Looking outward

It's my opinion that as Christians we should be looking out more than we look in.  We have to connect with the world around us- the world of people outside the Church, who don't share our beliefs.  So I've always tried to make sure I don't get so caught up in church stuff that I loose all meaningful contact with those outside the church.  At the moment I'm fortunate enough to have some great friends, most of whom don't share my beliefs.  But sometimes I struggle because the assurances I have about my Christian friends just aren't there for my friends who aren't Christians.

This is something that's struck me over the last few days through WordLive readings.  Today's was about grieving.  For a Christian who believes that death is not the end, illness and death, though still unpleasant because of the pain and sense of loss, aren't quite as fearful as they could be.  There is hope beyond death.  And so, the notes say, we should grieve differently, because we are comforted by this hope.

All that is true.  But what if the person we're grieving for- a friend or family member- doesn't know God?  In a way that makes it even harder for a Christian to grieve, makes it something to be feared all the more.  Christianity is certainly not a soft option in that circumstance.

This is a problem I keep coming across when I'm praying for my friends.  Praying for myself, I know about all the promises that God will care for his people, will answer their prayers, that we shouldn't worry because he will provide what we need.  And I know- although sometimes I forget- that this is true, that whenever I have really been struggling either through lack of money, worries about housing, or not having a job, or when I've been feeling really down and hopeless, lonely and worthless- God has provided for me.  Maybe he's not given me what I want- the perfect job/ sufficient money not to have to be careful/ complete freedom from feeling rubbish, but he has given me what I need- enough money, somewhere to live, friends to sympathise and cheer me up.

But when I see my friends in need- through illness, or unemployment, or stress- I don't have those assurances.  When I pray for myself, I know that however much I struggle, in the end things will have worked out according to God's plan.  The journey may be hard, but I know I will reach the destination in the end.  There will be a good ending.  But with my friends I don't know that this will happen- that everything will be all right in the end.  I know God loves them- but since they don't care about him, do promises like Matthew 6 vs 25-34 -"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well" -apply to them?  They are promises given to God's children.  And will they allow God to help them, or reject what he might want to do to help them out of a desire for independence?  

That doesn't stop me praying for them, though.  Because there's also the promise that God answers prayer, not in the way I always want or expect, but in his much better way, seen from his perspective outside space and time.  Perhaps I should be sure that God will answer my prayers to help my friends.  I know that he has their- as well as my- best interests at heart.  Perhaps what I want isn't the best or right thing for them- perhaps what God does or doesn't do to help them would be better.  I don't know.  But I trust that God does.  

And yet I often spend more time worrying about my friends' well being than about my own.  Perhaps that's taking looking outward to the extreme.  And yet perhaps that's better than not caring.

Why, God? Trust.

I wrote earlier about some of my thoughts on suffering and why it happens.  It's such a big topic that even two posts doesn't do it justice.  But here's some more thoughts.

How do you explain natural disasters, things that just 'happen?'  Are they the result of choices too?  How?  Earthquakes and volcanoes, floods and hurricanes are all the result of living on a dynamic world- plate tectonics and weather are essential for life to exist.  But if God is all powerful, why did he design a world like this, with what you might consider a built-in flaw?  Couldn't he have done it some other way?

Then there's the idea that the world has to include bad things and suffering for us to know what is good, to know right and wrong - that there has to be bad for there to be good.  I suppose there is some merit in that, but it doesn't really answer the question.  Why would anyone design a world like that, if they cared about the people in it?  

So the biggest question is still why, if God cares about the world, he allows suffering to happen?  I think possibly the only answer is what we can learn from what God does about suffering.  He, as Jesus, came to Earth as a baby born to a poor family.  He went into the desert to suffer hunger and thirst.  He was criticised by the authorities, betrayed by his friend, beaten and mocked and finally killed in an incredibly cruel manner.  No one can say that God hasn't shared our sufferings.

I don't agree with the view of a God who just makes the world, winds the 'clockwork,'sets it running and sits back to watch.  The God I believe in didn't.  He stepped in to deal with the problem of suffering.  Couldn't he have done it another way, that didn't involve suffering himself?  I don't know.  But he chose to do it that way, to suffer with us, as one of us.

So the real answer to the question is that I don't know exactly why there has to be suffering.  But I trust that if there is suffering in the world, it must be there for a reason, even if it's not one I can understand.  And I don't believe that God is cruel and enjoys watching our suffering.  Otherwise why would he give the life of his own son, who he says he loves, to try to sort the problem out?

The answer I give is that I trust God.  Not blind, unthinking trust, I think about it a lot.  Why do I trust God?  Because I believe he is trustworthy, from my own experience and that of others, and from the Bible.*  So my response to suffering is similar to that of the clergyman mentioned in the BBC article: to pray.  To tell God that I don't understand, and to ask for his reassurance.  And to ask for him to intervene in the world to alleviate the suffering.

As a footnote to this, see this WordLive session on the last plague on the Egyptians.

*To go into further detail on this would be opening up a whole other can of worms.  Later!

Why, God? Choices.

The terrible, disastrous earthquake in Haiti is much on people's minds at the moment.  And inevitably, when confronted with a situation like this the question of suffering arises again.  Why, people ask Christians, why does this God who you say is all powerful and loving, allow that to happen?  If he's all powerful he could stop it, if he was loving he'd want to stop it, so why doesn't he?  

The short and most honest answer is, we don't know.  We can come up with answers, but they all seem to leave me feeling not completely satisfied.  The BBC published an article where a philosopher addresses the arguments.  I think it's actually a decent summary of the arguments.  While I don't agree with his views on some of them, I think it's a good statement of how many people feel, and useful for the rest of us to understand that.  

I do believe in an all loving, all powerful, all knowing God.  But I do sometimes find that hard to reconcile with the world around us.  As well as the Haitian earthquake, several people I know are having to cope with the illness or death of family members at the moment.  I can understand that idea that suffering is often the result of people's choices- that someone who chooses to smoke might suffer ill health as a result, for example- but what about the people around them who suffer because of their choice, having to deal with their illness and perhaps being ill themselves as a result of passive smoke?  And then how do you explain natural disasters, things that just 'happen?' 

First there's the question of people's choices causing suffering.  It's a very simplistic view, echoed in Old Testament ideas (for example Job's friends assume he's having a bad time because he's sinned) but it's clear that it's not always the reason for suffering (Job hasn't sinned).  Those people who say whole nations are to blame for a natural disaster because of a supposed event in their past are on very dangerous ground and should probably keep their mouths firmly shut.  

That's not to say it's always wrong, though.  As in the example of the smoker above, our choices do have an effect on our lives.  Some actions bring their own consequence- like, for example, choosing to mess around on an icy path in shoes with no grip.  If you fall over and hurt yourself, that's probably your own fault.  If you make someone else fall over, that's your fault too, caused by your choice, even if they don't deserve it.

But, people ask, couldn't God have made people who didn't choose to do the wrong thing sometimes?  Well no, I don't think he could.  God made people to love him.  You can't force someone to love you, you can only invite it.  So they had to have a choice- to love God, to know him, to obey his will, or not.  If not, then they often end up hurting themselves and others, because the world is designed to work God's way.  And the road isn't smooth for those people who do love God and try to obey him- we make mistakes, other people trip us up because they are not going God's way.  Humanity's choice on a daily basis not to follow God means we all suffer.  

People are not good or bad.  They're just people, who sometimes do bad things and sometimes do good things, for many reasons.  I don't think you need to be godly to be a good, moral person.  As a wise old woman* said: "It's which way you face that matters."  It's our ability to choose that makes us human.  Without that we wouldn't be what we were made to be- people who choose to love God.

That's some of my thinking.  More later.

*Granny Weatherwax in Terry Pratchett's Witches Abroad.  

Snow problem? It could be worse.

A few weeks of cold weather and we complain that the country is grinding to a halt, that we're a mere nine meals away from anarchy.  To be honest I'm getting rather fed up with all the moaning now.  Of course the snow's been a problem.  Some people have, sadly, died, and others have found live very difficult.  Travel has been difficult for many, businesses have lost money, pensioners and those on low incomes will be struggling with higher heating bills.  But as this BBC website article shows, for those without homes, those who are already at the bottom of society and struggling to survive the snow has had a far more serious effect.

Charities are trying to cope, to provide temporary shelter, food and warmth.  This is hugely important, and saves lives, but in itself it doesn't solve the problem.  It's a bit like giving first aid at an accident site; there might have been ways that what happened could have been prevented, if help had been available and accessible at the right time; and further care will be needed for a recovery to be made. Spending public money on schemes to get people off the streets and into homes and work isn't glamorous, but is important.

I'm no expert, but I imagine that the recession will have meant there are higher than average numbers of people sleeping rough as a result of job losses and family stress (often exacerbated by financial difficulties).  The inadequacies of the benefit system will probably not have helped.  At the same time let's be thankful that in this country we do have a welfare system, or the situation could be so much worse!

I think there's also a problem that we as a society value independence very highly.  We don't like the idea of having to be dependent on other people, so perhaps we're less sympathetic to those who are in need of help.  Since a large proportion of the population have had to 'tighten their belts' (most only metaphorically) recently I think there's been a lot of people saying 'we don't want to pay more in taxes, or for the government to spend more, even to help other people.'  While that's understandable it's also a bit selfish.  I imagine it's generally said by those people fortunate enough never to have been jobless for long periods of time, or who've never been made homeless because family tensions mean they have to leave home, but can't afford to get their own place.  We're quick to blame someone in this situation.

Perhaps this problem of valuing independence is evidence that the old divisions in British politics between Left and Right are not quite dead after all.  The socialist idea of a welfare community sounds nice, but costs money.  Ahead of this year's election the Conservatives are starting to sound more like the Tory party of old, stating for example that children's success has nothing to do with wealth or poverty, but only parenting skills.  Given recent news stories complaining that opportunities to get into the top careers are mostly only available to the children of wealthy parents (the ability to undertake unpaid internships, for example) that sounds a bit hollow to me.  A lack of stability, bad parenting and material poverty are usually, or at least often, linked, surely.

Not that other parties, or anyone, has all the answers.  But like I think sometimes we can all forget the poverty on our own doorstep in favour of causes that are somehow 'cooler' like aid for famine struck African countries, or the victims of earthquakes and cyclones.  There is so much suffering in the world, so much that needs to be done.  Compared to all that perhaps needing to wear an extra jumper or the airport being closed isn't such a big deal.

Getting things in perspective.

There is a danger that this post might turn into just another rant about church.  I'll try to avoid that, but I have had something of a challenging weekend.

Friday night and Saturday I was away at a meeting of the national council of an organisation I'm part of.  As with any charity, we have to be careful with the money God had given us and make sure we are using it as effectively as possible, especially in these troubled financial times.

The pain that becomes a pleasure

I read somthing today which is a great encouragement to me.  It was this comment on 2 Corinthians 6 vs 3-13: "Paul...would have us value, and find the validation of our ministry in, pain and suffering. Purity, patience and kindness stand alongside beatings, riots and sleepless nights." (WordLive 18th Sept 09).

The darker side of Christmas carols

I've been singing a lot of carols lately. A favourite one among my friends is the Coventry carol, about Herod's slaughter of the children of Bethlehem. It's a reminder that carols don't just talk about the joys of Christmas, but also hint at the darker side. Christmas isn't all mistletoe and wine and small children singing "Away in a manger." Numerous carols about the magi (or wise men, or kings if you really must) mention the symbolism of their gifts: gold for a king, incense for a priest, myrrh to show that he would suffer and die.

Another favourite carol among my friends (well, given that the tune is by Sullivan it's not exactly surprising) is "It came upon the midnight clear." The message of the carol shows how the angels' message "Peace on the earth, goodwill to men" has been ignored by a world too busy with its' own selfishness to think about God or others:

"Yet with the woes of sin and strife the world has suffered long,
Beneath the angel strain have rolled two thousand years of wrong.
And man at war with man, hears not the love-song which they bring,
O hush the noise, ye men of strife, and hear the angels sing."

And it's true that the world is in a mess, and ignores the message of Christmas. So much of the time we're too busy giving and receiving Christmas cards and presents (or, this year, worrying about whether we can afford them) to pay much attention to the baby in the manger, or if we do we stop there and forget what that baby went on to do.

If you believed everything that you see on TV over Christmas, you might take issue with my saying that "the world's in a mess." We're bombarded with feelgood, happily-ever-after films and shows. But behind the glitz and the tinsel we all know that things don't always end happily. Many people will find Christmas hard this year after the loss of a family member, others will be lonely, or ill, or homeless. And further from home people are dying of cholera in Zimbabwe, dying of starvation or AIDS in Africa, in fear of war in Afghanistan- the list goes on.

It's hardly surprising that so many people say "If there's a God- a good, loving God, like you say- why does he let all this happen?" And it's not an easy question to answer. I'm not going to try in any depth here, partly because I don't know. I may write about it more later. I think, mostly, it has to do with humankind's free will to choose not to do what God wants, and to mess up our lives and other people's. Without free will there would be no love- love that is compelled, without the option of not loving, isn't really love. If you're interested in the suffering question, read The Problem of Pain by C.S. Lewis for some interesting ideas. Or ask me for my thoughts. But I don't pretend to have all the answers.

Whatever you think about suffering dilemma, the one thing you can't deny is that if the Christmas message is true, God himself lived and died and shared in our human sufferings.

"He came down to earth from heaven, who is God and Lord of all
And his shelter was a stable, and his cradle was a stall,
With the poor and mean and lowly lived on earth our Saviour holy."

And later in the same carol:

"He was little, weak and helpless, tears and smiles like us he knew.
And he feeleth in our sadness, and he shareth in our gladness."

More than one carol dwells on this wonderful miracle- God, the creator and ruler of all things, becomes a man- more than that, a child, submitting himself to parental authority, going through all the traumas of growing up, of not being understood by his family and friends, the grief of losing loved ones, of living in a country subject to a hated foreign power, hunger and thirst and temptation, and ultimately betrayal by his friend, abandonment and pain and a truly horrific death.

"Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying,
Sealed in a stone cold tomb."*

And I think that's why I'm prepared to accept that I don't, and never will (in this life) fully understand why there's suffering. He went through what we go through. But he did that so that we could have a way out from this messed-up world- a chance to make a new start. So that we could be set free from our own selfishness, free to live our lives to fulfilment. Christmas changed the world. Carols look back to that. But they also look forward. In the run up to Christmas, Christians look forward to Jesus' return when justice will be done and suffering will end;

"When the new heaven and earth shall own the Prince of Peace their king,
And all the world give back the sound which now the angels sing!"

Happy Christmas!


*Strangely enough, that verse from We Three Kings is also a favourite among my friends. Do I sense a theme of them preferring the sadder, depressing bits?!