04/20/2023 – Chapter 24 fellowship – “Suffering” / How do we grapple with: “that this suffering means not that you are less loved by God, or judged to be less worthy, but more…” (Yes, I submit the prosperity gospel is “bunk”)
Last chapter was really my first criticism of Peter Kreeft. Well, I am back on course in Chapter 24!
I don’t know of any messenger of Christ that has gone as far as this in proclaiming suffering as a blessing:
“It is crucial to know that this is God’s love in disguise; that this suffering means not that you are less loved by God, or judged to be less worthy, but more. Those who do not suffer should worry that that they are being judged by God to be unworthy of this gift or incapable of rightly using it. And the suffering from other people is perhaps the deepest suffering of all.” (pg. #116 – 2nd para.)
And he adds that Romans 8:28 is not Pollyanna , which I proclaim with a hearty “Amen, brother”:
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him who have been called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28
“all” means literally “all”, not “most”, or even 99.9999%.
Plain and simple, in one sentence: “Suffering is blessed because it brings us closer to Him.” (pg 117). I will repeat a recorded testimony from St. Therese de Avila, a 16th century Carmelite Spanish nun. Entering the convent as a very young teenager, she early on came down with a pain wracked infliction that certainly pointed to fatal. There weren’t many pain meds in those days. During the worst of it, she recalled a desperate prayer: “Lord, if this is how you treat your friends, is it a wonder why you have so few of them?
Well, the same lady, an elderly survivor but still wracked with ill health wrote, and I paraphrase: “From the perspective of heaven, the most pain wracked life that has ever or will ever be lived is akin to a single night in a bad hotel.” So, looking at the two bookends, separated by many years, how do we account for the stark contrast other than 100% God’s grace!
Thoughts?
Soli Deo Gloria! I leave you with interesting facts on St. Teresa and encourage y’all to pick up a biography summary of her life.
https://aleteia.org/2017/10/15/12-interesting-facts-about-st-teresa-of-avila/
Soli Deo Gloria!