God, man and suffering

Abstract

Suffering is one of the most painful and unwanted human experiences, because each of us wants to be happy. Man seeks happiness. The analysis of the Gospel assures us that God - like all of us - would like to see his joy in us, and wishes our joy to be complete (see Jn 15, 11). God sends crosses and sufferings to no one. It is man that put the innocent God in human nature on the cross. Suffering is the price of love for imperfect people. Sometimes, it is the price for our sinfulness – as in the case of the prodigal son. Often, suffering is a consequence of our naivety and helplessness toward the wrongdoer. It also happens that someone completely innocent suffers. Even in this case, it is not the will of God, but a consequence of evil and the sin originating from Adam and Eve. God came to us in person in order to teach us how to love. The power of his love makes suffering disappear; we become stronger than the crosses from which we cannot escape for the time being. When Jesus talks about the Last Judgment, he explains that the criterion for salvation is not suffering, but love.