Human life is a journey. Towards what destination? How do we find the way? Life is like a voyage on the sea of history, often dark and stormy, a voyage in which we watch for the stars that indicate the route. The true stars of our life are the people who have lived good lives. They are lights of hope. Certainly, Jesus Christ is the true light, the sun that has risen above all the shadows of history. But to reach him we also need lights close by—people who shine with his light and so guide us along our way.
Pope Benedict XVI, Spe Salvi
Whether in the field or at a field hospital, a chaplain is constantly being asked tough questions. “Why did my buddy have to die?” “Why didn’t I die instead of him?” “If God is a good God, how can there be such evil?”
No chaplain can explain away all the miseries of life and war, but his loving presence among his men can be itself an answer. **Christ did not simply take away all suffering, but became man, sharing with men everything except sin. **As St. Paul writes, “he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave.” This mystery of love is the Christian response to suffering and death.
(The Grunt Padre, p. 104)
Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy,
our Life, our Sweetness, and our Hope.
To Thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve.
To Thee do we send up our sighs mourning
and weeping in this valley of tears.
Turn then, most gracious Advocate,
Thine Eyes of Mercy toward us,
and after this our exile show us the
Blessed Fruit of thy Womb, Jesus.
My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? Why so far from my call for help, from my cries of anguish?
My God, I call by day, but you do not answer; by night, but I have no relief.
Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One; you are the glory of Israel.
In you our ancestors trusted; they trusted and you rescued them.
To you they cried out and they escaped; in you they trusted and were not disappointed…
For God has not spurned or disdained the misery of this poor wretch, Did not turn away from me, but heard me when I cried out.
I will offer praise in the great assembly; my vows I will fulfill before those who fear him.
Psalm 22
He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain, (for) the old order has passed away.Revelation 21:4
Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, for you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. And let perseverance be perfect, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
James 1:2-4
Mother Teresa’s Dark Night of the Soul
In a 1955 note she remarked, “The more I want Him, the less I am wanted…Such deep longing for God—and…repulsed— empty—no faith—no love—no zeal.” In one of her letters, addressed to Jesus, she wrote, “Lord, my God, who am I that You should forsake me? The child of your love—and now become as the most hated one…You have thrown away as unwanted—unloved…So many unanswered questions live within me afraid to uncover them—because of the blasphemy—If there be a God—please forgive me…I am told that God loves me, and yet the reality of darkness & coldness & emptiness is so great that nothing touches my soul.”
But Mother Teresa’s heart-wrenching self-examination is entirely familiar to thoughtful Christians. For instance, her insistent theme that she is being forsaken by God recalls Christ’s plaintive cry on the cross, “Why have You forsaken me?”
The greatness of Mother Teresa is that even when she was deprived of the spiritual satisfactions of feeling God’s presence in her life, she did not waver, she soldiered on. She was not deterred in her mission. And what she didn’t have by way of feeling, she compensated for by way of will. In doing so, she teaches us all something about love: it is not merely a sentiment, to be set aside when feelings come and go, but rather a decision of the will. That she did what she did in exchange for the love of God is astounding enough.
I can assure you, the Lord is always listening. It is our faithfulness that matters in the end, not if and how many of prayers have been answered in the way we are hoping for. God hears you. He heard the cry of his children in slavery in Egypt and He hears your cries today. Many people seem to get hung up on why didn’t God answer this pray or why did He let this happen or not stop this from happening. The Israelites wandered in the desert for 40 years. Moses never got to enter the promised land. I tell you God has a plan for each and every one of us. Some times we get glimpses of it, other times it seems we are alone. But He is there, always there, always faithful to His promises. Do not think that your prayers are for naught. I heard Fr. Corapi explain one time, and he said this not doctrine of the faith but a personal opinion, that because God transcends time and space, he can take the prayers you pray today and take them back to a prior time and apply grace there. It’s a beautiful thought for those who fret about a loved one that got ‘lost’. Stay prayerful brother/sister, your prayers build up the body of Christ and maybe you don’t see a direct effect on your family but you may be making up for the lacks in other families and in the body of Christ.Where can the answers be found when, you are devoted to your faith , You pray all the time and everything you pray for has not been answered This has been years . My family of 7 are apart , my children have abandoned their faith , my health is declining . My question is what and why ? Does our Lord really listen ?SIZE=“5”]
Maybe reading the Psalms and Proverbs will help you.Where can the answers be found when, you are devoted to your faith , You pray all the time and everything you pray for has not been answered This has been years . My family of 7 are apart , my children have abandoned their faith , my health is declining . My question is what and why ? Does our Lord really listen ?SIZE=“5”]
You bring up another aspect of our faith which many of us struggle with - that of suffering. As we deepen our faith, during good times and bad, we begin to realize that suffering is a part of God’s plan for salvation and for bringing His children close to Him. We are reminded that Good Friday always comes before Easter Sunday. May the Lord show His divine strength during your time of trial.May all who read of your suffering pray asking God to bless you with His peace of heart and mind.