A Severe Mercy: A Story of Faith, Tragedy and Triumph

The Shining Barrier was the name Van and Davy give to their vow never to allow anything to separate them from each other or to break the bond of their love. The Shining Barrier, as the author describes, was both the shield and guardian of their love—ensuring that nothing could break it or betray it—and at the same time, it was their love itself, for it was their love that ultimately allowed their bond to endure and persist. While it would eventually expand to include their new primary love for God, it would last to the end in their minds as a testament to the unique expression of their love.

The author distinguishes between the “pagan” love the couple share before their conversion and the Christian love they share after the fact. The distinction is one in which Christian love is defined primarily by love for God, subordinating all other loves to their rightful place beneath that love, while “pagan” love is concerned purely with the other without any reference to a transcendent good beyond and above the beloved. Their “pagan” love is not construed as anything wicked, however, for it was their “pagan” love that drew them to each other and allowed them to revel in the enjoyment of anything good or beautiful.