allegedly Padre Pio said something like “if people only knew the value of suffering, they would seek only to suffer”
however people ought to seek to do God’s Will ultimately, whether God wants them to suffer or not
Christ manifested His Love for mankind by suffering and dying out of a love for others: “Greater love than this no man hath, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13
Another comment talks about “pointless” suffering; arguably such a thing doesn’t exist. Such suffering is willed by God for some purpose: as an opportunity to express one’s love for others like Jesus, as a trial, as an effect of sin, and so on.
Naturally many of the virtues are ordered often towards alleviating certain sufferings of others:
The Good Samaritan helps the person who was suffering due to being harmed and stolen from (Luke 10:25–37). Parable of rich man and Lazarus is about the poor man Lazarus who suffers due to the greed of the rich man, and hence is rewarded with heaven for enduring sufferings (Luke 16:19–31). The book of Job recounts the sufferings of the trials that Job undergoes before being blessed by God for his endurance under difficulties.
Many athletes suffer in their athletic pursuits and recite quotes like “no pain, no gain”.
Hence: the value of enduring suffering as an expression of love and of doing good unto others
The implication being that everything is part of Gods plan including suffering. Therefore suffering somehow must be useful instead of a normal side effect of chaos. That’s Platonic thinking at it’s most absurd. Pointless suffering is exactly the problem with this universe, that God came to heal.
So the purpose of existence is creating Utopia on earth, not learning and overcoming difficulties, becoming a better person?
Learning and overcoming difficulties can very much lead to utopian social structures. “Inasmuch as ye have done to the least of these, so ye have done unto me.”
Well, the poor will also be with us, always, right. I do not think we can make heaven on earth. Man is fallen by nature.
So how does suffering function within your idea of the world? And what I am guessing is a Christian world view…?
Poor spiritually isn’t necessarily poor materially, and vice-versa. But poor materially is also relative. A loaf of bread and block of cheese is a feast when someone hasn’t eaten for a few days. We used to get banks shaped like loaves of bread when I was a kid. We were encouraged to skip dinner and put the cost of it in the banks a couple of times a week so we’d feel and understand what it was like to go to bed hungry, and also understand how little it is to skip one meal so another can enjoy one. We could also put in extra, from allowance, chores for neighbors, etc. The parable of the widow’s mites speaks of relative tithes.
But in my view, we don’t really understand another’s suffering until we taste it. Rather than be of the attitude that no one helped us, why should we help anyone else, it’s precisely because no one helped us that we should understand suffering and feed the hungry, heal the sick, clothe the unclothed, and look after prisoners (Jesus was a political prisoner, after all). Besides, it’s not our money. It’s God’s. He didn’t say do these things if we like someone or approve of their lifestyle or termination. He just said do it.
Poor spiritually isn’t necessarily poor materially, and vice-versa. But poor materially is also relative. A loaf of bread and block of cheese is a feast when someone hasn’t eaten for a few days. We used to get banks shaped like loaves of bread when I was a kid. We were encouraged to skip dinner and put the cost of it in the banks a couple of times a week so we’d feel and understand what it was like to go to bed hungry, and also understand how little it is to skip one meal so another can enjoy one. We could also put in extra, from allowance, chores for neighbors, etc. The parable of the widow’s mites speaks of relative tithes.
Very cool, I appreciate this.
But in my view, we don’t really understand another’s suffering until we taste it. Rather than be of the attitude that no one helped us, why should we help anyone else, it’s precisely because no one helped us that we should understand suffering and feed the hungry, heal the sick, clothe the unclothed, and look after prisoners (Jesus was a political prisoner, after all). Besides, it’s not our money. It’s God’s. He didn’t say do these things if we like someone or approve of their lifestyle or termination. He just said do it.
This is a good attitude. I appreciate it.
Thank you, and thank you for taking the time to read and consider my perspective.
