Redemptive Suffering: Outpouring of Love
Welcome to this page on Redemptive Suffering. There are videos, articles, podcasts and many links to other types of media that address this life-changing topic. To make your time here more fruitful consider praying the following prayer before you begin:
Dear Lord,
Help me to remember in times of suffering, the cross you carried for my sake, so that I may better carry mine. Help me to understand the incredible value you have given to the offering of my suffering as a sacrifice united to yours. As I explore the teachings you have given to your Church on this topic, open my mind and heart to the hidden treasures of redemptive suffering. Help me to allow my suffering and crosses - great & small - to unite me more deeply to you, help other people and to increase my capacity to love you for all eternity. Amen.
Dear Lord,
Help me to remember in times of suffering, the cross you carried for my sake, so that I may better carry mine. Help me to understand the incredible value you have given to the offering of my suffering as a sacrifice united to yours. As I explore the teachings you have given to your Church on this topic, open my mind and heart to the hidden treasures of redemptive suffering. Help me to allow my suffering and crosses - great & small - to unite me more deeply to you, help other people and to increase my capacity to love you for all eternity. Amen.
We’ve probably all been told to “offer it up” at some point in our lives. Though we might be tempted to roll our eyes at this, it’s actually what we’re all called to do when we face hardships. When we unite our suffering to the Passion of Christ, it becomes a powerful prayer. Just as Jesus’ suffering gave us new life and cleansed us of sin, our own suffering can be offered for the benefit of others. By his Cross and Death, Jesus reclaimed suffering from the enemy and made it something life-giving. So when you find yourself suffering, trust that it is not in vain; Jesus suffered first, he suffers with you now, and he is using your suffering to bring about good. Redemptive suffering is a gift of the Church and a gift to you.
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3-minute Theology - Suffering
Redemptive suffering is the Christian belief that human suffering, when accepted and offered up in union with the Passion of Jesus, can remit the just punishment for one's sins or for the sins of another, and/or for other physical or spiritual needs of oneself or another. Like an indulgence, redemptive suffering does not gain the individual forgivenessfor their sin; forgiveness results from God’s grace, freely given through Christ, which cannot be earned. After one's sins are forgiven, the individual's suffering can reduce the penalty due for sin.
By the sufferings in His human nature during the Passion by which mankind was redeemed, Christ gave to all suffering experienced in the members of His Mystical Body a redeeming power when accepted and offered up in union with His Passion. As Pope John Paul II wrote:
“In bringing about the Redemption through suffering, Christ raised human suffering to the level of the Redemption. Thus each man, in his sufferings, can also become a sharer in the redemptive suffering of Christ” (Salvifici Doloris).
By the sufferings in His human nature during the Passion by which mankind was redeemed, Christ gave to all suffering experienced in the members of His Mystical Body a redeeming power when accepted and offered up in union with His Passion. As Pope John Paul II wrote:
“In bringing about the Redemption through suffering, Christ raised human suffering to the level of the Redemption. Thus each man, in his sufferings, can also become a sharer in the redemptive suffering of Christ” (Salvifici Doloris).
Offer it Up = Open it Up
Have you ever heard someone say "Offer it up"? Sometimes people have a hard time understanding what that phrase means. When you think of the phrase “offer it up”, think of it as “open it up.” When we “offer up” our suffering, we “open it up" for God to enter into it. This makes our struggle (suffering) fruitful. Two of the ways it becomes fruitful are: 1st, when we "offer up" a difficulty to God - instead of succumbing to it or trying to push the pain down and not deal with it - it is as if a wall has come down in our heart and we are giving Him access to an area of our life that He was not able to come fully into before. We have "opened it up" to Him. Because He is present there now, we are not on our own and can draw from His strength and power to face the difficulty. His strength begins exactly where our natural ability ends.
Have you ever heard someone say "Offer it up"? Sometimes people have a hard time understanding what that phrase means. When you think of the phrase “offer it up”, think of it as “open it up.” When we “offer up” our suffering, we “open it up" for God to enter into it. This makes our struggle (suffering) fruitful. Two of the ways it becomes fruitful are: 1st, when we "offer up" a difficulty to God - instead of succumbing to it or trying to push the pain down and not deal with it - it is as if a wall has come down in our heart and we are giving Him access to an area of our life that He was not able to come fully into before. We have "opened it up" to Him. Because He is present there now, we are not on our own and can draw from His strength and power to face the difficulty. His strength begins exactly where our natural ability ends.
2nd, now that He is present, so is His self-sacrificing love, which we can tap into in order to offer up the difficulty as a prayer of intercession for others. In other words, He is present in our difficulty - we are now yoked with him (Matthew 11:28-30) - so that we can, not only bear it patiently, but, we can go even further, and offer it up as an act of love for other people.
SUFFERING: Definition
The disagreeable experience of soul that comes with the presence of evil or the privation of some good. Although commonly synonymous with pain, suffering is rather the reaction to pain, and in this sense suffering is a decisive factor in Christian spirituality. Absolutely speaking, suffering is possible because we are creatures, but in the present order of Providence suffering is the result of sin having entered the world. Its purpose, however, is not only to expiate wrongdoing, but to enable the believer to offer God a sacrifice of praise of his divine right over creatures, to unite oneself with Christ in his sufferings as an expression of love, and in the process to become more like Christ, who, having joy set before him, chose the Cross, and thus "to make up all that has still to be undergone by Christ for the sake of His body, the Church" (I Colosians 1:24). (Etym. Latin sufferre, to sustain, to bear up: sub-, up from under + ferre, to bear.)
SUFFERING: Definition
The disagreeable experience of soul that comes with the presence of evil or the privation of some good. Although commonly synonymous with pain, suffering is rather the reaction to pain, and in this sense suffering is a decisive factor in Christian spirituality. Absolutely speaking, suffering is possible because we are creatures, but in the present order of Providence suffering is the result of sin having entered the world. Its purpose, however, is not only to expiate wrongdoing, but to enable the believer to offer God a sacrifice of praise of his divine right over creatures, to unite oneself with Christ in his sufferings as an expression of love, and in the process to become more like Christ, who, having joy set before him, chose the Cross, and thus "to make up all that has still to be undergone by Christ for the sake of His body, the Church" (I Colosians 1:24). (Etym. Latin sufferre, to sustain, to bear up: sub-, up from under + ferre, to bear.)
WORDS OF HOPE AND LOVE
Fr. John Paul encourages all to support each other during the pandemic and to look to Jesus who is our life, our hope, and joy. Also, in a treasured classic from EWTN, Foundress Mother Angelica discusses overcoming fear and trusting the Lord.
Fr. John Paul encourages all to support each other during the pandemic and to look to Jesus who is our life, our hope, and joy. Also, in a treasured classic from EWTN, Foundress Mother Angelica discusses overcoming fear and trusting the Lord.
Six Reasons We Have to Carry Our Crosses
"If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me" (Matthew 16:24).
When Jesus uses the word “cross” he is referring to suffering as an “instrument of salvation.” This makes sense in reference to his suffering and death but many Christians wonder, isn’t what Jesus did enough? Why do we have to carry our crosses?
Of course, what Jesus did was "enough." That is not the right question. Rather, it should be: "Exactly what was it enough for?"
It was enough to not only save us from hell - eternal death & suffering - but also to provide us with the ability (grace) to do what He did in the midst of the sufferings and hardships of this life; to love the way he did.
Jesus does not want our sorrows to be fruitless, but to become a cross - a means of elevating and sanctifying our souls and at the same time, an instrument of salvation for others. In reality, all suffering is transformed, changed into a cross as soon as we accept it from the hands of the Savior (Jesus, I trust in you), and cling to His will which transforms it for our spiritual advantage. This is key because suffering in itself does not work for the good or automatically make us holy. "If it did, all those in hell would be saved, for they endure great suffering and that pain is eternal. It is because Jesus suffered and we unite our pain to His that suffering changes and transforms us. It is because His Spirit dwells in our souls through Baptism that He suffers when we suffer" (Mother Angelica).
There are many spiritual advantages to allowing Jesus to transform our suffering and difficulties into crosses – instruments of salvation. Here are six:
1. Our crosses purify our faith, hope and love and, at the same time, heal the temporal consequences of our sins.
1 Peter 1:6-9
"In this you rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold which though perishable is tested by fire, may redound to praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Without having seen him you love him; though you do not now see him you believe in him and rejoice with unutterable and exalted joy. As the outcome of your faith you obtain the salvation of your souls."
Romans 5:2-4, 10:
“We rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope…. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.”
James 1:2-4
“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
Each difficult situation that we experience has been sent or allowed by God to purify us (to free us to love) in a specific way. Just as when you go to the gym, you use different machines to lift weights so that all of your different muscles are strengthened; God is perfecting us in love through the combination of our trials. Holiness is not achieved through one difficult event or one difficult situation. Each struggle has something in it that we need – a hidden treasure. These hidden treasures will be revealed as we persevere. We will not be the same person at the end of the trial that we were at the beginning.
What are the temporal consequences of sin? Read more about that here or here).
Hebrews 12:7, 11
“Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?…No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”
2. Our crosses benefit others when we offer our sufferings up as a prayer of intercession for them.
On July 13, 1917 Our Lady of Fatima recommended to the three shepherd children: “Sacrifice yourselves for sinners, and say many times, especially when you make some sacrifice: "O Jesus, it is for love of You, for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation for the sins committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.”
Before Our Lady appeared to the children, the Angel of Peace asked them to do this as well. On his second visit the Angel told the children: “Offer prayers and sacrifices constantly to the Most High.”
Lucia, trying to understand how to obey the angel, asks: “How are we to make sacrifices?”
The Angel of Peace responded: " Make of everything you can a sacrifice, and offer it God as an act of reparation for the sins by which he is offended and in supplication for the conversion of sinners.”
What does it mean to “make of everything a sacrifice”?
Our days our filled with potential sacrifices. To start with, you can offer your daily duties according to your state in life (e.g. married, single, student, job, family, etc.), especially the ones you do not enjoy. Do them with all the love, devotion, professionalism and diligence that you are capable and offer them to God as a prayer of reparation for sinners.
After that you can add self-imposed penances like getting up early to pray, not eating sweets, or going without cream in your coffee.
This teaching is key to living a life of sacrificial readiness for God and souls. We are called to make everything we experience an offering to God, whether it is something we enjoy, a self-imposed penance or something we must endure: all these things can be transformed through love and elevated into a gift to God for the redemption of souls.
To increase the merit of the children’s offering the Angel added: “Above all, accept and bear with submission, the suffering which the Lord will send you.”
These are the penances that can be the most difficult to offer as a gift, but, for that very reason, have the most value and merit. In offering back to God the sufferings that He sends, those things which are so contrary to our desires, things we could or would never choose for ourselves, we avoid the temptations of self-complacency, self-will or pride in doing self-imposed penance only.
Think of how many things that happen each day that are not as we would like them to be. All of these things are a gift from God, an opportunity for us to make reparation for the sins that offend God and as supplication for sinners. We can also offer them as indulgences for our loved ones who have died in reparation for the sins that they did make amends for before their death (see more about this below). Concretely, we can offer what we:
As things happen throughout the day, that fall into any of these categories, we can accept them with trust in God (Divine Providence) and offer them with love. We can “offer them up.”
When Jesus uses the word “cross” he is referring to suffering as an “instrument of salvation.” This makes sense in reference to his suffering and death but many Christians wonder, isn’t what Jesus did enough? Why do we have to carry our crosses?
Of course, what Jesus did was "enough." That is not the right question. Rather, it should be: "Exactly what was it enough for?"
It was enough to not only save us from hell - eternal death & suffering - but also to provide us with the ability (grace) to do what He did in the midst of the sufferings and hardships of this life; to love the way he did.
Jesus does not want our sorrows to be fruitless, but to become a cross - a means of elevating and sanctifying our souls and at the same time, an instrument of salvation for others. In reality, all suffering is transformed, changed into a cross as soon as we accept it from the hands of the Savior (Jesus, I trust in you), and cling to His will which transforms it for our spiritual advantage. This is key because suffering in itself does not work for the good or automatically make us holy. "If it did, all those in hell would be saved, for they endure great suffering and that pain is eternal. It is because Jesus suffered and we unite our pain to His that suffering changes and transforms us. It is because His Spirit dwells in our souls through Baptism that He suffers when we suffer" (Mother Angelica).
There are many spiritual advantages to allowing Jesus to transform our suffering and difficulties into crosses – instruments of salvation. Here are six:
1. Our crosses purify our faith, hope and love and, at the same time, heal the temporal consequences of our sins.
1 Peter 1:6-9
"In this you rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold which though perishable is tested by fire, may redound to praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Without having seen him you love him; though you do not now see him you believe in him and rejoice with unutterable and exalted joy. As the outcome of your faith you obtain the salvation of your souls."
Romans 5:2-4, 10:
“We rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope…. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.”
James 1:2-4
“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
Each difficult situation that we experience has been sent or allowed by God to purify us (to free us to love) in a specific way. Just as when you go to the gym, you use different machines to lift weights so that all of your different muscles are strengthened; God is perfecting us in love through the combination of our trials. Holiness is not achieved through one difficult event or one difficult situation. Each struggle has something in it that we need – a hidden treasure. These hidden treasures will be revealed as we persevere. We will not be the same person at the end of the trial that we were at the beginning.
What are the temporal consequences of sin? Read more about that here or here).
Hebrews 12:7, 11
“Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?…No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”
2. Our crosses benefit others when we offer our sufferings up as a prayer of intercession for them.
On July 13, 1917 Our Lady of Fatima recommended to the three shepherd children: “Sacrifice yourselves for sinners, and say many times, especially when you make some sacrifice: "O Jesus, it is for love of You, for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation for the sins committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.”
Before Our Lady appeared to the children, the Angel of Peace asked them to do this as well. On his second visit the Angel told the children: “Offer prayers and sacrifices constantly to the Most High.”
Lucia, trying to understand how to obey the angel, asks: “How are we to make sacrifices?”
The Angel of Peace responded: " Make of everything you can a sacrifice, and offer it God as an act of reparation for the sins by which he is offended and in supplication for the conversion of sinners.”
What does it mean to “make of everything a sacrifice”?
Our days our filled with potential sacrifices. To start with, you can offer your daily duties according to your state in life (e.g. married, single, student, job, family, etc.), especially the ones you do not enjoy. Do them with all the love, devotion, professionalism and diligence that you are capable and offer them to God as a prayer of reparation for sinners.
After that you can add self-imposed penances like getting up early to pray, not eating sweets, or going without cream in your coffee.
This teaching is key to living a life of sacrificial readiness for God and souls. We are called to make everything we experience an offering to God, whether it is something we enjoy, a self-imposed penance or something we must endure: all these things can be transformed through love and elevated into a gift to God for the redemption of souls.
To increase the merit of the children’s offering the Angel added: “Above all, accept and bear with submission, the suffering which the Lord will send you.”
These are the penances that can be the most difficult to offer as a gift, but, for that very reason, have the most value and merit. In offering back to God the sufferings that He sends, those things which are so contrary to our desires, things we could or would never choose for ourselves, we avoid the temptations of self-complacency, self-will or pride in doing self-imposed penance only.
Think of how many things that happen each day that are not as we would like them to be. All of these things are a gift from God, an opportunity for us to make reparation for the sins that offend God and as supplication for sinners. We can also offer them as indulgences for our loved ones who have died in reparation for the sins that they did make amends for before their death (see more about this below). Concretely, we can offer what we:
- Do not like (sickness, disappointment, loneliness, difficult relationships, etc.)
- Did not choose (busted pipes, traffic, SSA, gender-identity crisis, heavy workload, rejection, the death of a loved one, etc.)
- Cannot change (bad weather, fatigue, lack of appreciation, grief, etc.)
As things happen throughout the day, that fall into any of these categories, we can accept them with trust in God (Divine Providence) and offer them with love. We can “offer them up.”
Our Lady told them: "Many souls go to hell because there is no one to pray or make a sacrifice for them" (August, 1917).
Read more about this here or here.
3. Our crosses increase the flow of grace in the world.
"As Christians, our prayers, actions, sacrifices and sufferings offered up in union with Christ serve as conduits, in a sense, of God’s grace. And it is God’s grace that redeems fallen humanity, rolls back the forces of evil, enlightens sin-darkened hearts, restores hope to those in despair, fills us with joy, wisdom, and strength… God’s Kingdom flourishes, in individuals, families, parishes, and societies, when the flow of grace is abundant" (Fr. John Bartunek). But not all offerings are the same or have the same effect. Different factors affect the value of our offering - the degree of our union with Jesus, the amount of sanctifying grace in our soul, our purity of intention and the fervor of our offering. To do our part to increase the value of our offering in these four ways is to do our part to increase the flow of God's grace in, through and around us (read more here).
4. Our crosses are used by God to release a purer and stronger love into the world; a love that was not present and active before the suffering began. "Suffering is present in this life in order to unleash love in the human person and in the world" (Pope St. John Paul II). Think of the amount of active sacrificial love, compassion and concern that is released when a natural disaster occurs. How many people stop pursuing their selfish pursuits and focus on helping the people in need in that moment? That is just one example of this. If we make it to heaven, we will see from God's perspective how much love was unleashed and grew because of our sufferings and we will bow our head and say, Amen! We will be eternally grateful that we were able to help others grow in sacrificial love and for the effect that our suffering had on the world.
5. Our crosses can be offered as indulgences for the holy souls in purgatory. This greatly increases the value of the offering!
Indulgences are a great gift of God’s mercy. They help to satisfy for the temporal punishment due to sins and can be gained for ourselves or for the souls in Purgatory. Indulgences are a wonderful way to effectively help our love ones who have died. Many of us feel a sense of guilt after the death of someone close to us, wishing that we would have done things differently. Indulgences give us a chance to remedy that by helping them now in their current state. The souls in Purgatory cannot help themselves so they need our help.
Indulgences offer us a wonderful incentive to make our entire day into a prayer – an offering of love. There are indulgences for specific prayers; for fulfilling our daily duties to the best of our ability and bearing difficulties of life in a Christian spirit. There are indulgences for acts of charity and for acts of penance. I try to offer every prayer, work, joy, sorrow and suffering; every difficultly―traffic, weather, rudeness from other people, difficult situations at work, headache, etc.―as an indulgence by bearing each one patiently, doing my best and offering each one with love to God.
But what makes an indulgence so valuable?
Indulgences are so important because they greatly increase the value of our acts of penance by drawing from the treasury of the Church. "Two elements specify the value of such acts:
- The charity in our heart when we perform the act
- The degree to which we perform the act itself in a more perfect way.”
“In addition to the remission of the temporal punishment received by the good act itself, with an indulgence, an equal remission is added through the intervention of the Church. It is like a matching gift program by a business: An employee gives $50 to a charity, and the company matches that with another $50 donation” (EWTN).
“This ‘distribution’ should not be understood as a sort of automatic transfer, as if we were speaking of ‘things’. It is instead the expression of the Church's full confidence of being heard by the Father when - in view of Christ's merits and, by his gift, those of Our Lady and the saints - she asks him to mitigate or cancel the painful aspect of punishment by fostering its medicinal aspect through other channels of grace.” Read more about indulgences here or here.
6. Finally, not only does handling our crosses this way bear fruit for others, this sacrifice and suffering that we bear in, with and through Christ, is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory - it is increasing our capacity to love and our growth in virtue – making us more like Christ. This increases the degree of His glory that we will participate in - in heaven. Every cross that we bear patiently and offer as an intercessory prayer for others, increases our glory from one degree to another:
Romans 8:16-18
“For the Spirit Himself gives testimony to our spirit that we are the sons of God. And if sons, heirs also; heirs indeed of God and joint heirs with Christ: yet so, if we suffer with Him, that we may be also glorified with Him. The sufferings of this time are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come that shall be revealed in us.”
2 Corinthians 4:17
“For this slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison.”
Diary of St. Faustina - #605
"O Holy Trinity, Eternal God, I thank You for allowing me to know the greatness and the various degrees of glory to which souls attain. Oh, what a great difference of depth in the knowledge of God there is between one degree and another! Oh, if people could only know this! O my God, if I were thereby able to attain one more degree, I would gladly suffer all the torments of the martyrs put together.”
This is precisely why Jesus said that carrying our crosses was necessary:
Luke 14:7
"And whosoever doth not carry his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.
He knows all of the benefits that can come from this and he doesn't want us to miss out on them!
Tags: Merit, Degrees of Glory, Sanctification, Redemptive Suffering
A PROCESS OF OFFERING UP SUFFERING
by Daniel Burke
The following is a reflection that my spiritual director sent to me. I have adapted it slightly. There is much wisdom here.
1. Enter into the Lord’s presence and ask for His insight and grace as you seek to understand and lean into your suffering for the sake of your own salvation and that of those whom God has placed in your care.
2. Reflect on life events or circumstances that are troubling you now or over a period of time (hours, day, days, week, month…).
3. Name the suffering you experience (i.e., what physical/emotional/spiritual pain, disappointment, failure, frustration, loneliness, anxiety, being overwhelmed…). There could be one suffering or a list, a litany of suffering.
4. Acknowledge these suffering(s) to yourself recalling that you are in the presence of God. “God, I know you are present to me. These are the sufferings (name) that I have experienced (over a period of time – day/week/month…).”
5. Accept or better Embrace these sufferings in a spirit of prayer and resignation. This burden has to accepted by one’s self alone. This is the hardest part. “I accept these sufferings (can be named again.)”
6. Offer to God the sufferings that you have just reflected on, named, and accepted. A person can’t offer up to God what they haven’t accepted. You can’t give what you don’t possess. Acceptance is an indication of possession, ownership. “Lord I offer to You all these sufferings (can be named again) which I have just accepted. The acceptance and offering up sufferings have now become sacrifices. “Lord these are my sacrifices given to you.” You can then name people or situations that you would like to offer your sufferings for.
7. Recognize that though what you offer is a pittance, that God’s grace will magnify your gift into an abundance of grace poured out upon the world and the needs before you. In this way, you participate in the Lord’s redemption of His people.
While this process can be done at any time, the greatest opportunity for grace as a result of offering up accepted suffering(s) – sacrifices – is during the Offertory at Mass. Now God, through the priest, will take your sacrifices and turn them into the Body and Blood of Christ. The effect on a soul who worthily receives the Eucharist, after offering up their personally, accepted sacrifices, is immediate. Giving God our sacrifices is ordinarily what we are supposed to do at this point of the Mass anyway.
When a person has taken these steps they can be certain that God is with them in their struggle. They are no longer alone. The response of God would be the granting of the grace of the Peace of Christ. While the suffering may not go away, the person is no longer alone, in a supreme way as they are now being accompanied by Christ in much the same way that Jesus taught,
“Come to me, all you who are weary and find life burdensome, and I will refresh you. Take my yoke upon your shoulders and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart. Your souls will find rest, for my yoke is easy and my burden light,” Matt.11:28-30.
by Daniel Burke
The following is a reflection that my spiritual director sent to me. I have adapted it slightly. There is much wisdom here.
1. Enter into the Lord’s presence and ask for His insight and grace as you seek to understand and lean into your suffering for the sake of your own salvation and that of those whom God has placed in your care.
2. Reflect on life events or circumstances that are troubling you now or over a period of time (hours, day, days, week, month…).
3. Name the suffering you experience (i.e., what physical/emotional/spiritual pain, disappointment, failure, frustration, loneliness, anxiety, being overwhelmed…). There could be one suffering or a list, a litany of suffering.
4. Acknowledge these suffering(s) to yourself recalling that you are in the presence of God. “God, I know you are present to me. These are the sufferings (name) that I have experienced (over a period of time – day/week/month…).”
5. Accept or better Embrace these sufferings in a spirit of prayer and resignation. This burden has to accepted by one’s self alone. This is the hardest part. “I accept these sufferings (can be named again.)”
6. Offer to God the sufferings that you have just reflected on, named, and accepted. A person can’t offer up to God what they haven’t accepted. You can’t give what you don’t possess. Acceptance is an indication of possession, ownership. “Lord I offer to You all these sufferings (can be named again) which I have just accepted. The acceptance and offering up sufferings have now become sacrifices. “Lord these are my sacrifices given to you.” You can then name people or situations that you would like to offer your sufferings for.
7. Recognize that though what you offer is a pittance, that God’s grace will magnify your gift into an abundance of grace poured out upon the world and the needs before you. In this way, you participate in the Lord’s redemption of His people.
While this process can be done at any time, the greatest opportunity for grace as a result of offering up accepted suffering(s) – sacrifices – is during the Offertory at Mass. Now God, through the priest, will take your sacrifices and turn them into the Body and Blood of Christ. The effect on a soul who worthily receives the Eucharist, after offering up their personally, accepted sacrifices, is immediate. Giving God our sacrifices is ordinarily what we are supposed to do at this point of the Mass anyway.
When a person has taken these steps they can be certain that God is with them in their struggle. They are no longer alone. The response of God would be the granting of the grace of the Peace of Christ. While the suffering may not go away, the person is no longer alone, in a supreme way as they are now being accompanied by Christ in much the same way that Jesus taught,
“Come to me, all you who are weary and find life burdensome, and I will refresh you. Take my yoke upon your shoulders and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart. Your souls will find rest, for my yoke is easy and my burden light,” Matt.11:28-30.
If for some reason a person cannot make the act of acceptance on their own, they can ask God to help them. “Lord help me to accept these sufferings which I desire to offer up to you.” God is generous and knows your limitations. He will help even in this.
Original Source: Apostles of the Way
Tags:
Redemptive Suffering
Offer it Up
Mass is source and summit
Eucharist
The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass
Original Source: Apostles of the Way
Tags:
Redemptive Suffering
Offer it Up
Mass is source and summit
Eucharist
The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass
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Video 1: Jeff Cavins on the Meaning of Suffering
In this video Jeff Cavins, the founder of the Great Adventure: A Journey Through the Bible talks about the meaning of suffering. He uses Pope John Paul II's document Salvifici Dolores. |
Video 2: Jeff Cavins — “Offer it Up”: Opportunities to Grow in Holiness
Jeff Cavins, author and creator of EWTN’s Life on the Rock, spoke to Franciscan University of Steubenville’s 2011 Applied Biblical Studies Conference “Unveiling the Mystery: The Book of Revelation.” In this talk, “Redemptive Suffering”, Cavins addresses the problem of pain, speaking from personal experience and the wisdom of the Scriptures, popes, and saints. He explains the mysterious gift given to Christians: we are permitted to suffer alongside Jesus as a witness and martyr. “What is lacking in the suffering of Jesus?” asks Cavins. “Nothing. But you are allowed to participate…Many of us are missing the opportunity for the Passion in our own lives, and it doesn’t become salvific.” |
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Video 3: Matthew Kelly from Dynamic Catholic explains how everything (especially our suffering) is an opportunity to grow in holiness - to grow in love
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Video 4: Fr. John Bartunek and Dan Burke talk about how we can join with Christ in the redemption of the world through our suffering
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Video 5: Fr. Spitzer elaborates on the topic of redemptive suffering
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Video 6: Pain and suffering are often peoples' biggest obstacle to faith. "If there is a God, why does he let us suffer?" They conclude there is no God, or that he doesn't care about us. Chris Stefanick points us to the truth revealed on the cross, that God is love, and suffers for us, and with us.
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Video 7: Books upon books have been written about the problem of suffering. Fr. Mike isn’t about to reinvent the wheel in this video, but the wisdom he shares in it echoes that of the saints. What did the saints and martyrs know about suffering that enabled them to endure so much of it? Christ didn’t give them some mystical superpower; he simply gave their suffering a purpose.
Fr. Mike's videos are now available as podcasts at www.ascensionpresents.com/podcasts |
Video 8: How can God be good, but allow bad things to happen? Fr. Mike Schmitz tackles one of the toughest questions religious believers must answer.
Ascension Press main website: http://ascensionpress.com Ascension Presents website: http://ascensionpresents.com Ascension Press YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/c/ascensionpres |
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Mother Angelica explains how suffering born with patience in, with and through Christ increases the degree of glory we will enjoy for all eternity in heaven. It increases our capacity to know and love God in heaven
BELOW: Fr. Nathan Reesman teaches the first of his series on Catholicism 101: "The Meaning of Suffering" October 30, 2012 Saint Frances Cabrini Parish www.saintfrancescabrini.com
Fr. John Riccardo tackles the difficult subject of suffering and how to make sense of it and bear with it fruitfully.
Making Sense Out of Suffering
DR. SCOTT HAHN
We all experience suffering at some time in our lives. Our tribulations range from small disappointments to serious tragedies. Listen as scripture scholar and lay theologian, Dr. Scott Hahn, makes sense out of suffering by drawing from the wisdom and insight of God's Word. He helps us find the meaning of our suffering by showing us how to unite it to the suffering of Christ on the Cross.
DR. SCOTT HAHN
We all experience suffering at some time in our lives. Our tribulations range from small disappointments to serious tragedies. Listen as scripture scholar and lay theologian, Dr. Scott Hahn, makes sense out of suffering by drawing from the wisdom and insight of God's Word. He helps us find the meaning of our suffering by showing us how to unite it to the suffering of Christ on the Cross.
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“OFFERING IT UP” – REDEMPTIVE SUFFERING PART I MYSTERY OF MERITBY FR. BARTUNEK
Dear Father John, I was just listening to a radio show about redemptive suffering – they were saying that our suffering can have value if we “offer it up.” Is there any more to this (uniting our sufferings to Jesus') than just saying the words?
Before getting to the heart of this question, we have to peek at the presupposition. It has to do with a theological concept called merit.
Part I: The Mystery of Merit
Merit is the right to a reward. Someone who gains merit deserves a reward from others; they have earned something of value through their own efforts; someone else owes them a recompense as a result of what they have done. A worker merits his wages; a football player whose performance launches his team to victory merits recognition as the most valuable player; soldiers who risk their lives for their country merit respect, and also social security when their time of active duty is up.
Jesus spoke often about merit. In his Sermon on the Mount he encourages us to look forward to the reward that will be great in heaven. In his parables about the final judgment he draws a direct correlation between how we behave here on earth and the reward that we will receive in eternity. Our modern sensibilities, influenced by a Kantian worldview, are disturbed by the thought of doing what is right in order to receive a reward. Jesus had no such qualms: “Get yourselves purses that do not wear out, treasure that will not fail you, in heaven where no thief can reach it and no moth destroy it” (Luke 12:33).
In short, as Christians, our prayers, actions, and sacrifices serve as conduits, in a sense, of God’s grace. And it is God’s grace that redeems fallen humanity, rolls back the forces of evil, enlightens sin-darkened hearts, restores hope to those in despair, fills us with joy, wisdom, and strength… God’s Kingdom flourishes, in individuals, families, parishes, and societies, when the flow of grace is abundant. To increase our merits is to do our part to increase the flow of God’s grace in, through, and around us.
Problem and Solution
Dear Father John, I was just listening to a radio show about redemptive suffering – they were saying that our suffering can have value if we “offer it up.” Is there any more to this (uniting our sufferings to Jesus') than just saying the words?
Before getting to the heart of this question, we have to peek at the presupposition. It has to do with a theological concept called merit.
Part I: The Mystery of Merit
Merit is the right to a reward. Someone who gains merit deserves a reward from others; they have earned something of value through their own efforts; someone else owes them a recompense as a result of what they have done. A worker merits his wages; a football player whose performance launches his team to victory merits recognition as the most valuable player; soldiers who risk their lives for their country merit respect, and also social security when their time of active duty is up.
Jesus spoke often about merit. In his Sermon on the Mount he encourages us to look forward to the reward that will be great in heaven. In his parables about the final judgment he draws a direct correlation between how we behave here on earth and the reward that we will receive in eternity. Our modern sensibilities, influenced by a Kantian worldview, are disturbed by the thought of doing what is right in order to receive a reward. Jesus had no such qualms: “Get yourselves purses that do not wear out, treasure that will not fail you, in heaven where no thief can reach it and no moth destroy it” (Luke 12:33).
In short, as Christians, our prayers, actions, and sacrifices serve as conduits, in a sense, of God’s grace. And it is God’s grace that redeems fallen humanity, rolls back the forces of evil, enlightens sin-darkened hearts, restores hope to those in despair, fills us with joy, wisdom, and strength… God’s Kingdom flourishes, in individuals, families, parishes, and societies, when the flow of grace is abundant. To increase our merits is to do our part to increase the flow of God’s grace in, through, and around us.
Problem and Solution
Now for the tricky part. On our own, we are absolutely incapable of obtaining supernatural merits. This is because we are fallen, sinful human beings. An unplugged lamp won’t give off any light, no matter how many times you turn the switch. Similarly, original sin unplugged our souls from the source of grace – God himself. When Jesus became man and offered himself in atonement for our sins, he plugged human nature back in to God, so to speak. This was the redemption. And so, anyone who is united to Christ through faith and the sacraments is now once again connected to the source of grace – they are living in the state of grace. Only in Christ, then, can we merit: “I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me, with me in him, bears fruit in plenty; for cut off from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).
But that’s the amazing thing: in Christ, we can merit. God has consciously chosen to give us the possibility of making a difference in his Kingdom. We are not just along for the ride. What we do and how we choose to live our ordinary lives can actually increase the flow of grace in the world, spreading Christ’s Kingdom and storing up treasure for us in heaven. Jesus has not only saved us from damnation, but he has given us the possibility of becoming active, meritorious collaborators in the work of redemption. Not because we deserve it, but simply because he generously wanted to give us that possibility: he wanted our lives to have real meaning, our actions and decisions to have eternal repercussions. His love makes us friends and collaborators, not just his robots or spiritual trophies.
Though it may seem obvious, we should mention that no one can merit the initial grace of conversion for themselves. The unplugged lamp can’t plug itself in, though once plugged it really is the lamp that shines. A misunderstanding of this point helped fuel the fire of dissension that sparked so many painful divisions among Christians at the time of the Protestant Reformation. We cannot save or redeem ourselves; we need a Savior, a Redeemer: Christ. But on the other hand, once we have accepted Christ’s gift of grace, that very gift enables us to merit other graces for ourselves and for the Church. This is a marvelous, wonderful, and underemphasized part of the Good News!
Now we are ready to tackle the question of whether it is enough just to “say the words” in order to win merit by uniting our sufferings to Christ. We’ll look at that next time.
Though it may seem obvious, we should mention that no one can merit the initial grace of conversion for themselves. The unplugged lamp can’t plug itself in, though once plugged it really is the lamp that shines. A misunderstanding of this point helped fuel the fire of dissension that sparked so many painful divisions among Christians at the time of the Protestant Reformation. We cannot save or redeem ourselves; we need a Savior, a Redeemer: Christ. But on the other hand, once we have accepted Christ’s gift of grace, that very gift enables us to merit other graces for ourselves and for the Church. This is a marvelous, wonderful, and underemphasized part of the Good News!
Now we are ready to tackle the question of whether it is enough just to “say the words” in order to win merit by uniting our sufferings to Christ. We’ll look at that next time.
“OFFERING IT UP” – REDEMPTIVE SUFFERING (II/II) PATH TO GREATER MERIT
In part I, we talked about the mystery of merit and its problem and solution. Today, we will discuss how the growth in spiritual maturity depends on the interior discipline in living out each for four factors.
A reader asks: Dear Father John, I was just listening to a radio show about redemptive suffering – they were saying that our suffering can have value if we “offer it up.” Is there any more to this (uniting our sufferings to Jesus’) than just saying the words?
Having marveled at the amazing truth that Jesus not only redeemed us, but through his grace has desired to give us a real, consequential role in the building up of his everlasting Kingdom through merit, now we are ready to tackle your question. If we are in the state of grace, our prayers, virtuous actions, and even our sufferings can become a source of merit. When we unite them to Christ (“offering them up” as you put it in the question), they become pipelines of grace extending from the heart of Christ into our hearts and through us into the Church and the world around us. That said, we also must remember that the diameter of the pipeline is not fixed. It depends upon four factors. Growth in spiritual maturity depends to a great extent on the interior discipline required in living out these four factors.
In part I, we talked about the mystery of merit and its problem and solution. Today, we will discuss how the growth in spiritual maturity depends on the interior discipline in living out each for four factors.
A reader asks: Dear Father John, I was just listening to a radio show about redemptive suffering – they were saying that our suffering can have value if we “offer it up.” Is there any more to this (uniting our sufferings to Jesus’) than just saying the words?
Having marveled at the amazing truth that Jesus not only redeemed us, but through his grace has desired to give us a real, consequential role in the building up of his everlasting Kingdom through merit, now we are ready to tackle your question. If we are in the state of grace, our prayers, virtuous actions, and even our sufferings can become a source of merit. When we unite them to Christ (“offering them up” as you put it in the question), they become pipelines of grace extending from the heart of Christ into our hearts and through us into the Church and the world around us. That said, we also must remember that the diameter of the pipeline is not fixed. It depends upon four factors. Growth in spiritual maturity depends to a great extent on the interior discipline required in living out these four factors.
First, there is the amount of sanctifying grace present in my soul. The more I am filled with grace, the more merit my prayers, virtuous actions, and sufferings will have when I offer them to God. The more grace I am infused with, the higher the wattage on the lamp of my soul. This is because grace is what makes us more like God, more united to him. A kind word from a stranger can be pleasant, but a kind word from someone dear to me is much more meaningful. The Christian who prays regularly, receives the sacraments regularly, and makes an effort to practice all the Christian virtues, rooting out sinful tendencies and avoiding sin, is more united to God. They are in a better position to merit. As the Bible puts it, “The Lord keeps his distance from the wicked, but he listens to the prayers of the upright” (Proverbs 15:29). And lest you think this is just an Old Testament anachronism, here’s St. James making the same point in the New Testament: “…The heartfelt prayer of someone upright works very powerfully” (James 5:16). What goes for prayers goes also for virtuous actions and sufferings.
United to the Vine
Second, there is our union with Jesus. This is closely related to the first factor, but it is less formal and more relational. It’s a question of being aware of our union with Christ. We are members of his mystical body, and so he is always with us. The more conscious we are of this union, the more meritorious all of our actions become. When we are working on a project with another person, the beneficial synergy happens more fully and dramatically if we are in constant contact with that person along the whole process. Our project as Christians is to build up Christ’s Kingdom in our hearts and in the world around us. If we try to do the work on our own and then check in with the Lord at the end of the day, that’s good. But it’s much better if we work side-by-side with him throughout every phase of the project. This is the spiritual discipline of living in the presence of God, and it turns even the most mundane tasks into meaningful encounters with God. If I am habitually living and working aware of Christ’s presence in my heart, then saying the words “Lord, I offer this up to you” resonates deeply in my soul, opening up a wider flow of God’s grace (merit) through that offering. St. Paul encouraged the Christians of Colossae to practice this spiritual discipline: “…Whatever you say or do, let it be in the name of the Lord Jesus, in thanksgiving to God the Father through him” (Colossians 3:17).
To Want or Not to Want…
Third, there is our purity of intention. We can “offer up” our sufferings, using them to gain merit, for many different reasons: because we don’t want to go to hell; because we want more glory in heaven; because we want our sufferings to win graces for others who are in need; because we want to show God that we love him no matter what, even if he permits suffering in our lives; because we want to conform our lives more perfectly to Christ… The same variety of reasons can be present in our prayers and virtuous actions. We can obey because we don’t want to be punished, or because we recognize that the virtue of obedience is pleasing to God and glorifies his wisdom; we can exhaust ourselves to earn a decent living because we are afraid of being labeled a failure, or because we recognize that God has given us a mission to provide for a family and thereby be a mirror of the Father’s goodness… The default setting for our interior intention is usually self-centered. But with God’s help and constant effort on our part, we can make it more and more mission-centered, Kingdom-centered, Christ-centered. Of course, usually we have more than one intention, e.g. we work for the satisfaction of a job well done, but also to benefit the world around us and to make a living, and also to glorify God. Multiple intentions are natural and normal – human beings are complex creatures. But the more we can consciously renew our supernatural intention, stirring up the reasons for doing things that are based on the wisdom of our faith, the bigger pipeline of grace we can become. This factor applies even to the littlest things we do, as St Paul makes clear: “Whatever you eat, then, or drink, and whatever else you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).
United to the Vine
Second, there is our union with Jesus. This is closely related to the first factor, but it is less formal and more relational. It’s a question of being aware of our union with Christ. We are members of his mystical body, and so he is always with us. The more conscious we are of this union, the more meritorious all of our actions become. When we are working on a project with another person, the beneficial synergy happens more fully and dramatically if we are in constant contact with that person along the whole process. Our project as Christians is to build up Christ’s Kingdom in our hearts and in the world around us. If we try to do the work on our own and then check in with the Lord at the end of the day, that’s good. But it’s much better if we work side-by-side with him throughout every phase of the project. This is the spiritual discipline of living in the presence of God, and it turns even the most mundane tasks into meaningful encounters with God. If I am habitually living and working aware of Christ’s presence in my heart, then saying the words “Lord, I offer this up to you” resonates deeply in my soul, opening up a wider flow of God’s grace (merit) through that offering. St. Paul encouraged the Christians of Colossae to practice this spiritual discipline: “…Whatever you say or do, let it be in the name of the Lord Jesus, in thanksgiving to God the Father through him” (Colossians 3:17).
To Want or Not to Want…
Third, there is our purity of intention. We can “offer up” our sufferings, using them to gain merit, for many different reasons: because we don’t want to go to hell; because we want more glory in heaven; because we want our sufferings to win graces for others who are in need; because we want to show God that we love him no matter what, even if he permits suffering in our lives; because we want to conform our lives more perfectly to Christ… The same variety of reasons can be present in our prayers and virtuous actions. We can obey because we don’t want to be punished, or because we recognize that the virtue of obedience is pleasing to God and glorifies his wisdom; we can exhaust ourselves to earn a decent living because we are afraid of being labeled a failure, or because we recognize that God has given us a mission to provide for a family and thereby be a mirror of the Father’s goodness… The default setting for our interior intention is usually self-centered. But with God’s help and constant effort on our part, we can make it more and more mission-centered, Kingdom-centered, Christ-centered. Of course, usually we have more than one intention, e.g. we work for the satisfaction of a job well done, but also to benefit the world around us and to make a living, and also to glorify God. Multiple intentions are natural and normal – human beings are complex creatures. But the more we can consciously renew our supernatural intention, stirring up the reasons for doing things that are based on the wisdom of our faith, the bigger pipeline of grace we can become. This factor applies even to the littlest things we do, as St Paul makes clear: “Whatever you eat, then, or drink, and whatever else you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).
Going from Cold to Hot
Fourth, there is the factor of fervor. You can have 20 kids in a math class, and every single one of them can be working on an exercise. But not every single one of them will be putting their whole heart into it. You can have 15 kids at baseball practice, but not all 15 will be giving their all for the whole two hours. Just so, we can all say the words, “Lord, I offer this up to you,” but we will not all say them with equal fervor; the more meaning we pour into them, the more merit we can acquire. When sufferings come our way, for example, we can accept them with different degrees of fervor: reluctance, patience, gratitude, joy. As long as we accept them out of faith, we will merit – we will help increase the flow of grace in the Church. But if we accept them with a greater degree of faith (e.g. “Lord, you are giving me a chance to unite myself more closely to Christ on the cross – OK, Lord, help me to share his love as I share his pain!…”), there will also be a greater degree of merit. Jesus stressed this factor when he identified the most important commandment: “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37). He said all. The implication is that we can love with different degrees of totality.
Sanctifying grace, union with Jesus, purity of intention, and fervor are four factors that help determine the degree of merit that our prayers, virtuous actions, and sufferings (sacrifices) can win for ourselves, the Church, and the world around us. So, to answer the original question, there is much more to uniting our sufferings to Christ than simply saying the words, though that is the necessary catalyst.
I hope this hasn’t discouraged you by giving the impression that the spiritual life is overly complicated. It really isn’t. In fact, knowing that one simple action (a prayer, a headache, an act of service, an honest word, a chore) can either open up a trickle or a torrent of grace is a jewel of wisdom. It should fill us with optimism and enthusiasm. We don’t have to convert nations or face lions in the Coliseum to do something glorious for God! Nor do we have to learn complex yoga techniques in order to develop spiritual maturity – we just have to dig deep into our soul before, during, and after our normal activities, and activate our faith so as to plug them into our Christian mission of building Christ’s Kingdom. (By the way, the easiest way to do that is to grow in the habit of “praying at all times” [1 Thessalonians 5:17]. When we do that, the four factors kick in and intensify automatically.) This is less glamorous than becoming a martial arts expert, because it is largely interior and invisible (to everyone except you and God), and therefore requires more discipline. As St Paul put it, we “walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).
But the good news is, as always, that we are not alone. God, Mary, the angels and the saints are all eager to help us, if we just give them the chance.
Fourth, there is the factor of fervor. You can have 20 kids in a math class, and every single one of them can be working on an exercise. But not every single one of them will be putting their whole heart into it. You can have 15 kids at baseball practice, but not all 15 will be giving their all for the whole two hours. Just so, we can all say the words, “Lord, I offer this up to you,” but we will not all say them with equal fervor; the more meaning we pour into them, the more merit we can acquire. When sufferings come our way, for example, we can accept them with different degrees of fervor: reluctance, patience, gratitude, joy. As long as we accept them out of faith, we will merit – we will help increase the flow of grace in the Church. But if we accept them with a greater degree of faith (e.g. “Lord, you are giving me a chance to unite myself more closely to Christ on the cross – OK, Lord, help me to share his love as I share his pain!…”), there will also be a greater degree of merit. Jesus stressed this factor when he identified the most important commandment: “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37). He said all. The implication is that we can love with different degrees of totality.
Sanctifying grace, union with Jesus, purity of intention, and fervor are four factors that help determine the degree of merit that our prayers, virtuous actions, and sufferings (sacrifices) can win for ourselves, the Church, and the world around us. So, to answer the original question, there is much more to uniting our sufferings to Christ than simply saying the words, though that is the necessary catalyst.
I hope this hasn’t discouraged you by giving the impression that the spiritual life is overly complicated. It really isn’t. In fact, knowing that one simple action (a prayer, a headache, an act of service, an honest word, a chore) can either open up a trickle or a torrent of grace is a jewel of wisdom. It should fill us with optimism and enthusiasm. We don’t have to convert nations or face lions in the Coliseum to do something glorious for God! Nor do we have to learn complex yoga techniques in order to develop spiritual maturity – we just have to dig deep into our soul before, during, and after our normal activities, and activate our faith so as to plug them into our Christian mission of building Christ’s Kingdom. (By the way, the easiest way to do that is to grow in the habit of “praying at all times” [1 Thessalonians 5:17]. When we do that, the four factors kick in and intensify automatically.) This is less glamorous than becoming a martial arts expert, because it is largely interior and invisible (to everyone except you and God), and therefore requires more discipline. As St Paul put it, we “walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).
But the good news is, as always, that we are not alone. God, Mary, the angels and the saints are all eager to help us, if we just give them the chance.
Making Sense of Suffering with Jeff Cavins
Everyone goes through some amount of suffering and sometimes it can be unbearable. As Catholics, we might recall the suffering that Christ endured on the Cross for us, but what does that mean in relation to our suffering and how can the love and suffering of Christ help to make sense of our present pain? Author Jeff Cavins stops by the CE Podcast to discuss ways we can make sense of our suffering when we look at the Cross. We also discuss the ways the saints and ancient philosophers discussed happiness and suffering as well as what you can do to help your friends and neighbors who are undergoing great pain and suffering.
Everyone goes through some amount of suffering and sometimes it can be unbearable. As Catholics, we might recall the suffering that Christ endured on the Cross for us, but what does that mean in relation to our suffering and how can the love and suffering of Christ help to make sense of our present pain? Author Jeff Cavins stops by the CE Podcast to discuss ways we can make sense of our suffering when we look at the Cross. We also discuss the ways the saints and ancient philosophers discussed happiness and suffering as well as what you can do to help your friends and neighbors who are undergoing great pain and suffering.
"Suck It Up" vs. "Offer It Up"
Simcha Fisher
A few weeks ago, I asked converts what most puzzled them when they first became Catholics. Several people said they heard "offer it up" all the time, and had no idea what it was supposed to mean. The best they could gather was that it was Catholic code for "suck it up."
It does get used this way. Let's say (just to choose a random example with no basis in reality) that an overworked mom went to bed after midnight because she was making special cupcakes for the class party, and then the teething baby kept her awake, and then she tripped over the dog and spilled her coffee and sprained two toes and now there's broken mug shards all over the floor . . . and one of the other kids chooses that minute to whine that the new kind of toilet paper they've been getting isn't as quilty as the old kind. Maybe that mom might be tempted to bark, "Well, offer it up!" in a way that suggests, "Deal with it!" or "That's your problem!" or "Keep it to yourself!"
Sometimes, this is the best possible advice. When we tell someone (or ourselves) to suck it up, we're saying that the bad thing that happened is no excuse to fall apart or behave badly. We're saying to manage it and move along. I remember working at McDonald's as a teenager, and feeling completely terrible one day, like I couldn't possibly function for another six hours. The manager told me to suck it up -- and so I did. I thought I couldn't, but I could, and all I really needed was for someone to tell me that I could.
So "suck it up" isn't necessarily a bad thing to say; but it's definitely not the same as "offer it up." In a way, it's the opposite, even though they are both ways of dealing with trials and pain.
First, the logistics. How do we offer something up? Pretty simple: When something bad happens, like pain, or fear, or suffering, or bad news, we tell God, "I offer this up to You" or, "Lord, please use this." You can add in " . . . for Aunt Sally, who's in the hospital" or "for the souls in purgatory" or "because I'm sorry for the way I acted in traffic yesterday." Or you can just let God decide what to do with it. (We can offer up good things, too; but let's focus on offering up suffering right now.)
What do we mean by it? We mean that we're making a choice not to be passive victims in the grips of senseless suffering. We mean that we want our suffering to mean something. Christ became a man so that He could suffer and die to redeem us, and when He did this, He changed the nature of suffering so that any and all human suffering can be united with His as part of the work of redemption. THIS IS A BIG DEAL. We get to be like Christ. Here's a short essay that explains some of the beauty and significance of this teaching.
I've explained it as our opportunity to "add our name to the card":
I was once too broke to bring a gift to a wedding. A friend of mine had brought an expensive and thoughtful present, beautifully wrapped, and she let me add my name to the card. ... Jesus allows us to “add our name” to the gift of his sacrifice to the Father—that we can do this every time we suffer, and also any time we attend Mass.
Suffering is a strange thing. When we suck it up, it's like burying a seed, but refusing to water it. It probably won't do any harm that way, but it won't do any good, either. But if we bury that seed and then offer it up, it's like telling the Holy Spirit, "Psst, over here! This one needs some water." And we know what happens next: the thing cracks open and starts to grow. Amazing!
Now, keep in mind, we may not be around to see that growth come about. We believe in redemptive suffering, but that doesn't mean we're entitled to see it happen right before our eyes. It may very well be that we offer something up, it feels a lot like no one was there to receive our offering. That's part of what makes pain painful: sometimes we can see good coming of it, but sometimes we can't. There were plenty of people who saw Jesus die on the cross, and who thought that was the end of it -- just suffering and death, the end. But if we believe that His pain was transformative, then we should trust that ours is, too -- because that's what the Incarnation did. It linked us together. It made us brothers. It gave us a shared experience. Nothing has to be meaningless unless we let it be that way.
When we offer up suffering, we turn pain into an act of love. We turn something passive into something active. We turn a painful rupture into a door through which good can come. That's why I say that "offer it up" is the opposite of "suck it up": because when we suck it up, we take it into ourselves, shove it down, keep it in. But when we offer it up, we turn outward, upward. That is one of the defining characteristics of love: it moves outward, and it is fruitful. What a gift that even our suffering can be turned into something good.
see: www.ncregister.com/blog/simcha-fisher/suck-it-up-vs.-offer-it-up
Simcha Fisher
A few weeks ago, I asked converts what most puzzled them when they first became Catholics. Several people said they heard "offer it up" all the time, and had no idea what it was supposed to mean. The best they could gather was that it was Catholic code for "suck it up."
It does get used this way. Let's say (just to choose a random example with no basis in reality) that an overworked mom went to bed after midnight because she was making special cupcakes for the class party, and then the teething baby kept her awake, and then she tripped over the dog and spilled her coffee and sprained two toes and now there's broken mug shards all over the floor . . . and one of the other kids chooses that minute to whine that the new kind of toilet paper they've been getting isn't as quilty as the old kind. Maybe that mom might be tempted to bark, "Well, offer it up!" in a way that suggests, "Deal with it!" or "That's your problem!" or "Keep it to yourself!"
Sometimes, this is the best possible advice. When we tell someone (or ourselves) to suck it up, we're saying that the bad thing that happened is no excuse to fall apart or behave badly. We're saying to manage it and move along. I remember working at McDonald's as a teenager, and feeling completely terrible one day, like I couldn't possibly function for another six hours. The manager told me to suck it up -- and so I did. I thought I couldn't, but I could, and all I really needed was for someone to tell me that I could.
So "suck it up" isn't necessarily a bad thing to say; but it's definitely not the same as "offer it up." In a way, it's the opposite, even though they are both ways of dealing with trials and pain.
First, the logistics. How do we offer something up? Pretty simple: When something bad happens, like pain, or fear, or suffering, or bad news, we tell God, "I offer this up to You" or, "Lord, please use this." You can add in " . . . for Aunt Sally, who's in the hospital" or "for the souls in purgatory" or "because I'm sorry for the way I acted in traffic yesterday." Or you can just let God decide what to do with it. (We can offer up good things, too; but let's focus on offering up suffering right now.)
What do we mean by it? We mean that we're making a choice not to be passive victims in the grips of senseless suffering. We mean that we want our suffering to mean something. Christ became a man so that He could suffer and die to redeem us, and when He did this, He changed the nature of suffering so that any and all human suffering can be united with His as part of the work of redemption. THIS IS A BIG DEAL. We get to be like Christ. Here's a short essay that explains some of the beauty and significance of this teaching.
I've explained it as our opportunity to "add our name to the card":
I was once too broke to bring a gift to a wedding. A friend of mine had brought an expensive and thoughtful present, beautifully wrapped, and she let me add my name to the card. ... Jesus allows us to “add our name” to the gift of his sacrifice to the Father—that we can do this every time we suffer, and also any time we attend Mass.
Suffering is a strange thing. When we suck it up, it's like burying a seed, but refusing to water it. It probably won't do any harm that way, but it won't do any good, either. But if we bury that seed and then offer it up, it's like telling the Holy Spirit, "Psst, over here! This one needs some water." And we know what happens next: the thing cracks open and starts to grow. Amazing!
Now, keep in mind, we may not be around to see that growth come about. We believe in redemptive suffering, but that doesn't mean we're entitled to see it happen right before our eyes. It may very well be that we offer something up, it feels a lot like no one was there to receive our offering. That's part of what makes pain painful: sometimes we can see good coming of it, but sometimes we can't. There were plenty of people who saw Jesus die on the cross, and who thought that was the end of it -- just suffering and death, the end. But if we believe that His pain was transformative, then we should trust that ours is, too -- because that's what the Incarnation did. It linked us together. It made us brothers. It gave us a shared experience. Nothing has to be meaningless unless we let it be that way.
When we offer up suffering, we turn pain into an act of love. We turn something passive into something active. We turn a painful rupture into a door through which good can come. That's why I say that "offer it up" is the opposite of "suck it up": because when we suck it up, we take it into ourselves, shove it down, keep it in. But when we offer it up, we turn outward, upward. That is one of the defining characteristics of love: it moves outward, and it is fruitful. What a gift that even our suffering can be turned into something good.
see: www.ncregister.com/blog/simcha-fisher/suck-it-up-vs.-offer-it-up
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The Offering of Suffering
(This is from the website: https://www.foundationforpriests.org/the-offering-of-suffering) There is redemptive power in the offering of suffering united to the Cross of Jesus. Learn why and how you can imitate the saints by taking part in this courageous endeavor. Follow these live links to learn about: 5 Things to Know about the Offering of Suffering Holy Scripture on Suffering Quotes - The Offering of Suffering Articles, Reflections and Homilies - Suffering Living Eucharist with Kathleen Beckman - Spotlight on Suffering Church Documents on Suffering Self-Offering of Suffering for Priests Book Recommendations: The Offering of Suffering |
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Suffering Can Lead to Salvation
By Brian Pizzalato
St. Paul’s understanding of suffering as a participation in salvation is especially evident when he speaks of how his suffering affects others.
In 2 Timothy Paul says, “Take your share of suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus” (2:3). Following this Paul speaks of his imprisonment for the preaching of the Gospel, “the gospel for which I am suffering and wearing fetters like a criminal” (v. 9).
We hear how his suffering affects other when he says: “I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which in Christ Jesus goes with eternal glory. The saying is sure: If we have died with him, we shall also live with him; if we endure, we shall also reign with him” (vv. 10-12).
In this passage, we see clearly that Paul views his suffering as being salvific for others; he suffers to bring the Gospel, the message of salvation, to the people. He endures his suffering so that they may obtain salvation. Dying, living, and reigning with Christ are aspects of salvation; they “go with eternal glory.”
This notion of suffering to obtain eternal glory is also found in Roman 8:17-18 where Paul is speaking of receiving the Spirit of sonship whereby we become children of God and co-heirs with Christ. Paul says: “…and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”
Further on in Romans 8 he tells us, “We know that in everything [suffering] God works for good with those who love him who are called according to his purpose” (v. 28). Those who suffer are called to share in eternal glory, which is made clearly manifest by the resurrection of Christ.
This notion of our suffering and glory go hand in hand with the suffering and glory of Christ. Not only did the resurrection of Christ show his glory, it was also manifested through the cross. John Paul II notes, “In weakness He manifested His power, and in humiliation He manifested all His messianic greatness” (Salvifici Doloris, 22). Christ manifests his power in our suffering and death, which will one day lead to the resurrection.
Elsewhere Paul speaks of his suffering for others so they may obtain glory. He says, “So I ask you not to lose heart over what I am suffering for you, which is your glory” (Ephesians 3:13).
In 2 Corinthians, Paul speaks of how he is afflicted in every way, perplexed, persecuted, struck down, always carrying in his body the death of Jesus (cf. 4:8-10). He also speaks of how in living he is dying for the sake of Christ.
However, suffering is not only for Christ. Paul goes on to say: “[K]nowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. For it is all for your sake…” (4:14). Notice once again he reveals how suffering leads to being raised. Paul suffers not only for his sake, nor only for Christ’s sake, but also for the sake of others, so that they may be brought into God’s presence.
John Paul II recognizes in this text that “these sufferings enable the recipients of that letter to share in the work of Redemption, accomplished through the suffering and death of the Redeemer” (SD, 20). St. Paulspeaks of the notion of glory a few verses later: “For this slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (4:17).
Colossians 1:24 brings together all that has been said thus far. It summarizes Paul’s view that when he suffers he does so for Christ and for others. We see in this passage that when Paul speaks of suffering for Christ, it necessarily includes suffering for others, namely the church. Here Paul’s teaching on the mystical body is linked most profoundly to his teaching on suffering when he says, “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church.”
John Paul II notes concerning the notion of making up what is lacking: “This good in itself is inexhaustible and infinite. No man can add anything to it. But at the same time, in the mystery of the Church as His Body, Christ has in a sense opened His own redemptive suffering to all human suffering. Insofar as man becomes a sharer in Christ’s sufferings…to that extent he in his own way completes the suffering through which Christ accomplished the Redemption of the world” (SD, 24).
We must realize that making up what is lacking in Christ’s suffering does not mean that redemption is not completed by Christ. Rather, “it only means that the Redemption, accomplished through satisfactory love, remains always open to all love expressed in human suffering” (SD, 24).
Paul is trying to show us that when we suffer we participate in the saving act of redemption. This is not because Christ did not do all he needed to do, but rather that Christ allows us, by divine will, to participate in this aspect of our own and others’ salvation. Suffering is not meaningless. Paul rejoices because in his suffering he suffers for Christ the head, and Christ the body, the church, bringing about her salvation. He is also joyful because suffering is not useless. John Paul II notes, “Faith in sharing the suffering of Christ brings with it the interior certainty that the suffering person ‘completes what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions’; the certainty that in the spiritual dimension of the work of Redemption he is serving, like Christ, the salvation of his brothers and sisters (SD, 27).
For Paul, suffering leads to hope precisely because of God’s love. He says, “We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” (Rom. 5:3-5).
see: www.catholicnewsagency.com/resources/sacraments/anointing-of-the-sick/suffering-can-lead-to-salvation/
Brian Pizzalato is the Director of Catechesis, R.C.I.A. & Lay Apostolate for the Diocese of Duluth. He is also a faculty member of the Theology and Philosophy departments of the Maryvale Institute, Birmingham, England. He writes a monthly catechetical article for The Northern Cross, of the Diocese of Duluth, and is a contributing author to the Association for Catechumenal Ministry's R.C.I.A. Participants Book. Brian is currently authoring the regular series, "Catechesis and Contemporary Culture," in The Sower, published by the Maryvale Institute and is also in the process of writing the Philosophy of Religion course book for the B.A. in Philosophy and the Catholic Tradition program at the Maryvale Institute.
Brian holds an M.A. in Theology and Christian Ministry with a Catechetics specialization and an M.A. in Philosophy from Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio.
By Brian Pizzalato
St. Paul’s understanding of suffering as a participation in salvation is especially evident when he speaks of how his suffering affects others.
In 2 Timothy Paul says, “Take your share of suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus” (2:3). Following this Paul speaks of his imprisonment for the preaching of the Gospel, “the gospel for which I am suffering and wearing fetters like a criminal” (v. 9).
We hear how his suffering affects other when he says: “I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which in Christ Jesus goes with eternal glory. The saying is sure: If we have died with him, we shall also live with him; if we endure, we shall also reign with him” (vv. 10-12).
In this passage, we see clearly that Paul views his suffering as being salvific for others; he suffers to bring the Gospel, the message of salvation, to the people. He endures his suffering so that they may obtain salvation. Dying, living, and reigning with Christ are aspects of salvation; they “go with eternal glory.”
This notion of suffering to obtain eternal glory is also found in Roman 8:17-18 where Paul is speaking of receiving the Spirit of sonship whereby we become children of God and co-heirs with Christ. Paul says: “…and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”
Further on in Romans 8 he tells us, “We know that in everything [suffering] God works for good with those who love him who are called according to his purpose” (v. 28). Those who suffer are called to share in eternal glory, which is made clearly manifest by the resurrection of Christ.
This notion of our suffering and glory go hand in hand with the suffering and glory of Christ. Not only did the resurrection of Christ show his glory, it was also manifested through the cross. John Paul II notes, “In weakness He manifested His power, and in humiliation He manifested all His messianic greatness” (Salvifici Doloris, 22). Christ manifests his power in our suffering and death, which will one day lead to the resurrection.
Elsewhere Paul speaks of his suffering for others so they may obtain glory. He says, “So I ask you not to lose heart over what I am suffering for you, which is your glory” (Ephesians 3:13).
In 2 Corinthians, Paul speaks of how he is afflicted in every way, perplexed, persecuted, struck down, always carrying in his body the death of Jesus (cf. 4:8-10). He also speaks of how in living he is dying for the sake of Christ.
However, suffering is not only for Christ. Paul goes on to say: “[K]nowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. For it is all for your sake…” (4:14). Notice once again he reveals how suffering leads to being raised. Paul suffers not only for his sake, nor only for Christ’s sake, but also for the sake of others, so that they may be brought into God’s presence.
John Paul II recognizes in this text that “these sufferings enable the recipients of that letter to share in the work of Redemption, accomplished through the suffering and death of the Redeemer” (SD, 20). St. Paulspeaks of the notion of glory a few verses later: “For this slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (4:17).
Colossians 1:24 brings together all that has been said thus far. It summarizes Paul’s view that when he suffers he does so for Christ and for others. We see in this passage that when Paul speaks of suffering for Christ, it necessarily includes suffering for others, namely the church. Here Paul’s teaching on the mystical body is linked most profoundly to his teaching on suffering when he says, “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church.”
John Paul II notes concerning the notion of making up what is lacking: “This good in itself is inexhaustible and infinite. No man can add anything to it. But at the same time, in the mystery of the Church as His Body, Christ has in a sense opened His own redemptive suffering to all human suffering. Insofar as man becomes a sharer in Christ’s sufferings…to that extent he in his own way completes the suffering through which Christ accomplished the Redemption of the world” (SD, 24).
We must realize that making up what is lacking in Christ’s suffering does not mean that redemption is not completed by Christ. Rather, “it only means that the Redemption, accomplished through satisfactory love, remains always open to all love expressed in human suffering” (SD, 24).
Paul is trying to show us that when we suffer we participate in the saving act of redemption. This is not because Christ did not do all he needed to do, but rather that Christ allows us, by divine will, to participate in this aspect of our own and others’ salvation. Suffering is not meaningless. Paul rejoices because in his suffering he suffers for Christ the head, and Christ the body, the church, bringing about her salvation. He is also joyful because suffering is not useless. John Paul II notes, “Faith in sharing the suffering of Christ brings with it the interior certainty that the suffering person ‘completes what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions’; the certainty that in the spiritual dimension of the work of Redemption he is serving, like Christ, the salvation of his brothers and sisters (SD, 27).
For Paul, suffering leads to hope precisely because of God’s love. He says, “We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” (Rom. 5:3-5).
see: www.catholicnewsagency.com/resources/sacraments/anointing-of-the-sick/suffering-can-lead-to-salvation/
Brian Pizzalato is the Director of Catechesis, R.C.I.A. & Lay Apostolate for the Diocese of Duluth. He is also a faculty member of the Theology and Philosophy departments of the Maryvale Institute, Birmingham, England. He writes a monthly catechetical article for The Northern Cross, of the Diocese of Duluth, and is a contributing author to the Association for Catechumenal Ministry's R.C.I.A. Participants Book. Brian is currently authoring the regular series, "Catechesis and Contemporary Culture," in The Sower, published by the Maryvale Institute and is also in the process of writing the Philosophy of Religion course book for the B.A. in Philosophy and the Catholic Tradition program at the Maryvale Institute.
Brian holds an M.A. in Theology and Christian Ministry with a Catechetics specialization and an M.A. in Philosophy from Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio.
What is Redemptive Suffering? more from MOTHER ANGELICA
Every pain we endure with love, every cross borne with resignation, benefits every man, woman, and child in the Mystical Body of Christ. Those who are chosen to bear a greater portion of suffering than others are called by God to heal the souls of many whose lives are bereft of the knowledge and love of God. Read more by pressing blue button below
Every pain we endure with love, every cross borne with resignation, benefits every man, woman, and child in the Mystical Body of Christ. Those who are chosen to bear a greater portion of suffering than others are called by God to heal the souls of many whose lives are bereft of the knowledge and love of God. Read more by pressing blue button below
How Does All of this Relate to the Mass?
The Church teaches us that the Mass (and the Eucharist) is the “Source & Summit” of our lives. As the source - It’s the place where we draw all our strength from to glorify God and serve Him through our prayers, works, joys, sorrows & sufferings. As the summit - It's where, each time we go, we bring everything (prayers, works, joys, sorrows & sufferings) back to God & spiritually place them on the altar, with the gifts of bread & wine, so that He can unite it with the offering of Christ and give it an eternal value. This greatly increases the value of everything we offer to Him because each one is now filled with the presence of Christ and has become a channel of his grace. The saints lived like this. They lived from Mass to Mass. Will you?
The Church teaches us that the Mass (and the Eucharist) is the “Source & Summit” of our lives. As the source - It’s the place where we draw all our strength from to glorify God and serve Him through our prayers, works, joys, sorrows & sufferings. As the summit - It's where, each time we go, we bring everything (prayers, works, joys, sorrows & sufferings) back to God & spiritually place them on the altar, with the gifts of bread & wine, so that He can unite it with the offering of Christ and give it an eternal value. This greatly increases the value of everything we offer to Him because each one is now filled with the presence of Christ and has become a channel of his grace. The saints lived like this. They lived from Mass to Mass. Will you?
The power to live this way flows from the Mass! If we are in the state of grace, and our hearts are open, every time we receive Christ - Body, Blood, Soul & Divinity - in Holy Communion we are strengthened to live & love this way as the image below shows! The more frequently we receive Him the stronger in love we will be!
How does Redemptive Suffering relate to Purgatory? Find out by pressing blue button below
Press blue buttons below for personal testimonies
My Heart as a Sanctuary Lamp
I was thinking about some of the different types of suffering and crosses that people carry. There are so many! There are crosses of illness - physical, psychological, emotional, etc.; crosses of gender identity crisis; addiction, loneliness, grief, bereavement and loss; the crosses of infertility - just to name a few. It helps me to remember that this earthly life is not paradise - it is a preparation for paradise in heaven. It is a time of testing; a time to grow and to allow God to increase our capacity to love Him for all eternity. A time to live by the dark night of Faith (believing in God's love even when he seems absent or distant or asleep on the job); a time to grow in merit; and suffering is a big part of all of this.
"In this you rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold which though perishable is tested by fire, may redound to praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Without having seen him you love him; though you do not now see him you believe in him and rejoice with unutterable and exalted joy. As the outcome of your faith you obtain the salvation of your souls" (1 Peter 1:6-9).
Our secular culture does not clearly understand this and therefore does not understand the deeper purpose & meaning of suffering. This is because our society is predominantly hedonistic, meaning that the number one goal seems to be the pursuit of pleasure and the avoidance of pain - at all costs. How different is the Way that Jesus taught us:
"If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me" (Matthew 16:24).
Even though, at first, this sounds like a way deprived of fulfillment, it is, in fact, the exact opposite. We are not meant to carry our crosses with our own strength. This, combined with the fact that God is so drawn to our weakness, highlights the fact that the very crosses that we carry are the means to a deeper union with Him. It is this supernatural union with a loving Being, infinitely higher & greater than ourselves, that is the conduit of true & lasting joy and a peace that surpasses all understanding.
I was thinking about how the death of my son is my cross, a sacrifice that God has asked of me, and that I could respond to in many different ways; five of which are:
1. Anger & confusion which leads to despair.
2. Comfort seeking distraction.
3. Trying to pull myself up by my bootstraps and carry on with my own strength.
4. Seeking answers through ways that are sinful because they are dangerous and not helpful in the long run. Here I am referring to mediums.
5. Continually struggling for a trustful surrender to Divine Providence - his inscrutable, unsearchable ways - ways that I will only fully understand in heaven - and to lean on Him for the ability to open this suffering up to His presence and love. And, even though I may feel no sensible consolation and, even "feel" completely rejected by God because of this tragedy, this is the exact time that I need to live by pure Faith (believing in His love no matter what my feelings tell me).
I desire to choose the fifth option and so, I need the strength (which is not perceptible to our senses or feelings most of the time) that I receive from Christ in the Eucharist to live this way. Much like an antibiotic or a vitamin - in that we cannot "feel" what they are doing to heal and strengthen us as we consume them - the Eucharist is healing and strengthening our spirit almost imperceptibly at first. As each wave of grief washes over me, I am somehow supernaturally empowered (through my union with Christ), to offer it back to the Lord as a sacrifice regardless of my feelings. This will be a perpetual sacrifice to him because I know that this suffering is a cross that I will carry for the rest of my earthly life. But, I am not the only one to benefit from this. He takes the healing process up to a higher level and brings meaning and purpose to it by uniting it with his suffering and using it to increase the flow of grace in the world: he uses it as a channel of grace for the people for whom I offer it as a prayer of intercession.
I was thinking about some of the different types of suffering and crosses that people carry. There are so many! There are crosses of illness - physical, psychological, emotional, etc.; crosses of gender identity crisis; addiction, loneliness, grief, bereavement and loss; the crosses of infertility - just to name a few. It helps me to remember that this earthly life is not paradise - it is a preparation for paradise in heaven. It is a time of testing; a time to grow and to allow God to increase our capacity to love Him for all eternity. A time to live by the dark night of Faith (believing in God's love even when he seems absent or distant or asleep on the job); a time to grow in merit; and suffering is a big part of all of this.
"In this you rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold which though perishable is tested by fire, may redound to praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Without having seen him you love him; though you do not now see him you believe in him and rejoice with unutterable and exalted joy. As the outcome of your faith you obtain the salvation of your souls" (1 Peter 1:6-9).
Our secular culture does not clearly understand this and therefore does not understand the deeper purpose & meaning of suffering. This is because our society is predominantly hedonistic, meaning that the number one goal seems to be the pursuit of pleasure and the avoidance of pain - at all costs. How different is the Way that Jesus taught us:
"If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me" (Matthew 16:24).
Even though, at first, this sounds like a way deprived of fulfillment, it is, in fact, the exact opposite. We are not meant to carry our crosses with our own strength. This, combined with the fact that God is so drawn to our weakness, highlights the fact that the very crosses that we carry are the means to a deeper union with Him. It is this supernatural union with a loving Being, infinitely higher & greater than ourselves, that is the conduit of true & lasting joy and a peace that surpasses all understanding.
I was thinking about how the death of my son is my cross, a sacrifice that God has asked of me, and that I could respond to in many different ways; five of which are:
1. Anger & confusion which leads to despair.
2. Comfort seeking distraction.
3. Trying to pull myself up by my bootstraps and carry on with my own strength.
4. Seeking answers through ways that are sinful because they are dangerous and not helpful in the long run. Here I am referring to mediums.
5. Continually struggling for a trustful surrender to Divine Providence - his inscrutable, unsearchable ways - ways that I will only fully understand in heaven - and to lean on Him for the ability to open this suffering up to His presence and love. And, even though I may feel no sensible consolation and, even "feel" completely rejected by God because of this tragedy, this is the exact time that I need to live by pure Faith (believing in His love no matter what my feelings tell me).
I desire to choose the fifth option and so, I need the strength (which is not perceptible to our senses or feelings most of the time) that I receive from Christ in the Eucharist to live this way. Much like an antibiotic or a vitamin - in that we cannot "feel" what they are doing to heal and strengthen us as we consume them - the Eucharist is healing and strengthening our spirit almost imperceptibly at first. As each wave of grief washes over me, I am somehow supernaturally empowered (through my union with Christ), to offer it back to the Lord as a sacrifice regardless of my feelings. This will be a perpetual sacrifice to him because I know that this suffering is a cross that I will carry for the rest of my earthly life. But, I am not the only one to benefit from this. He takes the healing process up to a higher level and brings meaning and purpose to it by uniting it with his suffering and using it to increase the flow of grace in the world: he uses it as a channel of grace for the people for whom I offer it as a prayer of intercession.
One morning, I was praying this way - crying and offering all the pieces of my broken, shattered heart to Him. I was telling the Lord that even if I did not consciously tell him that I was offering my suffering to him as a sacrifice for others, I wanted him to use it that way. Immediately, I felt like the Holy Spirit brought to my mind an image of the candles in Church that burn continually and that we light as a symbol of our prayers and petitions. We light those candles for a prayer intention and the prayer remains before God even when we leave and go about living our lives. I immediately sensed that He was telling me that the offering of my shattered heart - my suffering - was like a candle burning before him perpetually. Even when I was occupied with the busyness of life and my mind wasn't consciously thinking about my son, my offering was still just as real and effective as when I am conscious of it. Then my thoughts were led to the red sanctuary lamp that burns before the tabernacle 24/7, and I felt like He was letting me know that is an even better symbol of how He sees my offering.
This is profound to me and touched me deeply because I offer a lot of my suffering up for people to love, understand, appreciate, etc. His love for us in the Eucharist - the Most Blessed Sacrament.
This isn't just for me; it is how He looks at each one of His children who are carrying their crosses as a sacrifice of love for Him or at least struggling to do so. He is so grateful for this unbelievable act of love and trust and is using their offerings in ways that will bring great glory to Him and will benefit many souls.
THIS BRINGS UP THE QUESTION: WHY DO WE HAVE TO CARRY OUR CROSSES? (see below)
This is profound to me and touched me deeply because I offer a lot of my suffering up for people to love, understand, appreciate, etc. His love for us in the Eucharist - the Most Blessed Sacrament.
This isn't just for me; it is how He looks at each one of His children who are carrying their crosses as a sacrifice of love for Him or at least struggling to do so. He is so grateful for this unbelievable act of love and trust and is using their offerings in ways that will bring great glory to Him and will benefit many souls.
THIS BRINGS UP THE QUESTION: WHY DO WE HAVE TO CARRY OUR CROSSES? (see below)
Why Do We have to Carry our Crosses? Isn't What Jesus Did Enough?
We know why Jesus died on the cross but why do we have to carry our crosses? Wasn't what Jesus did enough?
Of course what Jesus did was "enough." That is not the right question. Rather, it should be: "Exactly what was it enough for?" It was enough to provide us with the ability (grace) to do what He did. To become "other Christs." After all, He said:
The scriptures tell us that it is the Father's desire that we, his children, are conformed completely to the image of his son (Christ) in this life, and one of the most effective ways the Holy Spirit brings this about is through our suffering which we offer with love, as Christ did, for the salvation of others. in Romans 8:28-30 it says:
"We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him, who are called according to his purpose; for those whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son in order that he might be the firstborn among many brethren."
Offering up our suffering - in my case - my living, beating, shattered heart - as a living sacrifice, has to do with understanding how Jesus saved us. “He did not save us by eliminating suffering from the world. He saved us by giving meaning to suffering. So he actually entered into our world of suffering - our fallen world - and took suffering upon himself to show us the way to respond to suffering - he obeyed the Father's will even when it cost him great suffering - so it was through suffering that he reestablished the connection between the fallen human family and the Father.
“Now when we are baptized we become members of Christ's body, the Mystical Body of Christ - that's another name for the Church. So when I'm baptized, I am in Christ, so therefore when suffering comes into my life, if I, through prayer, unite that suffering to the cross of Christ, I am somehow, mysteriously participating in the redemption of the world" (Fr. Bartunek). My sacrifice and suffering has merit because It is actually Christ, living in me, offering my suffering with his for the salvation of the world.
There are so many scriptures to support this, for example:
Galatians 2:19-20
"With Christ I am nailed to the cross.I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me."
Colossians 1:24
"I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake and in my flesh I am completing what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ for the sake of his body the church."
Romans 8:16-18
“For the Spirit Himself gives testimony to our spirit that we are the sons of God. And if sons, heirs also; heirs indeed of God and joint heirs with Christ: yet so, if we suffer with Him, that we may be also glorified with Him. The sufferings of this time are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come that shall be revealed in us.”
Ephesians 3:13
"So please don't lose heart because of my trials here. I am suffering for you, so you should feel honored."
Romans 8:18, 28, 38
“What we suffer at this present time cannot be compared at all with the glory that is going to be revealed in us...We know that all things work for good for those who love God...For I am convinced that neither life nor death...nor future things, nor powers nor any other creature can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus."
Luke 14: 27
"And whosoever doth not carry his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple."
II Corinthians 4:8-12
"In all things we suffer tribulation: but are not distressed. We are straitened: but are not destitute. We suffer persecution: but are not forsaken. We are cast down: but we perish not. Always bearing about in our body the mortification of Jesus, that the life also of Jesus may be made manifest in our bodies. For we who live are always delivered unto death for Jesus' sake: that the life also of Jesus may be made manifest in our mortal flesh. So then death worketh in us: but life in you."
2 Corinthians 1:5-7
"For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us: so also by Christ doth our comfort abound. Now whether we be in tribulation, it is for your exhortation and salvation: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation: or whether we be exhorted, it is for your exhortation and salvation, which worketh the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer. That our hope for you may be steadfast: knowing that as you are partakers of the sufferings, so shall you be also of the consolation."
By the time we reach heaven, each one of us will be completely conformed to Christ - from the inside out - not just a legal declaration - but a real transformation (this is where purgatory fits in for saved Christians that haven't opened themselves to this process completely before death).
Carrying our crosses with love, and the real struggle that entails, is part of this. Even though our best efforts are futile on their own, they are necessary to show God our goodwill and then he will do the rest.
God created us without our cooperation but He will not save us without it. His desire is that we participate in our own rescue. Our participation, however, is not the source of the grace we receive (that comes from Christ's perfect sacrifice) but it is a channel for it. By doing our part - putting forth the best effort we are capable of at the time (and that is different for everyone) - we are giving God our five loaves and two fish (John 6:1-14) and this gives Him the channel to use to heal us and other people with his grace & power.
He does this through the grace that we receive through the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Love, which receive in a special way through the sacraments, prayer, self-denial, offering up our suffering, etc. "God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us" (Romans 5:5).
This makes our struggle (suffering) fruitful in two ways: 1st, when we "offer up" a difficulty to God - instead of succumbing to it - it is as if a wall has come down in our heart and we are giving Him access to an area of our life that He was not able to come fully into before. We have "opened it up" to Him. Because He is present there now, we are not on our own and can draw from His strength and power to face the difficulty. His strength begins exactly where our natural ability ends.
2nd, now that He is present, so is His self-sacrificing love, which we can tap into in order to offer up the difficulty as a prayer of intercession for others. In other words, He is present in our difficulty - we are now yoked with him (Matthew 11:28-30) - so that we can, not only bear it patiently, but, we can go even further, and offer it up as an act of love for other people.
We know why Jesus died on the cross but why do we have to carry our crosses? Wasn't what Jesus did enough?
Of course what Jesus did was "enough." That is not the right question. Rather, it should be: "Exactly what was it enough for?" It was enough to provide us with the ability (grace) to do what He did. To become "other Christs." After all, He said:
The scriptures tell us that it is the Father's desire that we, his children, are conformed completely to the image of his son (Christ) in this life, and one of the most effective ways the Holy Spirit brings this about is through our suffering which we offer with love, as Christ did, for the salvation of others. in Romans 8:28-30 it says:
"We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him, who are called according to his purpose; for those whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son in order that he might be the firstborn among many brethren."
Offering up our suffering - in my case - my living, beating, shattered heart - as a living sacrifice, has to do with understanding how Jesus saved us. “He did not save us by eliminating suffering from the world. He saved us by giving meaning to suffering. So he actually entered into our world of suffering - our fallen world - and took suffering upon himself to show us the way to respond to suffering - he obeyed the Father's will even when it cost him great suffering - so it was through suffering that he reestablished the connection between the fallen human family and the Father.
“Now when we are baptized we become members of Christ's body, the Mystical Body of Christ - that's another name for the Church. So when I'm baptized, I am in Christ, so therefore when suffering comes into my life, if I, through prayer, unite that suffering to the cross of Christ, I am somehow, mysteriously participating in the redemption of the world" (Fr. Bartunek). My sacrifice and suffering has merit because It is actually Christ, living in me, offering my suffering with his for the salvation of the world.
There are so many scriptures to support this, for example:
Galatians 2:19-20
"With Christ I am nailed to the cross.I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me."
Colossians 1:24
"I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake and in my flesh I am completing what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ for the sake of his body the church."
Romans 8:16-18
“For the Spirit Himself gives testimony to our spirit that we are the sons of God. And if sons, heirs also; heirs indeed of God and joint heirs with Christ: yet so, if we suffer with Him, that we may be also glorified with Him. The sufferings of this time are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come that shall be revealed in us.”
Ephesians 3:13
"So please don't lose heart because of my trials here. I am suffering for you, so you should feel honored."
Romans 8:18, 28, 38
“What we suffer at this present time cannot be compared at all with the glory that is going to be revealed in us...We know that all things work for good for those who love God...For I am convinced that neither life nor death...nor future things, nor powers nor any other creature can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus."
Luke 14: 27
"And whosoever doth not carry his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple."
II Corinthians 4:8-12
"In all things we suffer tribulation: but are not distressed. We are straitened: but are not destitute. We suffer persecution: but are not forsaken. We are cast down: but we perish not. Always bearing about in our body the mortification of Jesus, that the life also of Jesus may be made manifest in our bodies. For we who live are always delivered unto death for Jesus' sake: that the life also of Jesus may be made manifest in our mortal flesh. So then death worketh in us: but life in you."
2 Corinthians 1:5-7
"For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us: so also by Christ doth our comfort abound. Now whether we be in tribulation, it is for your exhortation and salvation: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation: or whether we be exhorted, it is for your exhortation and salvation, which worketh the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer. That our hope for you may be steadfast: knowing that as you are partakers of the sufferings, so shall you be also of the consolation."
By the time we reach heaven, each one of us will be completely conformed to Christ - from the inside out - not just a legal declaration - but a real transformation (this is where purgatory fits in for saved Christians that haven't opened themselves to this process completely before death).
Carrying our crosses with love, and the real struggle that entails, is part of this. Even though our best efforts are futile on their own, they are necessary to show God our goodwill and then he will do the rest.
God created us without our cooperation but He will not save us without it. His desire is that we participate in our own rescue. Our participation, however, is not the source of the grace we receive (that comes from Christ's perfect sacrifice) but it is a channel for it. By doing our part - putting forth the best effort we are capable of at the time (and that is different for everyone) - we are giving God our five loaves and two fish (John 6:1-14) and this gives Him the channel to use to heal us and other people with his grace & power.
He does this through the grace that we receive through the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Love, which receive in a special way through the sacraments, prayer, self-denial, offering up our suffering, etc. "God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us" (Romans 5:5).
This makes our struggle (suffering) fruitful in two ways: 1st, when we "offer up" a difficulty to God - instead of succumbing to it - it is as if a wall has come down in our heart and we are giving Him access to an area of our life that He was not able to come fully into before. We have "opened it up" to Him. Because He is present there now, we are not on our own and can draw from His strength and power to face the difficulty. His strength begins exactly where our natural ability ends.
2nd, now that He is present, so is His self-sacrificing love, which we can tap into in order to offer up the difficulty as a prayer of intercession for others. In other words, He is present in our difficulty - we are now yoked with him (Matthew 11:28-30) - so that we can, not only bear it patiently, but, we can go even further, and offer it up as an act of love for other people.
But there is even more to our offering of suffering
We are in time but God is outside of time and because Christ is fully human and fully God, his sacrifice is eternally present before the Father, and so is our offering (the offering of our whole self - our prayers, works, joys, sorrows & suffering) if we unite it to the cross of Christ. In the Mass, this sacrifice is made present to us, in time, so that we can participate in it with our offering and be transformed.
The offering our suffering is part of what we bring with us in our hearts when we come to Mass to unite with Christ's perfect sacrifice that will be made present on the altar during the consecration. During the offertory (the presentation of the gifts) we mentally place it on the altar with the bread & wine. This elevates our offering; it supernaturalizes it. Our act of love actually enters eternity this way.
On the natural level, patiently bearing a suffering can have positive effects on us and the people near to us but on the supernatural level, because it is now united with the offering of Christ, God will use it as a channel of His grace for people we could never have reached in a natural way and, joined to Christ, it will last eternally. In heaven, God will show us what He has done and continues to do with each wave of suffering - each act of love offered to him - and we will be amazed. This is one of the ways that God has redeemed suffering. He cannot take suffering away in this life because that would take away our free will (see two articles below on The Problem of Evil).
I think this "offering of our suffering as a sacrifice" is key to changing the world because it is not just a pious thought but something supernatural actually happens when we offer things up - great or small. Christ mystically enters into that suffering, annoyance, etc. and now his presence changes everything. Our part is to struggle, with his help, to bear it patiently by accepting it with trust and offering it with love and as we do this, he sends forth his grace, it actually emanates out, from that exact suffering, out to everyone involved and to the people we have offered it for. It's a win/win for everyone involved because the other people greatly benefit and we ourselves experience peace and even joy as we grow in virtue which, as the Saints tell us, is the exact soil the Holy Spirit needs to operate more fully in our souls.
Imagine the transformation the world would go through, if everyone allowed their suffering to unite them more deeply with Christ! How much more peace would be experienced. I think that suffering isn't the greatest tragedy; feeling like there is no meaning or purpose to our suffering is. Our loved ones that have passed on to eternal life are hoping and praying that we allow this suffering to be a means to bring us closer to God and to help others. Let's not disappoint them.
We are in time but God is outside of time and because Christ is fully human and fully God, his sacrifice is eternally present before the Father, and so is our offering (the offering of our whole self - our prayers, works, joys, sorrows & suffering) if we unite it to the cross of Christ. In the Mass, this sacrifice is made present to us, in time, so that we can participate in it with our offering and be transformed.
The offering our suffering is part of what we bring with us in our hearts when we come to Mass to unite with Christ's perfect sacrifice that will be made present on the altar during the consecration. During the offertory (the presentation of the gifts) we mentally place it on the altar with the bread & wine. This elevates our offering; it supernaturalizes it. Our act of love actually enters eternity this way.
On the natural level, patiently bearing a suffering can have positive effects on us and the people near to us but on the supernatural level, because it is now united with the offering of Christ, God will use it as a channel of His grace for people we could never have reached in a natural way and, joined to Christ, it will last eternally. In heaven, God will show us what He has done and continues to do with each wave of suffering - each act of love offered to him - and we will be amazed. This is one of the ways that God has redeemed suffering. He cannot take suffering away in this life because that would take away our free will (see two articles below on The Problem of Evil).
I think this "offering of our suffering as a sacrifice" is key to changing the world because it is not just a pious thought but something supernatural actually happens when we offer things up - great or small. Christ mystically enters into that suffering, annoyance, etc. and now his presence changes everything. Our part is to struggle, with his help, to bear it patiently by accepting it with trust and offering it with love and as we do this, he sends forth his grace, it actually emanates out, from that exact suffering, out to everyone involved and to the people we have offered it for. It's a win/win for everyone involved because the other people greatly benefit and we ourselves experience peace and even joy as we grow in virtue which, as the Saints tell us, is the exact soil the Holy Spirit needs to operate more fully in our souls.
Imagine the transformation the world would go through, if everyone allowed their suffering to unite them more deeply with Christ! How much more peace would be experienced. I think that suffering isn't the greatest tragedy; feeling like there is no meaning or purpose to our suffering is. Our loved ones that have passed on to eternal life are hoping and praying that we allow this suffering to be a means to bring us closer to God and to help others. Let's not disappoint them.
IS IT ONLY HEAVY CROSSES THAT COUNT?
This is from www.rcspiritualdirection.com
“We can offer up anything; anytime we experience the cross and the cross is a very simple reality: It is when God permits something to happen or asks me to do something that, on the natural level, I would prefer not to happen. So God’s will and my natural will – when there is a clash there, every time that happens, in whatever form it takes – if I decide to align myself with God’s will, to embrace my cross, even though it doesn’t feel good – what am I doing? I am exercising trust in God saying “God, this is what you want; this is what you are permitting. I accept it even though I don’t like it because I trust in you.”
The Catechism of the Catholic Church in paragraph 397 tells us that the cause of original sin was when our first parents, tempted by the devil, let their trust in their Creator die in their hearts and so disobeyed Him. So anytime God permits a cross, he permits us an opportunity to exercise trust, to rehabilitate the trust that sin destroyed. That is how we become participants in the Redemption.
That trust, which is in essence an act of the will which says: “Lord, I offer this up for your work; for the redemption of souls” fundamentally, then, is what it means by ‘Offering it Up’.”
This offering is part of what we spiritually bring with us to the Mass to be placed on the altar with Jesus’s sacrifice. Jesus then unites it with his and offers it to the Father for the Salvation of the world. What a high calling we have as Christians!
Other resources about Redemptive Suffering:
Redemptive Suffering - Offering it Up!
APOSTOLIC LETTER
SALVIFICI DOLORIS
OF THE SUPREME PONTIFF
JOHN PAUL II
TO THE BISHOPS, TO THE PRIESTS,
TO THE RELIGIOUS FAMILIES
AND TO THE FAITHFUL
OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
ON THE CHRISTIAN MEANING
OF HUMAN SUFFERING
What is Redemptive Suffering? (by Mother Angelica)
A Practical Example of How to "Offer Up" Suffering
Redemptive Suffering from EWTN
How Faith in Redemptive Suffering Can Keep Us Sane
Must I Suffer in Order to Achieve Salvation
Grieving with Hope as a Catholic Christian
This is from www.rcspiritualdirection.com
“We can offer up anything; anytime we experience the cross and the cross is a very simple reality: It is when God permits something to happen or asks me to do something that, on the natural level, I would prefer not to happen. So God’s will and my natural will – when there is a clash there, every time that happens, in whatever form it takes – if I decide to align myself with God’s will, to embrace my cross, even though it doesn’t feel good – what am I doing? I am exercising trust in God saying “God, this is what you want; this is what you are permitting. I accept it even though I don’t like it because I trust in you.”
The Catechism of the Catholic Church in paragraph 397 tells us that the cause of original sin was when our first parents, tempted by the devil, let their trust in their Creator die in their hearts and so disobeyed Him. So anytime God permits a cross, he permits us an opportunity to exercise trust, to rehabilitate the trust that sin destroyed. That is how we become participants in the Redemption.
That trust, which is in essence an act of the will which says: “Lord, I offer this up for your work; for the redemption of souls” fundamentally, then, is what it means by ‘Offering it Up’.”
This offering is part of what we spiritually bring with us to the Mass to be placed on the altar with Jesus’s sacrifice. Jesus then unites it with his and offers it to the Father for the Salvation of the world. What a high calling we have as Christians!
Other resources about Redemptive Suffering:
Redemptive Suffering - Offering it Up!
APOSTOLIC LETTER
SALVIFICI DOLORIS
OF THE SUPREME PONTIFF
JOHN PAUL II
TO THE BISHOPS, TO THE PRIESTS,
TO THE RELIGIOUS FAMILIES
AND TO THE FAITHFUL
OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
ON THE CHRISTIAN MEANING
OF HUMAN SUFFERING
What is Redemptive Suffering? (by Mother Angelica)
A Practical Example of How to "Offer Up" Suffering
Redemptive Suffering from EWTN
How Faith in Redemptive Suffering Can Keep Us Sane
Must I Suffer in Order to Achieve Salvation
Grieving with Hope as a Catholic Christian
Suffering - 4 Talks by Dr. Troy Hinkel
The audio of the 3rd talk (The Saints & Suffering) is not available but you can read the handout below:
The Problem of Evil by Matt Fradd
The problem of evil is the greatest emotional obstacle to belief in God. It just doesn’t feel like God should let people suffer. If we were God, we think, we wouldn’t allow it.
The atheist philosopher J. L. Mackie maintained that belief in God was irrational, for if God were all-knowing (omniscient) he would know that there was evil in the world, if he were all-powerful (omnipotent) he could prevent it, and if he were all-good (omnibenevolent) then he would wish to prevent it. The fact that there is still evil in the world proves that God doesn’t exist, or if he did, that he must be “impotent, ignorant, or wicked.”
As keenly felt as the problem of evil may be, it doesn’t represent a strong intellectual or logical obstacle to God’s existence. Mackie was wrong: The existence of God and the existence of evil aren’t mutually exclusive. Let’s look at the three attributes of God that Mackie named.
The problem of evil is the greatest emotional obstacle to belief in God. It just doesn’t feel like God should let people suffer. If we were God, we think, we wouldn’t allow it.
The atheist philosopher J. L. Mackie maintained that belief in God was irrational, for if God were all-knowing (omniscient) he would know that there was evil in the world, if he were all-powerful (omnipotent) he could prevent it, and if he were all-good (omnibenevolent) then he would wish to prevent it. The fact that there is still evil in the world proves that God doesn’t exist, or if he did, that he must be “impotent, ignorant, or wicked.”
As keenly felt as the problem of evil may be, it doesn’t represent a strong intellectual or logical obstacle to God’s existence. Mackie was wrong: The existence of God and the existence of evil aren’t mutually exclusive. Let’s look at the three attributes of God that Mackie named.
The Problem of Evil by Peter Kreeft
http://www.peterkreeft.com/topics/evil.htm
The problem of evil is the most serious problem in the world. It is also the one serious objection to the existence of God.
When Saint Thomas Aquinas wrote his great Summa Theologica, he could find only two objections to the existence of God, even though he tried to list at least three objections to every one of the thousands of theses he tried to prove in that great work. One of the two objections is the apparent ability of natural science to explain everything in our experience without God; and the other is the problem of evil.
More people have abandoned their faith because of the problem of evil than for any other reason. It is certainly the greatest test of faith, the greatest temptation to unbelief. And it's not just an intellectual objection. We feel it. We live it. That's why the Book of Job is so arresting.
The problem can be stated very simply: If God is so good, why is his world so bad? If an all-good, all-wise, all-loving, all-just, and all-powerful God is running the show, why does he seem to be doing such a miserable job of it? Why do bad things happen to good people?
The unbeliever who asks that question is usually feeling resentment toward and rebellion against God, not just lacking evidence for his existence. C. S. Lewis recalls that as an atheist he "did not believe God existed. I was also very angry with him for not existing. I was also angry with him for having created the world."
When you talk to such a person, remember that it is more like talking to a divorcée than to a skeptical scientist. The reason for unbelief is an unfaithful lover, not an inadequate hypothesis. The unbeliever's problem is not just a soft head but a hard heart. And the good apologist knows how to let the heart lead the head as well as vice versa.
There are four parts to the solution to the problem of evil.
First, evil is not a thing, an entity, a being. All beings are either the Creator or creatures created by the Creator. But every thing God created is good, according to Genesis. We naturally tend to picture evil as a thing—a black cloud, or a dangerous storm, or a grimacing face, or dirt. But these pictures mislead us. If God is the Creator of all things and evil is a thing, then God is the Creator of evil, and he is to blame for its existence. No, evil is not a thing but a wrong choice, or the damage done by a wrong choice. Evil is no more a positive thing than blindness is. But it is just as real. It is not a thing, but it is not an illusion.
Second, the origin of evil is not the Creator but the creature's freely choosing sin and selfishness. Take away all sin and selfishness and you would have heaven on earth. Even the remaining physical evils would no longer rankle and embitter us. Saints endure and even embrace suffering and death as lovers embrace heroic challenges. But they do not embrace sin.
Furthermore, the cause of physical evil is spiritual evil. The cause of suffering is sin. After Genesis tells the story of the good God creating a good world, it next answers the obvious question "Where did evil come from then?" by the story of the fall of mankind. How are we to understand this? How can spiritual evil (sin) cause physical evil (suffering and death)?
God is the source of all life and joy. Therefore, when the human soul rebels against God, it loses its life and joy. Now a human being is body as well as soul. We are single creatures, not double: we are not even body and soul as much as we are embodied soul, or ensouled body. So the body must share in the soul's inevitable punishment—a punishment as natural and unavoidable as broken bones from jumping off a cliff or a sick stomach from eating rotten food rather than a punishment as artificial and external as a grade for a course or a slap on the hands for taking the cookies.
Whether this consequence of sin was a physical change in the world or only a spiritual change in human consciousness—whether the "thorns and thistles" grew in the garden only after the fall or whether they were always there but were only felt as painful by the newly fallen consciousness—is another question. But in either case the connection between spiritual evil and physical evil has to be as close as the connection between the two things they affect, the human soul and the human body.
If the origin of evil is free will, and God is the origin of free will, isn't God then the origin of evil? Only as parents are the origin of the misdeeds their children commit by being the origin of their children. The all-powerful God gave us a share in his power to choose freely. Would we prefer he had not and had made us robots rather than human beings?
A third part of the solution to the problem of evil is the most important part: how to resolve the problem in practice, not just in theory; in life, not just in thought. Although evil is a serious problem for thought (for it seems to disprove the existence of God), it is even more of a problem in life (for it is the real exclusion of God). But even if you think the solution in thought is obscure and uncertain, the solution in practice is as strong and clear as the sun: it is the Son. God's solution to the problem of evil is his Son Jesus Christ. The Father's love sent his Son to die for us to defeat the power of evil in human nature: that's the heart of the Christian story. We do not worship a deistic God, an absentee landlord who ignores his slum; we worship a garbageman God who came right down into our worst garbage to clean it up. How do we get God off the hook for allowing evil? God is not off the hook; God is the hook. That's the point of a crucifix.
The Cross is God's part of the practical solution to evil. Our part, according to the same Gospel, is to repent, to believe, and to work with God in fighting evil by the power of love. The King has invaded; we are finishing the mop-up operation.
Finally, what about the philosophical problem? It is not logically contradictory to say an all-powerful and all-loving God tolerates so much evil when he could eradicate it? Why do bad things happen to good people? The question makes three questionable assumptions.
First, who's to say we are good people? The question should be not "Why do bad things happen to good people?" but "Why do good things happen to bad people?" If the fairy godmother tells Cinderella that she can wear her magic gown until midnight, the question should be not "Why not after midnight?" but "Why did I get to wear it at all?" The question is not why the glass of water is half empty but why it is half full, for all goodness is gift. The best people are the ones who are most reluctant to call themselves good people. Sinners think they are saints, but saints know they are sinners. The best man who ever lived once said, "No one is good but God alone."
Second, who's to say suffering is all bad? Life without it would produce spoiled brats and tyrants, not joyful saints. Rabbi Abraham Heschel says simply, "The man who has not suffered, what can he possibly know, anyway?" Suffering can work for the greater good of wisdom. It is not true that all things are good, but it is true that "all things work together for good to those who love God."
Third, who's to say we have to know all God's reasons? Who ever promised us all the answers? Animals can't understand much about us; why should we be able to understand everything about God? The obvious point of the Book of Job, the world's greatest exploration of the problem of evil, is that we just don't know what God is up to. What a hard lesson to learn: Lesson One, that we are ignorant, that we are infants! No wonder Socrates was declared by the Delphic Oracle to be the wisest man in the world. He interpreted that declaration to mean that he alone knew that he did not have wisdom, and that was true wisdom for man.
A child on the tenth story of a burning building cannot see the firefighters with their safety net on the street. They call up, "Jump! We'll catch you. Trust us." The child objects, "But I can't see you." The firefighter replies, "That's all right. I can see you." We are like that child, evil is like the fire, our ignorance is like the smoke, God is like the firefighter, and Christ is like the safety net. If there are situations like this where we must trust even fallible human beings with our lives, where we must trust what we hear, not what we see, then it is reasonable that we must trust the infallible, all-seeing God when we hear from his word but do not see from our reason or experience. We cannot know all God's reasons, but we can know why we cannot know.
Hear the YouTube audio on Good and Evil
God has let us know a lot. He has lifted the curtain on the problem of evil with Christ. There, the greatest evil that ever happened, both the greatest spiritual evil and the greatest physical evil, both the greatest sin (deicide) and the greatest suffering (perfect love hated and crucified), is revealed as his wise and loving plan to bring about the greatest good, the salvation of the world from sin and suffering eternally. There, the greatest injustice of all time is integrated into the plan of salvation that Saint Paul calls "the righteousness (justice) of God". Love finds a way. Love is very tricky. But love needs to be trusted.
The worst aspect of the problem of evil is eternal evil, hell. Does hell not contradict a loving and omnipotent God? No, for hell is the consequence of free will. We freely choose hell for ourselves; God does not cast anyone into hell against his will. If a creature is really free to say yes or no to the Creator's offer of love and spiritual marriage, then it must be possible for the creature to say no. And that is what hell is, essentially. Free will, in turn, was created out of God's love. Therefore hell is a result of God's love. Everything is.
No sane person wants hell to exist. No sane person wants evil to exist. But hell is just evil eternalized. If there is evil and if there is eternity, there can be hell. If it is intellectually dishonest to disbelieve in evil just because it is shocking and uncomfortable, it is the same with hell. Reality has hard corners, surprises, and terrible dangers in it. We desperately need a true road map, not nice feelings, if we are to get home. It is true, as people often say, that "hell just feels unreal, impossible." Yes. So does Auschwitz. So does Calvary.
http://www.peterkreeft.com/topics/evil.htm
The problem of evil is the most serious problem in the world. It is also the one serious objection to the existence of God.
When Saint Thomas Aquinas wrote his great Summa Theologica, he could find only two objections to the existence of God, even though he tried to list at least three objections to every one of the thousands of theses he tried to prove in that great work. One of the two objections is the apparent ability of natural science to explain everything in our experience without God; and the other is the problem of evil.
More people have abandoned their faith because of the problem of evil than for any other reason. It is certainly the greatest test of faith, the greatest temptation to unbelief. And it's not just an intellectual objection. We feel it. We live it. That's why the Book of Job is so arresting.
The problem can be stated very simply: If God is so good, why is his world so bad? If an all-good, all-wise, all-loving, all-just, and all-powerful God is running the show, why does he seem to be doing such a miserable job of it? Why do bad things happen to good people?
The unbeliever who asks that question is usually feeling resentment toward and rebellion against God, not just lacking evidence for his existence. C. S. Lewis recalls that as an atheist he "did not believe God existed. I was also very angry with him for not existing. I was also angry with him for having created the world."
When you talk to such a person, remember that it is more like talking to a divorcée than to a skeptical scientist. The reason for unbelief is an unfaithful lover, not an inadequate hypothesis. The unbeliever's problem is not just a soft head but a hard heart. And the good apologist knows how to let the heart lead the head as well as vice versa.
There are four parts to the solution to the problem of evil.
First, evil is not a thing, an entity, a being. All beings are either the Creator or creatures created by the Creator. But every thing God created is good, according to Genesis. We naturally tend to picture evil as a thing—a black cloud, or a dangerous storm, or a grimacing face, or dirt. But these pictures mislead us. If God is the Creator of all things and evil is a thing, then God is the Creator of evil, and he is to blame for its existence. No, evil is not a thing but a wrong choice, or the damage done by a wrong choice. Evil is no more a positive thing than blindness is. But it is just as real. It is not a thing, but it is not an illusion.
Second, the origin of evil is not the Creator but the creature's freely choosing sin and selfishness. Take away all sin and selfishness and you would have heaven on earth. Even the remaining physical evils would no longer rankle and embitter us. Saints endure and even embrace suffering and death as lovers embrace heroic challenges. But they do not embrace sin.
Furthermore, the cause of physical evil is spiritual evil. The cause of suffering is sin. After Genesis tells the story of the good God creating a good world, it next answers the obvious question "Where did evil come from then?" by the story of the fall of mankind. How are we to understand this? How can spiritual evil (sin) cause physical evil (suffering and death)?
God is the source of all life and joy. Therefore, when the human soul rebels against God, it loses its life and joy. Now a human being is body as well as soul. We are single creatures, not double: we are not even body and soul as much as we are embodied soul, or ensouled body. So the body must share in the soul's inevitable punishment—a punishment as natural and unavoidable as broken bones from jumping off a cliff or a sick stomach from eating rotten food rather than a punishment as artificial and external as a grade for a course or a slap on the hands for taking the cookies.
Whether this consequence of sin was a physical change in the world or only a spiritual change in human consciousness—whether the "thorns and thistles" grew in the garden only after the fall or whether they were always there but were only felt as painful by the newly fallen consciousness—is another question. But in either case the connection between spiritual evil and physical evil has to be as close as the connection between the two things they affect, the human soul and the human body.
If the origin of evil is free will, and God is the origin of free will, isn't God then the origin of evil? Only as parents are the origin of the misdeeds their children commit by being the origin of their children. The all-powerful God gave us a share in his power to choose freely. Would we prefer he had not and had made us robots rather than human beings?
A third part of the solution to the problem of evil is the most important part: how to resolve the problem in practice, not just in theory; in life, not just in thought. Although evil is a serious problem for thought (for it seems to disprove the existence of God), it is even more of a problem in life (for it is the real exclusion of God). But even if you think the solution in thought is obscure and uncertain, the solution in practice is as strong and clear as the sun: it is the Son. God's solution to the problem of evil is his Son Jesus Christ. The Father's love sent his Son to die for us to defeat the power of evil in human nature: that's the heart of the Christian story. We do not worship a deistic God, an absentee landlord who ignores his slum; we worship a garbageman God who came right down into our worst garbage to clean it up. How do we get God off the hook for allowing evil? God is not off the hook; God is the hook. That's the point of a crucifix.
The Cross is God's part of the practical solution to evil. Our part, according to the same Gospel, is to repent, to believe, and to work with God in fighting evil by the power of love. The King has invaded; we are finishing the mop-up operation.
Finally, what about the philosophical problem? It is not logically contradictory to say an all-powerful and all-loving God tolerates so much evil when he could eradicate it? Why do bad things happen to good people? The question makes three questionable assumptions.
First, who's to say we are good people? The question should be not "Why do bad things happen to good people?" but "Why do good things happen to bad people?" If the fairy godmother tells Cinderella that she can wear her magic gown until midnight, the question should be not "Why not after midnight?" but "Why did I get to wear it at all?" The question is not why the glass of water is half empty but why it is half full, for all goodness is gift. The best people are the ones who are most reluctant to call themselves good people. Sinners think they are saints, but saints know they are sinners. The best man who ever lived once said, "No one is good but God alone."
Second, who's to say suffering is all bad? Life without it would produce spoiled brats and tyrants, not joyful saints. Rabbi Abraham Heschel says simply, "The man who has not suffered, what can he possibly know, anyway?" Suffering can work for the greater good of wisdom. It is not true that all things are good, but it is true that "all things work together for good to those who love God."
Third, who's to say we have to know all God's reasons? Who ever promised us all the answers? Animals can't understand much about us; why should we be able to understand everything about God? The obvious point of the Book of Job, the world's greatest exploration of the problem of evil, is that we just don't know what God is up to. What a hard lesson to learn: Lesson One, that we are ignorant, that we are infants! No wonder Socrates was declared by the Delphic Oracle to be the wisest man in the world. He interpreted that declaration to mean that he alone knew that he did not have wisdom, and that was true wisdom for man.
A child on the tenth story of a burning building cannot see the firefighters with their safety net on the street. They call up, "Jump! We'll catch you. Trust us." The child objects, "But I can't see you." The firefighter replies, "That's all right. I can see you." We are like that child, evil is like the fire, our ignorance is like the smoke, God is like the firefighter, and Christ is like the safety net. If there are situations like this where we must trust even fallible human beings with our lives, where we must trust what we hear, not what we see, then it is reasonable that we must trust the infallible, all-seeing God when we hear from his word but do not see from our reason or experience. We cannot know all God's reasons, but we can know why we cannot know.
Hear the YouTube audio on Good and Evil
God has let us know a lot. He has lifted the curtain on the problem of evil with Christ. There, the greatest evil that ever happened, both the greatest spiritual evil and the greatest physical evil, both the greatest sin (deicide) and the greatest suffering (perfect love hated and crucified), is revealed as his wise and loving plan to bring about the greatest good, the salvation of the world from sin and suffering eternally. There, the greatest injustice of all time is integrated into the plan of salvation that Saint Paul calls "the righteousness (justice) of God". Love finds a way. Love is very tricky. But love needs to be trusted.
The worst aspect of the problem of evil is eternal evil, hell. Does hell not contradict a loving and omnipotent God? No, for hell is the consequence of free will. We freely choose hell for ourselves; God does not cast anyone into hell against his will. If a creature is really free to say yes or no to the Creator's offer of love and spiritual marriage, then it must be possible for the creature to say no. And that is what hell is, essentially. Free will, in turn, was created out of God's love. Therefore hell is a result of God's love. Everything is.
No sane person wants hell to exist. No sane person wants evil to exist. But hell is just evil eternalized. If there is evil and if there is eternity, there can be hell. If it is intellectually dishonest to disbelieve in evil just because it is shocking and uncomfortable, it is the same with hell. Reality has hard corners, surprises, and terrible dangers in it. We desperately need a true road map, not nice feelings, if we are to get home. It is true, as people often say, that "hell just feels unreal, impossible." Yes. So does Auschwitz. So does Calvary.
From Grief to Grace: Divine Intimacy Radio and Podcast
August 29, 2017 by Dan Burke
From Grief to Grace
Description:
When tragedy, loss or failed expectations strike, how can we cope with our circumstances in a healthy, faithful way? Today, Dan and Melissa speak with author, Jeannie Ewing about her book From Grief to Grace: The Journey from Tragedy to Triumph to better understand God's will in difficult situations.
Topics/Questions covered in the show:
Resources:
Spiritualdirection.com – website
August 29, 2017 by Dan Burke
From Grief to Grace
Description:
When tragedy, loss or failed expectations strike, how can we cope with our circumstances in a healthy, faithful way? Today, Dan and Melissa speak with author, Jeannie Ewing about her book From Grief to Grace: The Journey from Tragedy to Triumph to better understand God's will in difficult situations.
Topics/Questions covered in the show:
- What was the inspiration behind this book?
- How would you define grief from a Catholic perspective as opposed to how the world views grief?
- What is the difference between depression and grief?
- How can one embrace the spiritual reality of grief and suffering?
- How do we find the path to life in the midst of suffering?
- How can we most effectively help our loved ones when they are suffering?
- How can this book help someone experiencing grief in the beginning stages of his or her spiritual journey find deeper meaning through the hardship?
Resources:
Spiritualdirection.com – website
- Avila Institute for Spiritual Formation
- Sophia Institute Press
- From Grief to Grace by Jeannie Ewing
- fromgrief2grace.com – website for Jeannie Ewing
- lovealonecreates.com – website for Jeannie Ewing
- Questions? Send an e-mail to Questions@myavila.com or call 818-646-7729. Please leave your name, location and question.
Suffering Unleashes Love
For the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on September 14, here are some excerpts from John Paul II's apostolic letter "Salvifici Doloris" on the deep human and divine meaning of suffering.
From John Paul II's Apostolic Letter Salvifici Doloris
Dated 11 February 1984 (Feast of our Lady of Lourdes)
5. Man suffers in different ways, ways not always considered by medicine, not even in its most advanced specializations. Suffering is something which is still wider than sickness, more complex and at the same time still more deeply rooted in humanity itself. A certain idea of this problem comes to us from the distinction between physical suffering and moral suffering. This distinction is based upon the double dimension of the human being and indicates the bodily and spiritual element as the immediate or direct subject of suffering. Insofar as the words “suffering” and “pain,” can, up to a certain degree, be used as synonyms, physical suffering is present when “the body is hurting” in some way, whereas moral suffering is “pain of the soul.” In fact, it is a question of pain of a spiritual nature, and not only of the “psychological” dimension of pain which accompanies both moral and physical suffering The vastness and the many forms of moral suffering are certainly no less in number than the forms of physical suffering . . . .
Christ Conquered Suffering through Love
18. Christ suffers voluntarily and suffers innocently.With his suffering he accepts that question which—posed by people many times—has been expressed, in a certain sense, in a radical way by the Book of Job. Christ, however, not only carries with himself the same question (and this in an even more radical way, for he is not only a man like Job but the only-begotten Son of God), but he also carries the greatest possible answer to this question . . .This “word of the Cross” completes with a definitive reality the image of the ancient prophecy. Many episodes, many discourses during Christ’s public teaching bear witness to the way in which from the beginning he accepts this suffering which is the will of the Father for the salvation of the world. However, the prayer in Gethsemane becomes a definitive point here. The words: “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt,” and later: “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, thy will be done,” have a manifold eloquence. They prove the truth of that love which the only-begotten Son gives to the Father in his obedience. At the same time, they attest to the truth of his suffering. The words of that prayer of Christ in Gethsemane prove the truth of love through the truth of suffering. Christ’s words confirm with all simplicity this human truth of suffering, to its very depths: suffering is the undergoing of evil before which man shudders. He says: “let it pass from me,” just as Christ says in Gethsemane . . . .
After the words in Gethsemane come the words uttered on Golgotha, words which bear witness to this depth—unique in the history of the world—of the evil of the suffering experienced. When Christ says: “My God, My God, why have you abandoned me?”, his words are not only an expression of that abandonment which many times found expression in the Old Testament, especially in the Psalms and in particular in that Psalm 22 [21] from which come the words quoted. One can say that these words on abandonment are born at the level of that inseparable union of the Son with the Father, and are born because the Father “laid on him the iniquity of us all.” They also foreshadow the words of Saint Paul: “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin.” Together with this horrible weight, encompassing the “entire” evil of the turning away from God which is contained in sin, Christ, through the divine depth of his filial union with the Father, perceives in a humanly inexpressible way this suffering which is the separation, the rejection by the Father, the estrangement from God. But precisely through this suffering he accomplishes the Redemption, and can say as he breathes his last: “It is finished.” . . .
24. Does this mean that the Redemption achieved by Christ is not complete? No. It only means that the Redemption, accomplished through satisfactory love, remains always open to all love expressed in human suffering. In this dimension—the dimension of love—the Redemption which has already been completely accomplished is, in a certain sense, constantly being accomplished. Christ achieved the Redemption completely and to the very limits but at the same time he did not bring it to a close. In this redemptive suffering, through which the Redemption of the world was accomplished, Christ opened himself from the beginning to every human suffering and constantly does so. Yes, it seems to be part of the very essence of Christ’s redemptive suffering that this suffering requires to be unceasingly completed.
Thus, with this openness to every human suffering, Christ has accomplished the world’s Redemption through his own suffering. For, at the same time, this Redemption, even though it was completely achieved by Christ’s suffering, lives on and in its own special way develops in the history of man. It lives and develops as the body of Christ, the Church, and in this dimension every human suffering, by reason of the loving union with Christ, completes the suffering of Christ. It completes that suffering just as the Church completes the redemptive work of Christ.
The Gospel of Suffering
25. The witnesses of the Cross and Resurrection of Christ have handed on to the Church and to mankind a specific Gospel of suffering. The Redeemer himself wrote this Gospel, above all by his own suffering accepted in love, so that man “should not perish but have eternal life.” This suffering, together with the living word of his teaching, became a rich source for all those who shared in Jesus’ sufferings among the first generation of his disciples and confessors and among those who have come after them down the centuries.
It is especially consoling to note—and also accurate in accordance with the Gospel and history—that at the side of Christ, in the first and most exalted place, there is always his Mother through the exemplary testimony that she bearsby her whole life to this particular Gospel of suffering. In her, the many and intense sufferings were amassed in such an interconnected way that they were not only a proof of her unshakeable faith but also a contribution to the redemption of all. In reality, from the time of her secret conversation with the angel, she began to see in her mission as a mother her “destiny” to share, in a singular and unrepeatable way, in the very mission of her Son. And she very soon received a confirmation of this in the events that accompanied the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, and in the solemn words of the aged Simeon, when he spoke of a sharp sword that would pierce her heart. Yet a further confirmation was in the anxieties and privations of the hurried flight into Egypt, caused by the cruel decision of Herod.
And again, after the events of her Son’s hidden and public life, events which she must have shared with acute sensitivity, it was on Calvary that Mary’s suffering, beside the suffering of Jesus, reached an intensity which can hardly be imagined from a human point of view but which was mysterious and supernaturally fruitful for the redemption of the world. Her ascent of Calvary and her standing at the foot of the Cross together with the Beloved Disciple were a special sort of sharing in the redeeming death of her Son. And the words which she heard from his lips were a kind of solemn handing-over of this Gospel of suffering so that it could be proclaimed to the whole community of believers.
As a witness to her Son’s Passion by her presence, and as a sharer in it by hercompassion, Mary offered a unique contribution to the Gospel of suffering, by embodying in anticipation the expression of Saint Paul which was quoted at the beginning. She truly has a special title to be able to claim that she “completes in her flesh”—as already in her heart—“what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions.”
In the light of the unmatchable example of Christ, reflected with singular clarity in the life of his Mother, the Gospel of suffering, through the experience and words of the Apostles, becomes an inexhaustible source for the ever new generations that succeed one another in the history of the Church. The Gospel of suffering signifies not only the presence of suffering in the Gospel, as one of the themes of the Good News, but also the revelation of the salvific power and salvific significance of suffering in Christ’s messianic mission and, subsequently, in the mission and vocation of the Church.
26. While the first great chapter of the Gospel of suffering is written down, as the generations pass, by those who suffer persecutions for Christ’s sake, simultaneously another great chapter of this Gospel unfolds through the course of history. This chapter is written by all those who suffer together with Christ, uniting their human sufferings to his salvific suffering. In these people there is fulfilled what the first witnesses of the Passion and Resurrection said and wrote about sharing in the sufferings of Christ. Therefore in those people there is fulfilled the Gospel of suffering, and, at the same time, each of them continues in a certain sense to write it: they write it and proclaim it to the world, they announce it to the world in which they live and to the people of their time.
Down through the centuries and generations it has been seen that in suffering there is concealed a particular power that draws a person interiorly close to Christ, a special grace. To this grace many saints, such as Saint Francis of Assisi, Saint Ignatius of Loyola and others, owe their profound conversion. A result of such a conversion is not only that the individual discovers the salvific meaning of suffering but above all that he becomes a completely new person. He discovers a new dimension, as it were, of his entire life and vocation. This discovery is a particular confirmation of the spiritual greatness which in man surpasses the body in a way that is completely beyond compare. When this body is gravely ill, totally incapacitated, and the person is almost incapable of living and acting, all the more do interior maturity and spiritual greatness become evident, constituting a touching lesson to those who are healthy and normal.
This interior maturity and spiritual greatness in suffering are certainly theresult of a particular conversion and cooperation with the grace of the Crucified Redeemer. It is he himself who acts at the heart of human sufferings through his Spirit of truth, through the consoling Spirit. It is he who transforms, in a certain sense, the very substance of the spiritual life, indicating for the person who suffers a place close to himself. It is he— as the interior Master and Guide— who reveals to the suffering brother and sister this wonderful interchange, situated at the very heart of the mystery of the Redemption. Suffering is, in itself, an experience of evil. But Christ has made suffering the firmest basis of the definitive good, namely the good of eternal salvation. By his suffering on the Cross, Christ reached the very roots of evil, of sin and death. He conquered the author of evil, Satan, and his permanent rebellion against the Creator . . . Christ through his own salvific suffering is very much present in every human suffering, and can act from within that suffering by the powers of his Spirit of truth, his consoling Spirit.
This is not all: the Divine Redeemer wishes to penetrate the soul of every sufferer through the heart of his holy Mother, the first and the most exalted of all the redeemed. As though by a continuation of that motherhood which by the power of the Holy Spirit had given him life, the dying Christ conferred upon the ever Virgin Mary a new kind of motherhood— spiritual and universal—towards all human beings, so that every individual, during the pilgrimage of faith, might remain, together with her, closely united to him unto the Cross, and so that every form of suffering, given fresh life by the power of this Cross, should become no longer the weakness of man but the power of God . . . .
Christ does not explain in the abstract the reasons for suffering, but before all else he says: “Follow me!” Come! Take part through your suffering in this work of saving the world, a salvation achieved through my suffering! Through my Cross. Gradually, as the individual takes up his cross, spiritually uniting himself to the Cross of Christ, the salvific meaning of suffering is revealed before him. He does not discover this meaning at his own human level, but at the level of the suffering of Christ. At the same time, however, from this level of Christ the salvific meaning of suffering descends to man’s level and becomes, in a sense, the individual’s personal response. It is then that man finds in his suffering interior peace and even spiritual joy . . . .
Suffering Unleashes Love
29. Following the parable of the Gospel, we could say that suffering, which is present under so many different forms in our human world, is also present in order to unleash love in the human person, that unselfish gift of one’s “I” on behalf of other people, especially those who suffer. The world of human suffering unceasingly calls for, so to speak, another world: the world of human love; and in a certain sense man owes to suffering that unselfish love which stirs in his heart and actions. The person who is a “neighbor” cannot indifferently pass by the suffering of another: this in the name of fundamental human solidarity, still more in the name of love of neighbor. He must “stop,” “sympathize,” just like the Samaritan of the Gospel parable.
Apostolic Letter "Salvifici Doloris"
Saint Josemaria: "In the Hospitals and Poor Districts"
see: www.opusdei.org/en-us/article/suffering-unleashes-love/
For the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on September 14, here are some excerpts from John Paul II's apostolic letter "Salvifici Doloris" on the deep human and divine meaning of suffering.
From John Paul II's Apostolic Letter Salvifici Doloris
Dated 11 February 1984 (Feast of our Lady of Lourdes)
5. Man suffers in different ways, ways not always considered by medicine, not even in its most advanced specializations. Suffering is something which is still wider than sickness, more complex and at the same time still more deeply rooted in humanity itself. A certain idea of this problem comes to us from the distinction between physical suffering and moral suffering. This distinction is based upon the double dimension of the human being and indicates the bodily and spiritual element as the immediate or direct subject of suffering. Insofar as the words “suffering” and “pain,” can, up to a certain degree, be used as synonyms, physical suffering is present when “the body is hurting” in some way, whereas moral suffering is “pain of the soul.” In fact, it is a question of pain of a spiritual nature, and not only of the “psychological” dimension of pain which accompanies both moral and physical suffering The vastness and the many forms of moral suffering are certainly no less in number than the forms of physical suffering . . . .
Christ Conquered Suffering through Love
18. Christ suffers voluntarily and suffers innocently.With his suffering he accepts that question which—posed by people many times—has been expressed, in a certain sense, in a radical way by the Book of Job. Christ, however, not only carries with himself the same question (and this in an even more radical way, for he is not only a man like Job but the only-begotten Son of God), but he also carries the greatest possible answer to this question . . .This “word of the Cross” completes with a definitive reality the image of the ancient prophecy. Many episodes, many discourses during Christ’s public teaching bear witness to the way in which from the beginning he accepts this suffering which is the will of the Father for the salvation of the world. However, the prayer in Gethsemane becomes a definitive point here. The words: “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt,” and later: “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, thy will be done,” have a manifold eloquence. They prove the truth of that love which the only-begotten Son gives to the Father in his obedience. At the same time, they attest to the truth of his suffering. The words of that prayer of Christ in Gethsemane prove the truth of love through the truth of suffering. Christ’s words confirm with all simplicity this human truth of suffering, to its very depths: suffering is the undergoing of evil before which man shudders. He says: “let it pass from me,” just as Christ says in Gethsemane . . . .
After the words in Gethsemane come the words uttered on Golgotha, words which bear witness to this depth—unique in the history of the world—of the evil of the suffering experienced. When Christ says: “My God, My God, why have you abandoned me?”, his words are not only an expression of that abandonment which many times found expression in the Old Testament, especially in the Psalms and in particular in that Psalm 22 [21] from which come the words quoted. One can say that these words on abandonment are born at the level of that inseparable union of the Son with the Father, and are born because the Father “laid on him the iniquity of us all.” They also foreshadow the words of Saint Paul: “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin.” Together with this horrible weight, encompassing the “entire” evil of the turning away from God which is contained in sin, Christ, through the divine depth of his filial union with the Father, perceives in a humanly inexpressible way this suffering which is the separation, the rejection by the Father, the estrangement from God. But precisely through this suffering he accomplishes the Redemption, and can say as he breathes his last: “It is finished.” . . .
24. Does this mean that the Redemption achieved by Christ is not complete? No. It only means that the Redemption, accomplished through satisfactory love, remains always open to all love expressed in human suffering. In this dimension—the dimension of love—the Redemption which has already been completely accomplished is, in a certain sense, constantly being accomplished. Christ achieved the Redemption completely and to the very limits but at the same time he did not bring it to a close. In this redemptive suffering, through which the Redemption of the world was accomplished, Christ opened himself from the beginning to every human suffering and constantly does so. Yes, it seems to be part of the very essence of Christ’s redemptive suffering that this suffering requires to be unceasingly completed.
Thus, with this openness to every human suffering, Christ has accomplished the world’s Redemption through his own suffering. For, at the same time, this Redemption, even though it was completely achieved by Christ’s suffering, lives on and in its own special way develops in the history of man. It lives and develops as the body of Christ, the Church, and in this dimension every human suffering, by reason of the loving union with Christ, completes the suffering of Christ. It completes that suffering just as the Church completes the redemptive work of Christ.
The Gospel of Suffering
25. The witnesses of the Cross and Resurrection of Christ have handed on to the Church and to mankind a specific Gospel of suffering. The Redeemer himself wrote this Gospel, above all by his own suffering accepted in love, so that man “should not perish but have eternal life.” This suffering, together with the living word of his teaching, became a rich source for all those who shared in Jesus’ sufferings among the first generation of his disciples and confessors and among those who have come after them down the centuries.
It is especially consoling to note—and also accurate in accordance with the Gospel and history—that at the side of Christ, in the first and most exalted place, there is always his Mother through the exemplary testimony that she bearsby her whole life to this particular Gospel of suffering. In her, the many and intense sufferings were amassed in such an interconnected way that they were not only a proof of her unshakeable faith but also a contribution to the redemption of all. In reality, from the time of her secret conversation with the angel, she began to see in her mission as a mother her “destiny” to share, in a singular and unrepeatable way, in the very mission of her Son. And she very soon received a confirmation of this in the events that accompanied the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, and in the solemn words of the aged Simeon, when he spoke of a sharp sword that would pierce her heart. Yet a further confirmation was in the anxieties and privations of the hurried flight into Egypt, caused by the cruel decision of Herod.
And again, after the events of her Son’s hidden and public life, events which she must have shared with acute sensitivity, it was on Calvary that Mary’s suffering, beside the suffering of Jesus, reached an intensity which can hardly be imagined from a human point of view but which was mysterious and supernaturally fruitful for the redemption of the world. Her ascent of Calvary and her standing at the foot of the Cross together with the Beloved Disciple were a special sort of sharing in the redeeming death of her Son. And the words which she heard from his lips were a kind of solemn handing-over of this Gospel of suffering so that it could be proclaimed to the whole community of believers.
As a witness to her Son’s Passion by her presence, and as a sharer in it by hercompassion, Mary offered a unique contribution to the Gospel of suffering, by embodying in anticipation the expression of Saint Paul which was quoted at the beginning. She truly has a special title to be able to claim that she “completes in her flesh”—as already in her heart—“what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions.”
In the light of the unmatchable example of Christ, reflected with singular clarity in the life of his Mother, the Gospel of suffering, through the experience and words of the Apostles, becomes an inexhaustible source for the ever new generations that succeed one another in the history of the Church. The Gospel of suffering signifies not only the presence of suffering in the Gospel, as one of the themes of the Good News, but also the revelation of the salvific power and salvific significance of suffering in Christ’s messianic mission and, subsequently, in the mission and vocation of the Church.
26. While the first great chapter of the Gospel of suffering is written down, as the generations pass, by those who suffer persecutions for Christ’s sake, simultaneously another great chapter of this Gospel unfolds through the course of history. This chapter is written by all those who suffer together with Christ, uniting their human sufferings to his salvific suffering. In these people there is fulfilled what the first witnesses of the Passion and Resurrection said and wrote about sharing in the sufferings of Christ. Therefore in those people there is fulfilled the Gospel of suffering, and, at the same time, each of them continues in a certain sense to write it: they write it and proclaim it to the world, they announce it to the world in which they live and to the people of their time.
Down through the centuries and generations it has been seen that in suffering there is concealed a particular power that draws a person interiorly close to Christ, a special grace. To this grace many saints, such as Saint Francis of Assisi, Saint Ignatius of Loyola and others, owe their profound conversion. A result of such a conversion is not only that the individual discovers the salvific meaning of suffering but above all that he becomes a completely new person. He discovers a new dimension, as it were, of his entire life and vocation. This discovery is a particular confirmation of the spiritual greatness which in man surpasses the body in a way that is completely beyond compare. When this body is gravely ill, totally incapacitated, and the person is almost incapable of living and acting, all the more do interior maturity and spiritual greatness become evident, constituting a touching lesson to those who are healthy and normal.
This interior maturity and spiritual greatness in suffering are certainly theresult of a particular conversion and cooperation with the grace of the Crucified Redeemer. It is he himself who acts at the heart of human sufferings through his Spirit of truth, through the consoling Spirit. It is he who transforms, in a certain sense, the very substance of the spiritual life, indicating for the person who suffers a place close to himself. It is he— as the interior Master and Guide— who reveals to the suffering brother and sister this wonderful interchange, situated at the very heart of the mystery of the Redemption. Suffering is, in itself, an experience of evil. But Christ has made suffering the firmest basis of the definitive good, namely the good of eternal salvation. By his suffering on the Cross, Christ reached the very roots of evil, of sin and death. He conquered the author of evil, Satan, and his permanent rebellion against the Creator . . . Christ through his own salvific suffering is very much present in every human suffering, and can act from within that suffering by the powers of his Spirit of truth, his consoling Spirit.
This is not all: the Divine Redeemer wishes to penetrate the soul of every sufferer through the heart of his holy Mother, the first and the most exalted of all the redeemed. As though by a continuation of that motherhood which by the power of the Holy Spirit had given him life, the dying Christ conferred upon the ever Virgin Mary a new kind of motherhood— spiritual and universal—towards all human beings, so that every individual, during the pilgrimage of faith, might remain, together with her, closely united to him unto the Cross, and so that every form of suffering, given fresh life by the power of this Cross, should become no longer the weakness of man but the power of God . . . .
Christ does not explain in the abstract the reasons for suffering, but before all else he says: “Follow me!” Come! Take part through your suffering in this work of saving the world, a salvation achieved through my suffering! Through my Cross. Gradually, as the individual takes up his cross, spiritually uniting himself to the Cross of Christ, the salvific meaning of suffering is revealed before him. He does not discover this meaning at his own human level, but at the level of the suffering of Christ. At the same time, however, from this level of Christ the salvific meaning of suffering descends to man’s level and becomes, in a sense, the individual’s personal response. It is then that man finds in his suffering interior peace and even spiritual joy . . . .
Suffering Unleashes Love
29. Following the parable of the Gospel, we could say that suffering, which is present under so many different forms in our human world, is also present in order to unleash love in the human person, that unselfish gift of one’s “I” on behalf of other people, especially those who suffer. The world of human suffering unceasingly calls for, so to speak, another world: the world of human love; and in a certain sense man owes to suffering that unselfish love which stirs in his heart and actions. The person who is a “neighbor” cannot indifferently pass by the suffering of another: this in the name of fundamental human solidarity, still more in the name of love of neighbor. He must “stop,” “sympathize,” just like the Samaritan of the Gospel parable.
Apostolic Letter "Salvifici Doloris"
Saint Josemaria: "In the Hospitals and Poor Districts"
see: www.opusdei.org/en-us/article/suffering-unleashes-love/
Heart of Hope Series by Deacon James Keating
ROHC #1 The Cross in the Christian Life – Heart of Hope with Deacon James Keating Ep. 1
This extraordinarily popular series explores the work of suffering in the Christian life and how God can use it to transform the heart of the individual and the world.
PART ONE: The role of the Cross in the Christian life, suffering, prayer and and how it conquers evil.
ROHC #1 The Cross in the Christian Life – Heart of Hope with Deacon James Keating Ep. 1
This extraordinarily popular series explores the work of suffering in the Christian life and how God can use it to transform the heart of the individual and the world.
PART ONE: The role of the Cross in the Christian life, suffering, prayer and and how it conquers evil.
ROHC-V2 The Agony of Emotional Suffering - The Heart of Hope w/ Deacon James Keating Ph.D.
Heart of Hope Part 2 -- The agony of emotional suffering and opportunities for deeper union with Jesus; the reason for pastoral ministry
Deacon James Keating, PhD, the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha, is making available to "Discerning Hearts" and all who listen, his series of programs entitled "The Heart of Hope".
This extraordinarily popular series explores the work of suffering in the Christian life and how God can use it to transform the heart of the individual and the world.
The "Heart of Hope" tackles a very tough subject...the gift of suffering in the Christian life. Deacon Keating guides us well.
Find more by Deacon Keating at www.discerninghearts.com
Heart of Hope Part 2 -- The agony of emotional suffering and opportunities for deeper union with Jesus; the reason for pastoral ministry
Deacon James Keating, PhD, the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha, is making available to "Discerning Hearts" and all who listen, his series of programs entitled "The Heart of Hope".
This extraordinarily popular series explores the work of suffering in the Christian life and how God can use it to transform the heart of the individual and the world.
The "Heart of Hope" tackles a very tough subject...the gift of suffering in the Christian life. Deacon Keating guides us well.
Find more by Deacon Keating at www.discerninghearts.com
ROHC-V3 What is Redemptive Suffering– The Heart of Hope w/ Deacon James Keating Ph.D.
Heart of Hope Part 3 -- What is Redemptive Suffering...using love and the energy of love to redirect pain as an intercessory prayer for another...how it makes sense and is no longer meaningless
Deacon James Keating, PhD, the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha, is making available to "Discerning Hearts" and all who listen, his series of programs entitled "The Heart of Hope".
This extraordinarily popular series explores the work of suffering in the Christian life and how God can use it to transform the heart of the individual and the world.
The "Heart of Hope" tackles a very tough subject...the gift of suffering in the Christian life. Deacon Keating guides us well.
Check out more from Deacon Keating at www.discerninghearts.com
Heart of Hope Part 3 -- What is Redemptive Suffering...using love and the energy of love to redirect pain as an intercessory prayer for another...how it makes sense and is no longer meaningless
Deacon James Keating, PhD, the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha, is making available to "Discerning Hearts" and all who listen, his series of programs entitled "The Heart of Hope".
This extraordinarily popular series explores the work of suffering in the Christian life and how God can use it to transform the heart of the individual and the world.
The "Heart of Hope" tackles a very tough subject...the gift of suffering in the Christian life. Deacon Keating guides us well.
Check out more from Deacon Keating at www.discerninghearts.com
ROHC-V4 The Suffering of Love – The Heart of Hope w/ Deacon James Keating Ph.D.
Heart of Hope Part 4 -- The healing hand of Christ, seeing the will of God, and how we suffer love. The tale of the two criminals on the cross next to Christ on Gologotha.
Deacon James Keating, PhD, the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha, is making available to "Discerning Hearts" and all who listen, his series of programs entitled "The Heart of Hope".
This extraordinarily popular series explores the work of suffering in the Christian life and how God can use it to transform the heart of the individual and the world.
For more Deacon Keating got to www.discerninghearts.com
Heart of Hope Part 4 -- The healing hand of Christ, seeing the will of God, and how we suffer love. The tale of the two criminals on the cross next to Christ on Gologotha.
Deacon James Keating, PhD, the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha, is making available to "Discerning Hearts" and all who listen, his series of programs entitled "The Heart of Hope".
This extraordinarily popular series explores the work of suffering in the Christian life and how God can use it to transform the heart of the individual and the world.
For more Deacon Keating got to www.discerninghearts.com
ROHC-V5 The Purpose of Life - The Heart of Hope w/ Deacon James Keating Ph.D.
Heart of Hope Part 5 -- The purpose of life, the suffering of humanity and how it relates to the grace of God. Emotional Suffering, Purgation, Christ's sacrifice on the Cross, and Redemption.
Deacon James Keating, PhD, the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha, is making available to "Discerning Hearts" and all who listen, his series of programs entitled "The Heart of Hope".
This extraordinarily popular series explores the work of suffering in the Christian life and how God can use it to transform the heart of the individual and the world.
The "Heart of Hope" tackles a very tough subject...the gift of suffering in the Christian life. Deacon Keating guides us well.
More Deacon Keating at www.discerninghearts.com
Heart of Hope Part 5 -- The purpose of life, the suffering of humanity and how it relates to the grace of God. Emotional Suffering, Purgation, Christ's sacrifice on the Cross, and Redemption.
Deacon James Keating, PhD, the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha, is making available to "Discerning Hearts" and all who listen, his series of programs entitled "The Heart of Hope".
This extraordinarily popular series explores the work of suffering in the Christian life and how God can use it to transform the heart of the individual and the world.
The "Heart of Hope" tackles a very tough subject...the gift of suffering in the Christian life. Deacon Keating guides us well.
More Deacon Keating at www.discerninghearts.com
ROHC-V6 The Core of Redemptive Suffering - The Heart of Hope w/ Deacon James Keating Ph.D.
Heart of Hope Part 6 -- Is there a light at the end of the tunnel? Am I being punished? Why do the innocent and faithful suffer? Behold the wood of the cross. The core of redemptive suffering.
Deacon James Keating, PhD, the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha, is making available to "Discerning Hearts" and all who listen, his series of programs entitled "The Heart of Hope".
This extraordinarily popular series explores the work of suffering in the Christian life and how God can use it to transform the heart of the individual and the world.
The "Heart of Hope" tackles a very tough subject...the gift of suffering in the Christian life. Deacon Keating guides us well.
For more Deacon Keating to www.discerninghearts.com
Heart of Hope Part 6 -- Is there a light at the end of the tunnel? Am I being punished? Why do the innocent and faithful suffer? Behold the wood of the cross. The core of redemptive suffering.
Deacon James Keating, PhD, the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha, is making available to "Discerning Hearts" and all who listen, his series of programs entitled "The Heart of Hope".
This extraordinarily popular series explores the work of suffering in the Christian life and how God can use it to transform the heart of the individual and the world.
The "Heart of Hope" tackles a very tough subject...the gift of suffering in the Christian life. Deacon Keating guides us well.
For more Deacon Keating to www.discerninghearts.com
The Heart of Hope
AUGUST 21, 2013 BY DEACON JAMES KEATING
Since Christians are called to be Christ in the world … we have to allow Christ’s Spirit to embrace suffering in love within us, for without his Spirit abiding within us, we would never have the strength to suffer out of love.
Many of us hedge our bets when we choose to love. We put limits on our love. The rise of the “pre-nuptial” agreement is only one instance today. We are afraid that commitments will not satisfy us. We, therefore, tend to think that it might be best to “keep my options open.” We are afraid of what love costs. We are afraid to be disappointed, we are afraid that surrender to love may hurt, there might be emotional pain, and we look for ways to keep a door open to escape.
The cross of Christ, the cross to which he calls us, is the opposite. There upon the cross, Jesus commits himself to suffer for the salvation of his Bride, the Church, and no amount of temptation, fear, or pain can move him to be unfaithful. For us, his cross is a paradoxical symbol of repulsion and attraction. We know that in our deepest nature we are made to love, to surrender, to give without bounds; and at the same time, that sounds like death to us. So we hedge our bets and hold back. The cross is the place we want to go, but we’re afraid to go to that place of complete self-giving and love.
Jesus embraced the cross. He, goodness and innocence itself, chose to suffer such profound evil. On one level, Christ went to the cross so that we would know that suffering does not isolate us from God’s love. To believe that suffering isolates us from Divine Love is a lie that Satan likes to proffer during our vulnerability in sickness or pain. Christ, through his incarnation and cross, has entered every single aspect of human suffering. He is God with us, Emmanuel. The terrible way of dying, which is the cross, symbolizes all of the types of suffering that human beings can inflict upon one another, or that nature can inflict upon us. Jesus wanted every human being to know that in such suffering—whether it’s a health problem, or a painful relationship, or loneliness—he has entered into such human darkness himself in order to redeem it. He longs to bring us into the Light by way of communion with him. God, because he loves us, enters the human condition. He does not remove us from our human condition, but instead shares in it with us. Part of our condition is sin and finitude, which bring on suffering. Christ suffered the conditions of human life, and the inflictions that humans brought upon him, because he is Love. As then Cardinal Ratzinger said: “Whenever you think about God suffering, whenever you think about Jesus suffering, we immediately have to think about Jesus, God, loving. Because he suffers only because he loves.”
Since Christians are called to be Christ in the world, we have to embrace suffering in love as well. Or, better stated, we have to allow Christ’s Spirit to embrace suffering in love within us, for without his Spirit abiding within us, we would never have the strength to suffer out of love. So, in his Spirit, we, too, are called to carry the cross and meet evil with love. We Christians are not called to escalate evil, nor are we to be hopeless in the face of evil: we are called by grace to meet evil with love, to will the good in the face of evil. In the midst of this evil, the Christian will continue to commune with God, and out of that communion, he or she can love an enemy, receive an illness, stay faithful to an unfaithful spouse, and so on. We can meet any evil with love out of a secured communion with the Trinity.
This becomes the great witness of the Christian: evil cannot separate us from the love of God (cf. Romans 8). Even in the midst of horrific evil, love is still seen because the Christian bears love into evil, and evil is redeemed, by the grace of Christ. Meeting evil with love has to come from a supernatural power; it is not natural to human beings, and so we lean upon prayer to receive such a response to evil. We are called to pray, to open up our hearts and sustain our relationship with the Trinity. Evil always tries to isolate me saying, “You’ll never get through this. You’re weak, you’re bad, and you’re alone.” Prayer is the opposite of this lie; prayer is pure communion. In the very beginning of our spiritual lives, prayer may seem like “work,” but as we welcome Christ more deeply into our hearts, communion with him becomes our very identity.
Because prayer reaches down to my very identity when evil confronts me, I am able to withstand it out of the strength of the communion I have with God. In fact, for the holiest among us, evil can become an occasion for deepening intimacy with God since such intimacy is the refuge of those being taunted by evil. Some might respond, “How dare you say that God is with me in suffering, in battling temptation, since it feels as if God has abandoned me!” We remember that with the incarnation, God has entered into every aspect of our suffering. It feels and looks as if God has abandoned us in suffering because he has become one with it. Where perhaps, before the Incarnation, evil was a sign of abandonment by God, now even evil can be an occasion for coming closer to God through faith, hope, and love. If we approach any suffering in faith, it can be our time of visitation (cf. Lk 19:44). Prayer becomes a crucial virtue then, within which to meet suffering with love. To suffer in prayer is the way to undergo suffering’s deepest meaning and purification. Human life is filled with much suffering, so learning to pray is not ancillary to faith: “Wouldn’t it be nice if I had time to learn how to pray?” Prayer is constitutive to being Catholic. We must learn how to pray because we must learn to welcome God into everything that is ours, especially suffering.
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AUGUST 21, 2013 BY DEACON JAMES KEATING
Since Christians are called to be Christ in the world … we have to allow Christ’s Spirit to embrace suffering in love within us, for without his Spirit abiding within us, we would never have the strength to suffer out of love.
Many of us hedge our bets when we choose to love. We put limits on our love. The rise of the “pre-nuptial” agreement is only one instance today. We are afraid that commitments will not satisfy us. We, therefore, tend to think that it might be best to “keep my options open.” We are afraid of what love costs. We are afraid to be disappointed, we are afraid that surrender to love may hurt, there might be emotional pain, and we look for ways to keep a door open to escape.
The cross of Christ, the cross to which he calls us, is the opposite. There upon the cross, Jesus commits himself to suffer for the salvation of his Bride, the Church, and no amount of temptation, fear, or pain can move him to be unfaithful. For us, his cross is a paradoxical symbol of repulsion and attraction. We know that in our deepest nature we are made to love, to surrender, to give without bounds; and at the same time, that sounds like death to us. So we hedge our bets and hold back. The cross is the place we want to go, but we’re afraid to go to that place of complete self-giving and love.
Jesus embraced the cross. He, goodness and innocence itself, chose to suffer such profound evil. On one level, Christ went to the cross so that we would know that suffering does not isolate us from God’s love. To believe that suffering isolates us from Divine Love is a lie that Satan likes to proffer during our vulnerability in sickness or pain. Christ, through his incarnation and cross, has entered every single aspect of human suffering. He is God with us, Emmanuel. The terrible way of dying, which is the cross, symbolizes all of the types of suffering that human beings can inflict upon one another, or that nature can inflict upon us. Jesus wanted every human being to know that in such suffering—whether it’s a health problem, or a painful relationship, or loneliness—he has entered into such human darkness himself in order to redeem it. He longs to bring us into the Light by way of communion with him. God, because he loves us, enters the human condition. He does not remove us from our human condition, but instead shares in it with us. Part of our condition is sin and finitude, which bring on suffering. Christ suffered the conditions of human life, and the inflictions that humans brought upon him, because he is Love. As then Cardinal Ratzinger said: “Whenever you think about God suffering, whenever you think about Jesus suffering, we immediately have to think about Jesus, God, loving. Because he suffers only because he loves.”
Since Christians are called to be Christ in the world, we have to embrace suffering in love as well. Or, better stated, we have to allow Christ’s Spirit to embrace suffering in love within us, for without his Spirit abiding within us, we would never have the strength to suffer out of love. So, in his Spirit, we, too, are called to carry the cross and meet evil with love. We Christians are not called to escalate evil, nor are we to be hopeless in the face of evil: we are called by grace to meet evil with love, to will the good in the face of evil. In the midst of this evil, the Christian will continue to commune with God, and out of that communion, he or she can love an enemy, receive an illness, stay faithful to an unfaithful spouse, and so on. We can meet any evil with love out of a secured communion with the Trinity.
This becomes the great witness of the Christian: evil cannot separate us from the love of God (cf. Romans 8). Even in the midst of horrific evil, love is still seen because the Christian bears love into evil, and evil is redeemed, by the grace of Christ. Meeting evil with love has to come from a supernatural power; it is not natural to human beings, and so we lean upon prayer to receive such a response to evil. We are called to pray, to open up our hearts and sustain our relationship with the Trinity. Evil always tries to isolate me saying, “You’ll never get through this. You’re weak, you’re bad, and you’re alone.” Prayer is the opposite of this lie; prayer is pure communion. In the very beginning of our spiritual lives, prayer may seem like “work,” but as we welcome Christ more deeply into our hearts, communion with him becomes our very identity.
Because prayer reaches down to my very identity when evil confronts me, I am able to withstand it out of the strength of the communion I have with God. In fact, for the holiest among us, evil can become an occasion for deepening intimacy with God since such intimacy is the refuge of those being taunted by evil. Some might respond, “How dare you say that God is with me in suffering, in battling temptation, since it feels as if God has abandoned me!” We remember that with the incarnation, God has entered into every aspect of our suffering. It feels and looks as if God has abandoned us in suffering because he has become one with it. Where perhaps, before the Incarnation, evil was a sign of abandonment by God, now even evil can be an occasion for coming closer to God through faith, hope, and love. If we approach any suffering in faith, it can be our time of visitation (cf. Lk 19:44). Prayer becomes a crucial virtue then, within which to meet suffering with love. To suffer in prayer is the way to undergo suffering’s deepest meaning and purification. Human life is filled with much suffering, so learning to pray is not ancillary to faith: “Wouldn’t it be nice if I had time to learn how to pray?” Prayer is constitutive to being Catholic. We must learn how to pray because we must learn to welcome God into everything that is ours, especially suffering.
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