The Salvific Aspect of Suffering...

[Music] one prominent theme of today's readings for this fifth sunday and ordinary time of year b of the three year sunday cycle of readings is that simply of the reality of suffering human suffering the lot of a broken and wounded world result into the fall of our first parents wherein the original sin and its effects has entered into our reality the lot of human suffering for example the first reading from the book of job asks is not man's life on earth a drudgery so i have been assigned months of misery and troubled nights i am filled with restlessness i shall not see happiness again the responsorial psalm psalm 147 states praise the lord who what who heals the brokenhearted prominent themes of suffering our second reading from first corinthians has saint paul telling us to the weak i became weak we see an aspect of human solidarity there which i'll get to in a moment a very very important part of the catholic moral teaching of human suffering human solidarity and in today's gospel from saint mark we continue to read and learn more about the ministry of jesus and his powerful healings of others in many and varied forms spiritual physical and psychological in today's gospel for example jesus cures simon peter's mother-in-law and we are told that jesus grasped her hand and helped her up then the fever left her and she waited on them she shows gratitude for the gift of the healing immediately how beautiful is that this is just one miracle among many found within the 16 chapters of saint mark's gospel which happened at breakneck speed saint mark's gospel is the shortest of the four gospels only 16 chapters and it's miracle after miracle after miracle after miracle being performed by jesus it's just a beautiful gospel when i recommend gospel reading to those who might have been separated from the church for a while i always recommend mark's gospel first just a chapter a day 16 days just a two week period plus two more days and let that gospel of miracles draw you in we also know that jesus cured many others who were brought to him healing their illnesses and driving out demons the reality of spiritual suffering let alone physical and psychological which itself psychological is tied to physical and so today's gospel especially provides a dedicated picture we could say of jesus ministry in his preaching his curing of the sick and those suffering his driving out demons and then moving on to continue this work in yet another place mark's gospel tells us in fact that jesus did this ministry throughout galilee indeed for this has he come and jesus says that mark has the shortest translation of this indeed for this purpose have i come period but luke says this from jesus's own mouth the spirit of the lord is upon me because he has anointed me to preach the good news to the poor he has sent me to proclaim release to the captives recovering of sight to the blind and to set free those who are oppressed so mark gives us the shorter version of that because the three synoptics matthew mark and luke differ a little bit but there's a lot of similarities between the three and then john of course is the very theological gospel so it is that jesus compassion and healing of the sick and suffering that seem especially prominent in saint mark's gospel amidst all these miracles and brought to the fore in today's collected readings the first reading the responsorial psalm the second reading and the gospel itself and this is because jesus compassion and healing of the sick is precisely a sign of the kingdom among us we literally see his miracles physical spiritual and the like as a sign per se of the kingdom of god in our midst and holy mother church continues to extend christ's healing presence to others in its ministry to the sick in the sacrament of the anointing of the sick for example one of the seven sacraments one of the two sacraments of healing along with confession the church prays for both spiritual and physical healing and for the forgiveness of sins and comfort of those who are suffering from illness whether physical or psychological or spiritual in nature and in regards to the so called last rites of the church given near the time of a person's death it's good to be reminded that the last rites include the following the sacrament of the anointing of the sick itself the sacrament of confession if the person feels the need to go holy the atticum that is one's final holy communion prayers of commendation of the dying which is part of the rite of the last rites and it includes the litany of saints being prayed over the dying person how awesome is that you're dying and holy mother church the bride of christ sends the priest to your bedside to pray specifically the litany of the saints over you and fifthly the last rites include the apostolic pardon a plenary indulgence a complete wiping away of any and all temporal punishment still do at the time of death for already forgiven mortal and venial sin this is why it's so important to keep confession regular in our life along with eucharist those only two of the seven sacraments that can be received over and over and over again confession and holy eucharist and so of course one should strive to die in a state of sanctifying grace that is with no known mortal sin on one soul that has not already been sacramentally confessed and forgiven one plight i hear on the mission ban so much are the 50 year olds and older with 40 year olds and younger who no longer practice the faith father my grown child won't know to call the priest when i'm on my deathbed they won't know it so i instruct the 50s and older write it down these five main parts of the so-called last rites write them down give them to your children who are separated from the church and say should the scenario come where i'm on my deathbed where i don't die instantly like in a car accident i want you to make sure that this is done for me and even if it is a car accident the church teaches that the anointing of the sick can still be given provided the body is still warm holy mother church goes outside of herself to deliver like a mother in labor pains constantly wanting to deliver deliver to her children so beautiful but let us get back to the redemptive aspect or the salvific aspect of suffering the word suffering comes from the latin infinitive safaree meaning to sustain or to bear up to sustain or to bear up strictly speaking suffering is the disagreeable experience of the soul that comes with the presence of an evil or the privation of some good that should be there but instead is absent and so we suffer because of that the presence of evil or the privation of some good suffering for example can stem from a physical evil like cancer or from the aftermath of a natural disaster like an earthquake or it can also stem from a moral evil like an adulterous relationship that eventually leads to a marriage falling apart breaking up and even ending in divorce leading to remorse of conscience and regret the adulterous relationship a moral evil but whether physical evil or moral evil we have these parent categories of human suffering precisely because of the original sin and its effects which remain even after baptism baptism wipes away the original sin itself but the effects of original sin remain in a very broken wounded and real world this is why we need the seven sacraments to constantly aid us in staying on the right path and growth in sanctity in other words the list of things from which suffering can originate are endless and some of it we even bring on ourselves issues dependencies and addictions just to name three categories although commonly synonymous with pain suffering is rather the reaction to pain and in this sense suffering is a decisive factor in christian spirituality because suffering is the result of sin having entered the world and christians know this they get it the purpose of suffering however is not only to expiate wrongdoing but to enable the believer to offer to god directly a sacrifice of praise of his divine right over creatures to unite oneself with christ in his sufferings on the cross as an expression of love toward god and neighbor and in the process of becoming more like christ who having joy set before him the christian chose the cross so as to complete what is lacking in christ's own sufferings for the sake of his body that is the church what does that passage mean was christ suffering not enough that we still have to suffer to make up what was lacking in christ's own body that's what first colossians 1 24 is saying how can that be indeed christ's own sufferings were enough sufficient for our redemption no doubt but all of us may add hours to his in order that the fruits of his redemption be applied to the souls of all even those who are not in the faith that is why saint paul says that phrase in first colossians what is lacking in the sufferings of christ this truth also shows forth beautifully the social aspect of the human person that human solidarity our suffering can be added to christ's own suffering even for the benefit of those who don't have the faith in other words it's the individual without faith who's lacking in christ and because the human person is social by nature first genesis it is not good that man be alone and then jesus in the gospels gives us the our father and the first person plural give us this day our daily bread the human person is a social creature by nature we can unite our sufferings with christ for the benefit of all how beautiful is that the social aspect of the person this is a truth brought about beautifully this teaching on human solidarity and suffering in pope saint john paul ii apostolic letter salvificity dolores on redemptive suffering or salvific suffering issued february 11 1984. the feast of our lady of lourdes so beautifully depicted on the right side there of the apps of our chapel of divine mercy why because bernadette was known to be a very sickly individual she had her suffering and lords today out of all the approved marian apparition sites is a shrine especially known for its healings physical and psychological and spiritual and when did john paul ii issue salvificity dolores the salvific aspect of human suffering or the redemptive aspect of suffering on the feast of our lady of lourdes boom is that awesome how awesome is that his apostolic letter six main salvific aspects of suffering and i have these at the father's mercy website as one of my blogs you can print them off right off our website number one suffering unites the sufferer with jesus christ and his cross which itself was meant to be saving and redeeming for all number two suffering helps us to be more sympathetic toward others who are suffering number three embracing suffering helps us to expiate and make reparation for past sins that is the temporal punishment due for those sins which must be expiated either on earth or in purgatory and i don't know about you but i don't want to go to purgatory i want to expect now for my already forgiven mortal and venial sins number four suffering can be offered up for one's personal needs and intentions and or for the personal needs and intentions of others living or deceased known or unknown to us quite often for example i'll pray for a criminal that i read about in the news i don't know that person but i'm going to offer up my personal suffering in its varied forms for that criminal therese did this with the famous criminal in her own time who just before his execution she got word through the media that he had made the sign of the cross just before his capital punishment the fact that he had made that sign of the cross seemingly such a hardened sinner brought such joy to saint therese she prayed for him and she never knew him suffering strengthens personal character is number five thus leading one to grow in such virtues as patience courage fortitude fidelity and peace and number six suffering benefits the caregiver or caregivers of another and that he or she or they the caregiver can benefit from strengthen their embrace of and grow in such virtues as compassion empathy and patience and faith all by way of serving the other the other one who's taking on the suffering we learn empathy patience compassion and fidelity or faithfulness and that list of six aspects of suffering its redemptive and salvific aspects is no doubt not an exhaustive list but it sure helps us begin to understand the saving aspects of suffering the redemptive aspects of suffering second corinthians 1 7 says just as you share in christ's suffering so will you share in divine glory that's that's great just as you share in christ's suffering so will you share in divine glory first peter 4 verses 12 through 13 do not be surprised beloved that a trial by fire is occurring right now in your midst it is a test for you but it should not catch you off guard no rejoice instead in the measure that you share christ's sufferings in other words be ready for suffering it's going to come it's part and parcel of the world in which we live result into the fall of the original sin second corinthians 12 verses 9 and i willingly boast of my weakness paul says that the power of christ may rest upon me therefore i am content with weakness with mistreatment with distress with persecutions with difficulties and the like all for the sake of christ for when i am powerless it is then that i am strong saint teresa of avila the great karmalite mystic 16th century says let us strive to face suffering with christian courage always then all difficulties will vanish and pain itself will become transformed into joy let us strive to face suffering with christian courage then all difficulties will vanish and pain itself will become transformed into joy we see that in the life of young saint aloysius gonzaga a jesuit religious who served plague patients who were dying and eventually contracted the disease himself regarding the time of his death on his deathbed one priest noted that on his deathbed young aloysius seemed extremely exuberant and cheerful at one point aloysius cried out we are going to heaven as though he were on his way to a vacation the priest wrote he was 23 years old when he died he is invoked in time of pandemic and is a patron saint of youth and young adults blessed maria anasala an italian educator and consecrated religious sister in her final years maria anasala developed throat cancer which she called quote my necklace of pearls she died in excruciating pain when her body was exhumed almost 30 years after her death she was found to be incorrupt throat cancer my necklace of pearls body found incorrupt almost 30 years later the lives of the saints don't go a day in your life without talking to the saints in heaven who paved the way before us saint giana beretamola wife mother and professional pediatrician gianna beretamola was a licensed pediatric physician who gave her own life so that her unborn child might live during the second month of giana's fourth pregnancy she developed severe pain doctors soon diagnosed that she had a fibroid tumor in her uterus while the tumor was benign its size threatened the life of the child so the tumor was benign but it threatened the life of her unborn child when doctors discovered the cancerous tumor they strongly suggested that it be removed the surgery would mean that her unborn baby would die but she wanted the child to be allowed to live giana refused both an abortion and a hysterectomy while pregnant despite knowing that continuing the refusal of surgery could result in her own death gianna indeed died seven days after her baby girl was born this young mother was just 39 years old gianna's life and moreover her death are a remarkable testimony of the professional and moral commitment to the sanctity of human life some 32 years later get this some 32 years later that same child gianna emmanuela named after her mother was present at her mother's beatification mass in 1994. ten years after that gianna emmanuela was again present for her mother's canonization mass in 2004 at saint peter's basilica in rome at which she and her father brought up the gifts of bread and wine during the offertory of the mass it was also the first time in the 2000 year history of the church that a husband still living witnessed both his wife's beatification and canonization the glory of being catholic period the absolute glory of being catholic that's what i think of when i read a story like this john 15 13 the theological gospel quote there is no greater love than this than to lay down one's life for one's friends in this specific case of saint giana beretamola a parent laying down her life for her child unborn saint giana beretta mulla says this quote one cannot love without suffering or suffer without love how true is that one cannot love without suffering or suffer without love faith hope and love and the greatest of these is love christianity my friends and i close with this especially catholicism christianity but especially catholicism which is christianity in its absolute fullness is the only religion that does not ignore the issue and reality of human suffering suffering is at the very heart of our faith as christians especially as catholic christians in fact our central icon is the crucifix our central act of worship is a commemoration and representation of the execution of an innocent victim the god man jesus christ this is why first peter 1 says this there is cause for rejoicing here because you may for a time have to suffer the distress of many trials but this is so that your faith which is more precious than the passing splendor of fire tried gold may by its genuineness lead to praise glory and honor when jesus christ appears and i add when he appears that your particular judgment when you die as an individual and at the general judgment when all will rise there is cause for rejoicing here you may for a time have to suffer the distress of many trials but this is so that your faith which is more precious than the passing splendor of fire tried gold may by its genuineness lead to praise glory and honor when jesus christ appears my friends let us never forget the salvific the redemptive aspect and the beauty of human suffering god bless you you

Channel: Fathers of Mercy

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Keywords: The Salvific Aspect of Suffering, Fr. Wade Menezes CPM, The Salvific (or Redemptive) Aspect of Human Suffering, Human suffering is resultant of the Original Sin, Great news is that human suffering can be offered back to Almighty God, Fathers of Mercy Auburn KY, Don't let your suffering be a nihilistic end but rather a springboard to Heaven that awaits us!

Id: zn-GLM9JAHc

Length: 25min 51sec (1551 seconds)

Published: Sun Feb 07 2021