THE WISDOM OF GOD IN OUR SUFFERING
Introduction
Today we hear the closing words of the book of Job. The typical American movie – the just and heroic main actor never dies. In his sufferings Job has voiced his complaints, his friends have tried to justify God, but Job cannot understand fully; finally his eyes have seen, he accepts that God is greater and wiser and that God knows best. We should understand better than Job, for we have seen the suffering face of the crucified Christ.
In the gospel the disciples, and Jesus with them, rejoice that people have been liberated from the power of evil in the name of Jesus.
Opening Prayer
Lord our God,
in your bewildering wisdom
you let us stand at times
all alone before you with our miseries
and we barely know where you are.
Give us then the courage
to keep our trust in you alive,
as people without pretensions,
humble, without illusions,
but aware that you too have a Son,
who all alone and disfigured,
died one day on a cross for us,
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen!
1 Reading Job 42:1-3, 5-6, 12-17
Job answered the LORD and said: I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be hindered. I have dealt with great things that I do not understand; things too wonderful for me, which I cannot know. I had heard of you by word of mouth, but now my eye has seen you. Therefore I disown what I have said, and repent in dust and ashes. Thus the LORD blessed the latter days of Job more than his earlier ones. For he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she-asses. And he had seven sons and three daughters, of whom he called the first Jemimah, the second Keziah, and the third Kerenhappuch. In all the land no other women were as beautiful as the daughters of Job; and their father gave them an inheritance along with their brothers. After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; and he saw his children, his grandchildren, and even his great-grandchildren. Then Job died, old and full of years.
Responsorial Psalm PS 119:66, 71, 75, 91, 125, 130
R. (135) Lord, let your face shine on me.
Teach me wisdom and knowledge,
for in your commands I trust. R.
It is good for me that I have been afflicted,
that I may learn your statutes. R.
I know, O LORD, that your ordinances are just,
and in your faithfulness you have afflicted me. R.
According to your ordinances they still stand firm:
all things serve you. R.
I am your servant; give me discernment
that I may know your decrees. R.
The revelation of your words sheds light,
giving understanding to the simple. R.
Alleluia Matthew 11:25
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the Kingdom.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Luke 10:17-24
The seventy-two disciples returned rejoicing and said to Jesus, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us because of your name.” Jesus said, “I have observed Satan fall like lightning from the sky. Behold, I have given you the power ‘to tread upon serpents’ and scorpions and upon the full force of the enemy and nothing will harm you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice because the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice because your names are written in heaven.” At that very moment he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike. Yes, Father, such has been your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him.” Turning to the disciples in private he said, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I say to you, many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.”
Commentary
The epilogue to Job ties in with the prologue and constitutes a complete story in itself. Job is tested by Satan, loses all his earthly possession, still remains upright, still blesses the Lord, and receives back in possessions and family more than he had to start with. The explanation is satisfactory but is something of which Job was ignorant during the lengthy dialogue that constitutes the heart of the book. If we look only at the beginning and end of the book, we can say that the innocent Job suffered because he was tested. But the larger question still remains unanswered. Why is it that so many innocent people in this world suffer without apparent reason? Why do evil people boast around with unmolested?
We, like the disciples, have ample reason to rejoice. So much that was not known to the ancients has been revealed to us. The Son of God as reconciler, the life-giving Spirit, the Church, the Gospels, the sacraments.
And yet we still struggle with faith questions. There are issues that remain unanswered. And with Job we can only place them in the hands of a God who moves in ways that are at times incomprehensible to us.
Job, for the most part, had a blessed life. But at the heart of the book that bears his name, he struggled with his faith. There are times in our own life when we must do the same. We should not be disconcerted. It is a strong faith that asks the deeper questions.
Intercessions
– For the poor and the suffering, for the victims of injustice and exploitation, for the lonely and the desperate, that we may not only show them compassion but help them to lighten their burdens, we pray:
– For the dying in their hour of struggle, that by his agony in the garden the Lord Jesus may be their strength, we pray:
– For all of us, that we may learn to accept our crosses and carry them with Jesus, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Our God and Father,
we bring before you this bread and wine
to be one with Jesus, your Son.
With him, may we not insult those who suffer
with hollow pious words
but stay by their side,
perhaps in silence listening to their plaints
and just let them feel
that we are there,
with Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen!
Prayer after Communion
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
in this Eucharist your Son has been among us
as the person who died one day for us
but who lives now a life of glory.
In him we hope and trust
that no pain is suffered in vain
but that our mourning, our sickness or misery
may make life more bearable and worth living
to someone whom perhaps we may not know,
on account of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen!
Blessing
The mystery of suffering and evil remains a problem. To many of its questions we have no answer and a superficial reference to the cross does not satisfy. We know that God wants our happiness. We also know that there is much suffering, much of it caused by people to other people. We keep believing in God’s love, with the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
St Theresa of the Child Jesus – Pray for Us!