St. John Paul II writes that human suffering is not a stumbling block to fulfilling ones calling but that, on the contrary, suffering should be regarded as the highway to “interior maturity and spiritual greatness,” writes Jenna McDonald. (Pixabay photo)
Many who refute God’s existence inevitably end up circling obsessively around the idea that if there were a loving God, how could suffering fit into his plan?
For the Christian, spiritual maturity consists in realizing that
suffering IS the plan. Suffering is an integral – if not essential – part of
the Christian journey but, it is NOT the final chapter.
In his Apostolic Letter, Salvifici dolores (Salvific suffering:
on the Christian meaning of human suffering), St. John Paul II writes that
human suffering is not a stumbling block to fulfilling one’s calling but that,
on the contrary, suffering should be regarded as the highway to “interior
maturity and spiritual greatness.”
“Suffering must serve for conversion, that is, for the
rebuilding of goodness in the subject, who can recognize the divine mercy in
this call to repentance,” John Paul writes. “The purpose of penance is to
overcome evil, which under different forms lies dormant in man. Its purpose is
also to strengthen goodness both in man himself and in his relationships with
others and especially with God.”
If we see suffering as an opportunity to intensify goodness and not as a
punishment, it is easier to consider suffering as a manifestation of Divine
Mercy and as an opportunity for showcasing the glory and beauty of Divine Love.
To suffer well is to show heaven to others; it is an act of charity. Truly,
there is nothing more breathtaking than a life laid down willingly. The trouble
is that sometimes the life in question is too close to home.
The book Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy tells the
story of a young Italian mother’s trust in God despite shouldering unfathomably
heavy crosses. Chiara and her husband, Enrico, experienced a series of profound
personal tragedies culminating in Chiara’s death from cancer in 2012. Chiara
was first diagnosed while carrying her third child in utero. She postponed
treatment until her son, Francesco, was born. Though Francesco was their third
child, he was the first to live beyond the first hour of life outside the womb.
The couple buried their first two children as infants; each having died of
rare, unrelated diseases.
One week before her death, Chiara wrote a letter to her infant son Francesco whom she would soon be leaving behind. “I am going to heaven to take care of [your brother and sister], you stay here with Dad. I will pray for you”. Those who witnessed Chiara’s death remarked that they “didn’t see her die peacefully but happily, which is totally different.”
In his letter to the Philippians, St. Paul succinctly outlines
the life mission of the Christian: “That I may know him (Christ) and the power
of his Resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his
death, that if possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” If ever
there were a mission statement worth emulating, here it is!
When confronted with suffering, we would do well to ask ourselves: what is the
objective of our life? Is it not to map our lives onto the life of Christ and
to attain unity with him? Could we really call ourselves authentic Christians
if we pray for lives that looks nothing like the life of God’s Beloved One?
Rather let us pray
with Christ, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me;
yet, not as I will, but as you will.”
We need not pray for suffering to appear, but when it comes may we pray to have
the courage and wisdom to greet it like a sign of God’s desire for deeper
intimacy with us. If we seek to suffer well, we will baffle the world. Certain
parts of our lives will appear horrific to certain bystanders, but the moments
before Easter’s dawn also looked horrific.
“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to
us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Cor 1:18).