Monday in Holy Week

Christianity doesn't promise we won't suffer. It promises our suffering will be redeemed.

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Almighty God, whose dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified: Mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other that the way of life and peace; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

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It didn’t have to be this way.

Jesus is the Son of God. He could have joyfully ascended to heaven, and brought all his followers with him.

’He saved others, but he cannot save himself!” The people mocked Jesus on the cross (Matthew 27:42).

Of course, he could have. But he didn’t.

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Why does God let us suffer?

I think this may be the theological question: if there is a loving God, how can God allow the horrors of the world?

I do not know the mind of God, but this is my guess: love.

We are made with the power to freely love.

And if we can freely love, we can freely choose not to love. And we do. And all of our loving - and unloving - actions means we live in a world of incredible beauty and terrible suffering.

For now.

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Jesus could have taken it all away, but he didn’t.

He suffered with us instead. He chose to suffer in all the ways we suffer - mourning and sadness, loneliness, violence and pain.

Not because God wants us to suffer, but to take our suffering away.

To redeem our suffering by taking it on himself. To not take away our choice to love, but to promise us that someday, we will all freely choose it. That we can freely choose it now.

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We’re still in the midst of the story: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.

Christianity does not promise we won’t suffer - it promises our suffering will be redeemed.

This is the week to remember this. Don’t let it pass you by.

Holy Week. Monday.

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