Pain and Love

"Who then devised the torment? Love.
Love is the unfamiliar Name
Behind the hands that wove
The intolerable shirt of flame
Which human power cannot remove.
     We only live, only suspire
     Consumed by either fire or fire."

Love-- it can be painful, yet obviously we view it as a generally good thing. Human power cannot remove this "intolerable shirt of flame" (which I read as a possible reference to judgment), yet Love wove that shirt. This idea of love causing judgment points me to an interesting question: Is it out of love that God allows us to suffer? I don't even know how or if that makes sense at all, but that is the question I think about. The reason I see this is that the last two lines state we only live and breathe consumed by fire or fire... Love can save; love can punish. Anyone with kids will most likely attest to that. Perhaps God's love is what allows both His wrath and His grace to exist in union. The fifth section of "Little Gidding" definitely vies for them going hand in hand-- "Into the crowned knot of fire
                                                                                          And the fire and the rose are one."

That's an interesting thought. I think Eliot does a great job of portraying the idea of human temporality and God's love/wrath's connection throughout this poem. All in all, this is a beautifully worded piece of literature, and I cannot wait until we unpack it tomorrow.


P.S. I commented on Abbie George's post.