May 16, 2008
‘Be not afraid!’
‘Saved in Hope’ — XII
by Archbishop Raymond L. Burke
Suffering and the measure of humanity
In writing about suffering as a setting for the learning of hope, Pope Benedict XVI, in his encyclical letter "Spe Salvi (On Christian Hope)" reminds us that the "true measure of humanity is essentially determined" by the response to human suffering, both on the part of the individual and on the part of society. A society which does not accept its suffering members with compassion is "a cruel and inhuman society"(Spe Salvi, n. 38). But, as our Holy Father points out, society can only accept and support its suffering members with compassion when the individual members of society do the same.
How can the individual help and support suffering brothers and sisters? He can only do so by discovering the meaning of human suffering as "a path of purification and growth in maturity, a journey of hope." The discovery of the meaning of human suffering leads us to embrace our suffering brothers and sisters, and, thereby, to make their suffering our own. By so doing, their "suffering is penetrated by the light of love" (Spe Salvi, n. 38).
Pope Benedict XVI reflects on the meaning of the word, consolation (consolatio in Latin), to illustrate the way in which we help and support our neighbor who is suffering. By taking another’s suffering as our own, we make ourselves present to the suffering person. We are with him or her in the solitude which is characteristic of suffering.
Consolation means literally being with someone in solitude, so that the other no longer remains alone.
Our Holy Father reminds us that "the capacity to accept suffering for the sake of goodness, truth and justice is an essential criterion of humanity." If it were not so, then my own "well-being and safety" become the ultimate criterion, and society is ruled by the more powerful who follow the rule of violent force and betrayal of the truth.
We are created to deny ourselves in order to love God and our neighbor. To live for my own gain, "my comfort and physical well-being," is a betrayal of my deepest nature, which requires that I accept pain and suffering that I may be purified of myself and, thereby, may live for others in love (Spe Salvi, n. 38).
Christian capacity for suffering
Pope Benedict XVI next asks whether we are capable of suffering for the sake of goodness and truth: "Is the other important enough to warrant my becoming, on this account, a person who suffers?" It is, in fact, at the heart of the Christian life to develop the capacity for suffering of various forms for the sake of love of God and mankind (Spe Salvi, n. 39). Christ Himself is the Way. He, God the Son, became man and took upon Himself all our suffering because He loves us unconditionally and without boundary.
Pope Benedict XVI recalls a wonderful saying of St. Bernard of Clairvaux, which illustrates the truth of our life in Christ. St. Bernard declared that God cannot suffer but He can suffer with man ("Impassibilis est Deus, sed non incompassibilis"). Christ Who accompanies us all along our pilgrim way to our heavenly home, the heavenly Jerusalem, shares with us all our sufferings; Christ carries the Cross with us. "Hence in all human suffering we are joined by one who experiences and carries that suffering with us; hence consolatio is present in all suffering, the consolation of God’s compassionate love — and so the star of hope arises" (Spe Salvi, n. 39).
In our suffering, it is clear that we also need "the lesser and greater hopes too — a kind visit, the healing of internal and external wounds, a favorable resolution of a crisis, and so on." In the less severe sufferings of our life, our lesser hopes may be sufficient for us. In our most severe trials, however, in which we must put ourselves, our reputation and our possessions on the line for the sake of goodness and truth, we must anchor our hope in Jesus Christ Who is with us always.
The example of Christian martyrs
The Christian martyrs uncover the truth of Christian hope, which makes us strong in the face of ridicule, rejection and even persecution. Regarding the martyrs, Pope Benedict XVI declares: "We need them if we are to prefer goodness to comfort, even in the little choices we face each day — knowing that this is how we live life to the full" (Spe Salvi, n. 39).
It is hope that gives us the capacity to suffer for the sake of the good and true. Without hope, we will prefer our own convenience and comfort to what is good and true. Pope Benedict XVI declares: "The saints were able to make the great journey of human existence in the way that Christ had done before them, because they were brimming with hope" (Spe Salvi, n. 39).
Offering up our suffering
Many of us were raised with the devotion of offering up our sufferings for the sake of the intentions of others, especially the intention of the poor souls in Purgatory.
When we offer our sufferings for love of another, our sufferings are no longer meaningless; they take on a profound significance. Pope Benedict XVI, while acknowledging that there may have been some exaggerations in the practice of the devotion of offering up our suffering, acknowledges that the devotion contains for us "something essential and helpful" (Spe Salvi, n. 40).
To understand better the devotion, Pope Benedict asks what it means "to offer something up." When we offer something up, we unite our "little annoyances" to the suffering of Christ. They, thus, become part of His "treasury of compassion so greatly needed by the human race" (Spe Salvi, n. 40). In a wonderful way, the devotion of offering up our daily sufferings, small and great, underlines the profound meaning of all suffering. Even the small irritations take on meaning and become a means of purifying ourselves for love of our neighbor.
Conclusion
Pope Benedict XVI’s reflection on suffering as a setting for the learning of Christian hope provides a wonderful help to us all. It uncovers for us the profound meaning of human suffering as taking up the Cross with Christ for the sake of love of God and our neighbor. The cultivation of Christian hope comes by way of the acceptance of suffering and the identification of ourselves with the suffering of others. The greater our hope, the more generously we imitate Christ in taking upon ourselves the sufferings of our brothers and sisters.
The devotion of "offering up our suffering" provides an excellent means of perfecting our Christian hope. The devotion teaches us to see all suffering, even the multiple small irritations suffered on any given day, as a means of working with Christ in His Suffering and Dying for the salvation of all men, without condition. Often we dream of doing, one day, some heroic act for the sake of our neighbor, but we fail to see the splendid heroism in transforming the many small sufferings of our daily life into an act of love for our brothers and sisters who are in most need.
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