The Scriptures make it clear that Christ bore the weight of humanity’s sin—not symbolically, but in a real and overwhelming way, a burden He accepted out of love. Saint Paul captures this truth with startling clarity: “For our sake, He made Him to be sin who knew no sin” (2 Cor 5:21). In essence, the Father allowed His Son to take upon Himself the full consequences of human rebellion, absorbing the cost of our brokenness.
Pope Benedict XVI, reflecting on this profound mystery in Deus Caritas Est, described it boldly as a “turning of God against Himself.” Not because God is divided, but because perfect love sometimes demands a self-giving so radical it appears almost self-wounding. Christ enters the very space where humanity has failed, responding to our disobedience with perfect obedience. The Cross is not a punishment inflicted by divine wrath; it is love entering the darkest corners of human history—those corners filled with betrayal, injustice, and hatred.
