06-06-24

ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGS
June 6, 2024
Tuesday night, the kid and I went to see Hair Spray at the Hobby Center. We enjoyed it, but it started off rather strange. About three or four minutes into the musical, they abruptly stopped it, all the performers left the stage, and the curtain came down. There was an apology for the delay. After 15 minutes or so, it started right back where it had stopped. My curiosity wanted to know why, but there was never an explanation. 

The question of “why something occurred” is a question that often goes unanswered. Within the area of faith, specifically questions about “why bad things occur,” whether that be individually, in community, or even on the global level, there tends to be a lot of frustration. On a couple of occasions, Jesus said that it was not for us to know, though, to be honest, that’s not an answer that sits well with most folks. Within my own understanding of God, I have answered a lot of my why questions, but I also know that my answers may not be correct, and for that reason, I must listen to the answers other people have found meaningful. Maybe there is something that will expand my own answer or have me see things from an entirely different perspective.

At the end of the day, the filter I use in trying to find answers to the why question is rather simple: What does the belief that God is love, a gift that we have come to know through the incarnation of that love in Jesus Christ, tell me about a situation? There are times when what comes from the filter may not be as specific as I’d like. Yet in the belief that God is love, I feel comfortable saying that God is not the source of suffering, injustice, betrayal, or disease. Why did it happen? The answer might be complex or beyond the current capacity of science, but I feel comfortable saying that God is never the source of one’s suffering. At the same time, I believe that God promises to walk alongside those who are suffering with a love that is unconditional. Why was I diagnosed with M.S.? I’ve read lots of theories about M.S., and though there is no consensus, I find peace in the belief that the “why I have M.S.” has nothing to do with God, but the “why I have done as well as I have” is all about God’s love.

Merciful God, I give thanks for the ways you continue to make real your love, a love that serves as a lens through which I can better explore who you are and how I am to understand you. Any understanding will fall short, yet I trust in a love that will remain present to me even when that understanding is way off. Amen.