion. - monica.