“Suffering“ by Rick Stevens, Fiat Ventures
About 7 or 8 years ago, PBS aired a made-for-TV play called God on Trial. The play is set in a prison barracks at the Auschwitz death camp during WW2.
The prisoners in the barracks are scheduled for execution in the gas chambers the next day. As they ponder their fate and the fate of those who have gone before them, they become angry at God. So angry in fact that they decide to put God on trial for allowing them to suffer such a tragedy.
After each prisoner assumes his respective role of judge, prosecutor, juror, and so on, the trial begins. God is charged with breaking his covenant with the Jewish people.
In today’s second reading, St. Paul tells us that we are expected to boast of our afflictions, suggesting that when we suffer we should do so joyously.
Taken literally, St. Paul’s words may seem a bit hard to follow. When was the last time you saw someone jumping for joy when they failed an exam. Or throwing a big party when their parents just announced they were getting a divorce. Although these and other misfortunes are a part of everyday life, it’s hard to respond to them joyfully.
So how DO we deal with suffering? Well, each of us will have a different response to hard times. Some of us might become angry at God, like our friends in the play. Others may just wallow in self-pity and move away from their faith. Still others may try to comfort themselves by over-indulging in food or harmful substances.
Most of us, at one point or another, will find ourselves seeking an answer to the question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?”
And while there may not be an easy ANSWER to that question, we should understand that God can make good come out of even the worst suffering.
First, it can make us better people. As Paul goes on to say in the reading, “Affliction produces endurance, and endurance proven character and proven character, hope. “ Hope is the virtue that keeps our spirits up as we wait for the darkness to pass.
Secondly, suffering draws us nearer to others. When we are in times of need, our bonds of friendship and love become stronger with those around us as they console us in thought and prayer. Then do the same for them in THEIR time of need, perpetuating a spirit of mutual charity and kindness.
Lastly, suffering can also draw us nearer to God. Suffering bonds us with Christ on the Cross and allows us to share in His victory over sin and death. When you ask God, “Where were you when I was suffering?” he answers, “I was on the Cross redeeming it”. Therein lies our cause for boasting and rejoicing.
So, while we may not be thrilled with hard times, we should accept our trials with the understanding that God can work to bring good out of them, and we should hang onto that hope.
By the way, if you’re wondering what happened at God’s trial…Well, they find God guilty. And as the men are paraded off to the gas chamber, the prosecutor asks the judge, “What happens now that we’ve found God guilty?” The judge responds, “Now we pray.”