Screwtape XVIII - XXI

XVIII: “Things are to be many, yet somehow also one.”
In this quote Screwtape is writing about the trinity, and how he says that “the Enemy” uses this three-in-one definition of His being to explain the impossibility of love. This also brings into play the co-operation of many in one larger “being”, so to speak, such as the church.
XIX:
“We know that He cannot really love: nobody can: it doesn't make sense.”
God has true, pure, unconditional love towards us and He shows it in many ways, particularly on the cross. The reason why this is so hard for us to understand is because we are not God, we are sinful and selfish. We cannot even begin to fathom the true awe inspiring God and His agape love.
XX:
“As a result we are more and more directing the desires of men to something which does not exist—making the rôle of the eye in sexuality more and more important and at the same time making its demands more and more impossible.”
This can be seen in many ways, especially in today’s world. The media plays a huge role in this and spreads the ideals of the “perfect body” and setting standards for beauty that can make a person lose focus on what is on the inside. Just like how we can sometimes easily forget that a beautiful ring in a pig’s nose is still in a pig’s nose.
XXI:
“And all the time the joke is that the word "Mine" in its fully possessive sense cannot be uttered by a human being about anything.”
We are not our own. We cannot have complete ownership of anything. Christian or not, everything that we have is given to us by God yet, being the selfish humans that we are, we frequently lose sight of that fact.