Tuesday, January 18, 2005

The tsunami - why?

Contest for gift certificates (see Jan. 17 post for contest rules):
1. $50 gc - Primi Piatti restaurant, 2013 I St, NW. Answer the question (or make a new question) from the Dec. 14th post, "Christ dwells in me", and enter your name into the contest. Winning name to be drawn after the 5:30 Mass, 1/30/05, Parish Hall.

2. $50 gc - Third Edition restaurant, Georgetown. Answer the questions (or make a new question) from the Dec. 7th post, "Awesome", and enter your name into the contest. Winning name to be drawn after the 7:30 Mass, 1/30/05, Parish Hall.
---------------------------------------------
One question that can come out of a terrible tragedy like the tsunami in Southeast Asia is "why would God allow this to happen?" I have read what many of the Hindus whose lives have been devastated have said: 'God did this to us because of our lack of faith'. While I could never fathom the suffering of these peoples, I think it is good to see how the Christian approach to this difficult question is somewhat different from theirs.

Catholic teaching tells us that suffering and death are the natural results of sin. The cause of the tsunami (and any other natural disaster) is something that occurred many, many years ago and has afflicted the entire human family: original sin.

"death has spread through the whole human race because everyone has sinned" (Romans 5:12).

Before the Fall, Adam and Eve lived in paradise. God's masterpiece of creation was in perfect order ("Thus heaven and earth were completed with all their array" -Gen 2:1). But, when they said the first 'no' to God, thus committing the first sin, they upset the order of creation that God willed. God never willed sin, suffering, or death.

"For God did not make Death, he takes no pleasure in destroying the living." (Wisdom 1:13)

Not only did human nature fall from its original state of grace, but nature itself was set into chaos that we still see the effects of today. Paradise was lost.

How does God feel about all of the human suffering that results from sin and evil, especially to innocent victims? How does He feel about the innocent victims of the tsunami?

"May my eyes shed tears night and day, unceasingly, since the daughter of my people has sustained a fearsome wound, a crippling injury" (Jer 14:17).

Ultimately, God's answer to the question of suffering comes in the person of his Son, Jesus Christ. The Father loves the Son more than we can ever imagine, and yet he allowed even Christ to suffer tremendously on the Cross. 'But, why, Jesus never sinned?'

"For our sake, he made the sinless one a victim for sin" (2 Cor 5:21)

"his purpose in dying for all humanity was that those who live should live not any more for themselves but for him who died and was raised to life" (2 Cor 5:15)

In other words, Christ has redeemed us through his suffering, death, and resurrection. Anyone who imitates him and suffers for the sake of love, especially as an innocent victim in Southeast Asia, joins in the work of saving the world*.
---------------------------------------------

* Read Col 1:24. Are you familiar with this verse? What do you think about it? Is St Paul saying that there is something lacking in Jesus' sacrifice on the Cross?

4 comments:

Ty Roach said...

Great points Sarah.

Grief and suffering are part of life. Jesus Himself endured poverty, rejection, humiliation, torture and death for us. He did it all for love of us, offering His life for our redemption. He showed us the way.

If we offer up our pain and sufferings to the Lord, there is grace to be gained. Tragedies such as the tsunami offer the world an opportunity to love our neighbor. To love without counting the cost.

Fr Greg said...

(Bishop) Adam,
Wow, deep stuff, man! We went from Theology 101 to Advanced right quick! Thanks very much for your comments. I was questioned this past summer in a parish when I made the remark publicly that suffering is a natural result of sin, and a couple of people thought I meant that they were suffering specifically because of their own sins. Not at all what I was saying; you captured that thinking well with your recap of OT points of view.

Job is an interesting character whose life is in a certain way a prefigurement to the passion of Christ. Job is an innocent man who suffers tremendously, and after his complaints to God, he ultimately says, "The Lord has given and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord." He is a great model for us in accepting suffering.

My reference to Colossians 1:24 fits in nicely with this discussion. St Paul says here, and elsewhere in his letters, that the Church is the(mystical) Body of Christ. As members of Christ's Body (and through Baptism), we are called to imitate Christ in his suffering. "If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross every day and follow me" (Lk 9:23).

In Colossians 1:24, St Paul is saying that, while it is the perfect sacrifice, Christ's redemptive suffering is not complete. Christ's work of redemption is completed through us. In other words, whenever we take up our daily cross and unite our suffering to Christ's, we participate in the salvation of the world that Christ began at Calvary. Wo!

So, for those victims of tsunamis, terrorism, abortion, AIDS, disease, violence, and war; those who go hungry every night; suffer from mental disorders; those who are all alone; those whose families have rejected them; those who are persecuted for their beliefs; and anyone else who suffers on a daily basis, they all have been given a great gift, as foolish as that sounds. They share in the work of redemption, and imitate the Son of God in the best way possible: suffering. As the successor to Mother Teresa once told me in Calcutta, "Greg, those who are closest to Jesus on earth are those who suffer the most" (Sr. Nirmala).

Fr Greg said...

Sarah,
Yes, I agree with Ty, great points. You probably know this number: over 4,000 abortions are committed each day in the U.S. alone. While the tsunami and abortion are not exactly comparable in nature, comparing the number of victims in each tragedy shows the enormity of the abortion holocaust. From the date of the tsunami disaster (Dec. 26) to today (Jan. 26), there have been almost as many persons who have been aborted in the US (+/- 140,000) as died in SE Asia.

I think the main reason that abortion and its victims are tucked under the United States' cultural and media rug is because of the denial of the unborn (or preborn) baby as a person. Ever since Roe v Wade, mainstream America has defined the fetus as anything but a person. So, it won't acknowledge the comparisons with the tsunami or 9/11, or the fact that over 42 million American persons have been killed in abortions since 1973.

Generally, I don't cast blame only on the girls and women who have aborted their sons and daughters. Many times, they don't "choose" to abort; they are forced into it by husbands, boyfriends, parents, coaches, teachers, abortion staffers, and the abortion industry. As we saw on the video the other night, they suffer the rest of their lives because of "one bad choice".

Abortion is evil. Anyone in their right mind would agree. The abortion industry is evil; it is the work of the devil. Cooperating in any way, formal or material, is cooperating in evil. While the Church condemns direct abortion in EVERY circumstance, she reaches out to those who have participated in this grave sin as Jesus reached out to sinners. "Neither do I condemn you...go away, and from this moment sin no more" (Jn 8:11).

Fr Greg said...

Adam S.,

Sorry to take a little while to get back to you about why I want to be a priest. The initial reason is that I believe Christ is calling me. I've had a long, crazy ride through discernment (I first entered the seminary in '94, and have taken two leaves of absence) but have reached a great level of peace that this is God's Will for me.

Basically, I want to be a priest to bring Christ to others and to bring others to Christ. To think how priests, especially diocesan, do that is pretty overwhelming. One day, pray God, I will act in the person of Christ (in persona Christi)! It will be through MY hands that He will consecrate bread and wine into His sacred flesh and blood, forgive sins, heal the sick, etc. That is about as exciting a thought as I can have.

On a more general level, I want to give my life to Christ and to His people. 24/7/365. I believe that I am one of the people to whom he is referring in Matthew 19: "some are called to renounce marriage for the sake of the kingdom" (Mt 19:12). It is my real hope that He is giving me this gift (celibacy) so that my life is dedicated "for the sake of the kingdom", and to be always available to those in need.

Now, seminary life. Well, this is my sixth year here, and I'm ready to be done! It's a very good place of discernment (the food is pretty good; college-style cafeteria food; nice question), and there are many holy men here. There are guys from all walks of life and backgrounds (lawyers, doctors, athletes, etc.), but we all share a bond in Christ that is unmistakable. I've bonded with guys before in high school, college, work, the social scene, etc. I've never found a brotherhood whose common bond is so strong.

The best thing about seminary / religious life, to me, is that Jesus lives here. He dwells in the tabernacle on the first floor of the seminary. I get to spend an hour with Him each morning (outside of Mass), and then at least some time with Him late at night (I'm a late night chapel visitor!). That is one of the greatest draws of being a priest: living with Jesus.

I could write more, but gotta head to class!