Hallowed be thy name. This is such a very interesting request. Many who don’t understand it ask why God is not holy. Am I adding holiness to Him by these words? We have already said that we cannot add anything to God. God is holy, so how can I sanctify myself? In my heart, that I may behold him there as a pure holy noble, good one. And not only me, but that your name may be sanctified among us. If everyone perceived God in this way, what a lowly environment would be created? But it is not always so. Many curses God, curse him and do not believe in him. Why? Because they do not know his goodness and nobility.

Have you noticed how little is said about pride? It’s a shame that we forget about it. The opposite is humility and humility. St. Teresa would tell us to look at ourselves and reality with a realistic view as soon as possible.

Jesus invites us to think like this, he says: “Whoever is greatest among you will be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted” (Mt 23:12).

Jesus plunders hypocrisy and pride. Pride led to a superficial spiritual life, just pleasing people. “Everything they do, they do only so that people can see them” (Mt 23:5). God condemns pride, conceit, and self-love. In the “Magnificat”, the Virgin Mary says: “He scattered those who think proudly in their hearts “ ( Luke 1:51). St. Peter and St. James remind us: “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (1 Pt 5:5), (James 4:6).

The apostle James highlights the opposite of pride: “Draw closer to God… Humble yourself before the Lord, and he will exalt you” (James 4:8, 10). It is not right for us to be proud, St. Paul reminds us: “After all, who makes you stand out? “! What do you have that you didn’t get? And when you have received, what do you brag about as if you had not received” (1 Cor 4:7)? In the Holy Scriptures, pride is considered one of the main sins. Pride closes a person’s heart to accepting God. Pride contradicts true wisdom. Jesus tells the Pharisees: “You make yourselves righteous before men, but God knows your hearts because what is noble among men is abominable before God” (Luke 16:15).

Humility in people – before the Lord, is the source of many blessings. Let’s not be mistaken! Because Pharisaic as such did not die out. It is not only in our surroundings, but is it not also in us? A wise Christian cannot be mistaken. Humility lives actively. As he accepts the applause for his successes, he lets the laughter his failures cause ring in his ears. He is healthy and dissatisfied with himself, which helps him grow in his apostolic work. He does not forget that even average people can sin with excessive self-confidence. A humble person is aware that his sadness can be a cloak for his pride if he does not drive it away. He who is proud does not conquer himself. Pride distances us from Jesus, and humility makes us close to Jesus. It is right that we want and can give up our opinion. It is difficult, but dear to God. A humble person does not look at what others are like, but at himself, and what he should be. The meek are not similar to the “whitewashed grave”, because he cares about the relationship with God and also about the fact that as many souls as possible belong to God. He is not held up as a role model and example. He lives his faith not only in words but also in deeds. He does not pray just so that people can see him, but he feels the need to meet God and strengthen himself in faith, hope, and love, He obeys God in everything and loves above all. Humble before his God, he does and keeps everything as God wants and teaches. Humble is full of love and peace in his heart. He is happy that God knows about everything and does not care if people know about it. He does not tolerate being talked about in public.

The foundation of the Catholic Church is monotheism, the belief in one true God. In the Old Testament period, this fundamental doctrine was revealed by God to His people, who proclaimed it everywhere (cf.
Dt 6:4-9), and it was confirmed by Christ (cf. Mk 12, 29 – 30). Belief in the one true God is challenged by many non-Christian groups, such as Mormons and Hindus (religions that believe in the existence of many gods). It is at the same time doctrine that forms the basis of the Church’s teaching on the Trinity, one God in three persons.
* “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words that I speak to you today, shall be in thy heart, and thou shalt repeat them unto thy and speak them to your sons, whether you sit in your house or travel, whether you lie or thou shalt bind them as a sign upon thy hand, and they shall be as an ornament between thine eyes, and thou shalt write “Thou shalt put them upon the doorposts of thine house, and thy gates.” * Isaiah 41:4:

“Who has done this? He called the generations from the beginning. I, Yahweh, the first and the same, I am the same and the last.” Other quotes Isaiah 40:25-28 1 Chronicles 17:20 /Z43 .10-1 3 Mk12,29Isa 44:6-8 1 Cor 8:4- 6

One of the signs of a person’s greatness is how quickly they can forgive others. There is probably not a person among us who does not have an angry person in his life. Maybe even as children we had such an experience. A friend or classmate got angry with us. He avoided us and maybe didn’t want to talk to us at all. How many of us have had this experience later? Perhaps even today, we came to the temple with a heavy heart for our neighbor. Let us remember that our God wants to forgive each of us. But be careful! Jesus tells us today: “Forgive and you will be forgiven” (Lk 6:37b). Jesus speaks very openly in his speech. However, forgiveness should not be just so that a person can also be forgiven at the end of his life.

It is said that a group of theologians once met in England and discussed for hours how (if at all) Christianity differs from other religions in its essence, which Christian teaching has no parallel in other religions… They could not find an answer until finally the well-known thinker CS Lewis arrived belatedly and answered the question without hesitation: “That’s easy. Forgiveness of sins.” But not only the forgiveness of sins on the part of God, but also the forgiveness of transgressions between people.

Even unintentional injuries must be forgiven. Forgive each other, because it is difficult to live in tension with a feeling of forgiveness. You will surely agree with me that a person who cannot forgive is in a way a slave to the other person. When we carry forgiveness, we cannot concentrate on anything, we are nervous, literally impossible. We try to avoid the latter and wish him no good. Well, is that right? Not. Therefore, at this moment, let’s try to imagine a person whom we cannot forgive. Whom we can’t stand and who, if he does anything, gets on our nerves. Let us imagine him and bless him in spirit. Let us often bless him in our spirit and pray for him. We pray for forgiveness. Because forgiveness is a miracle eraser – a chemical that causes everything that has happened to be erased. The pain may remain, the inability to meet the person as well, but to wish another good, to pray for him, to bless him, to try to love him – all this leads to forgiveness. It is very sad when parents and children or siblings do not talk to each other in a family.

Therefore, let us realize today that we are together on this Earth for only a few years. Maybe just a few more days and we will never be able to say to the other person: “Please, forgive me, forgive me.” Therefore, let’s ask for strength and courage at this Holy Mass – so that we can always forgive the other person as soon as possible.

Perfection is everywhere. Even in politics. Great personalities behaved peacefully. In India Gandhi, although he was not a Christian, the teachings of Christ were not unknown to him. Also, Martin Luther King was a black preacher in the USA. However, both died from the killer’s shot. They loved their enemies but hated them.

The Lord Jesus says to us: “Be ye therefore perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt 5:48).

The commandment to love one’s neighbor is the adornment of every person. Jesus tells us the familiar words: “If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also” (Mt 5:39). In the book of Leviticus, we read the command that the nation received from God through Moses: “…an eye for an eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot” (21.24) and in the book of Leviticus: “…a fracture for a fracture, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth…” (24.20).

These words coincide with the oldest law in the world called Lex Talionis, which was in the code of Hammurabi, who reigned in Babylon from 2285 to 2242 BC. The meaning of this law is that a wrong done to another must be repaid with the same wrong. This law also made it into the Old Testament. However, this law has already been beneficial. Well, not so bloodthirsty, but we can evaluate it as the beginning of mercy. Until then, blood revenge was valid. We understand that this was a characteristic feature of primitive tribal society. The law suppresses the revenge of the entire tribe. If someone from another tribe was killed, the tribe swore revenge on all members of the killer’s tribe. And here is the progress. The law of retribution limited revenge because only the one who committed the murder was to be punished and not the whole tribe.

Jesus stood against this law when he said: “Do not resist evil” (Mt 5:39). The command needs to be explained. It does not mean that we should not defend ourselves against physical or moral violence. This is not what Jesus is thinking about. Passivity towards violence would lead to senseless conclusions that do not agree with God’s wisdom. According to Christ, the believer can and should fight against the occupiers of the state, thieves of his property, violence, etc. The Christian recognizes prisons, the army, and the police, to maintain peace, and prevent violence… The man before God must have responsibility for entrusted things.

However, Jesus points out some personal rights that a person can renounce in favor of higher values. The Gospels tell that the Lord Jesus did not behave completely passively towards evil. We know that he healed, drove out the money changers from the temple, defended the apostles against false accusations, and when the servant hit him, he asked: “If I said wrong, prove what was wrong, but if right, why do you beat me” (Jn 18,23)?

Don’t we hear the plea? Lord, make us an instrument of peace…? If so, let’s learn a prayer to ask for peace of soul, strength to resist sin, and peace for our duties.

Who has not met with justice? My, your, our… Justice. There is one. That is why Jesus says: “You have heard that it was said to the fathers: “Thou shalt not kill.” Therefore, whoever kills will go to court. But I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother will go to court ” (Mt 5,21 -22).

In order for sin, which is infinitely more dangerous than a weed in the garden, to do no harm, it must be spotted, spotted already in the bud. Best when it’s still sprouting. That’s when a person gets rid of it easier, and then it doesn’t harm either himself or his neighbors. Lord Jesus reminds us about anger. In the bud, anger is only a little intense, maybe it is related to a feeling of insult, grievance, or envy… At this stage, it is not difficult to tear it out, overcome it, and forgive the neighbor. However, if a person begins to nurture it in himself, water it, feed it, and does not renounce it, anger will begin to grow slowly, taking deeper and wider roots. And gradually it begins to bear harmful fruit. The person himself suffers internally, anger eats him up, kills peace and joy in him, and causes tension. A person cannot keep this inner discord hidden within himself for long. It starts to show in the form of psychological or physical harm to a neighbor, or even murder.

And we can learn something important in the garden. Weeds thrive best where no plants or vegetables grow. It has the most nutrients, moisture, and light there. So also sin takes root best where no virtues grow. Therefore, it is not enough to suppress anger, but also to cultivate the positive virtue of love. Jesus’ command applies: “…Go and be reconciled to your brother…” (Mt 5:24). Therefore, it is necessary to turn your gaze away from the altar for a moment and look next to you or even behind you, at your brothers and sisters. What is my relationship with them? Would any of them reproach me for something? Wouldn’t it also be justified? But let’s not just stop at examining our negatives, and mistakes in this area. Let’s move on. Let’s ask positively! What could I specifically do for them? Maybe for the elderly and infirm or for those closest to them, at least something small. We have a chronically familiar commandment: thou shalt not kill. I know one way to kill enemies.

The courtiers are said to have reproached Emperor Sigismund that he treats his enemies magnanimously, that he should kill them all. The emperor answered them: “You are right, the enemies are to be destroyed – but with magnanimity. Then we will kill their enemies and make them friends.”

Let’s not let ourselves be destroyed and consumed by anger, the desire for revenge. Let’s remove it so that we reconcile with our neighbors, and destroy their enemies, we have more friends. Our life will become a little more beautiful, joyful, and peaceful. I wish you and myself that even this reflection, where Jesus’ touching love for us becomes present, will strengthen us and rekindle the desire to fight for love, peace, and reconciliation.

One who embarks on a spiritual journey is always evolving and becomes aware of two contrasting facts over time: not the finite is distant and yet near. First, he experiences more and more that God is a mystery. He is completely different, holy, invisible, incomprehensible, utterly transcendent, in all words, beyond the possibility of the of understanding. “A child just born,” writes the Roman Catholic writer Georg e Tyrrel, “knows as much about the world and its ways as about the most – wisest among us can know of the ways of God and of the …who rules over heaven and earth, time and eternity.”
A Christian living in the Orthodox tradition will be completely comfortable with this agree. As the Greek Fathers pointed out, “The God whom we can understand is not God.” For the God whom we would dare to comprehend in an exhaustive way through the use of our reason, will be nothing more but an idol, a thing of our imagination. Such a God is totally unlike the true and living God of the Bible. Man is made in the image of God, not in the image of God.
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And then it is also important that this God of mystery is still uniquely open to us, filling all thought and always present in us, around us and with us. We are not present only in the atmosphere or by his power, but personally. God, who is infinitely beyond our understanding, is with us. He calls each of us by name. Between us and the transcendent God is a relationship of love, similar to the relationship of each of us to those who of those dearest to us. We know other people only through our love for them and through their love for us. The latter is also with God. In the words of Nicholas of Kabbalah..: God, our King, is more loving than any friend, more just than any ruler, more loving than a father, more a part of ourselves than our own members, and more indispensable to us than our own hearts. These are, then, the two poles of the human experience of the divine. God is both more distant and closer to us than anything, and paradoxically we discover that these two poles are not mutually exclusive. On the contrary, the more we are attracted to one, the more clearly we are aware of the other. As we follow this path, we discover that God is becoming more and more intimate, but also more distant, more familiar and more unfamiliar – familiar to a small child, not understood. God dwells in inaccessible light, and man stands in his presence with loving confidence and addresses him as a friend. God is both the end of things and their beginning . He is the open arms that welcome us at the end of the pilgrimage and the companion who walks to guide us every step of the way. As it Nicholas Kabasila describes, “God is the shelter in which we rest at night, and the final destination of our journey.” God is a mystery, and yet a person: look at these the facts.
God as mystery.
We shall make little progress on the road unless we make with a sense of awe and wonder, with respect for the mystery of God. When Samuel Palmer first visited William Blake, the old man asked him with what feelings he approached the work on his paintings. “With fear and with fear,” Palmer replied. “Why your work is good…,” Blake said.
The Greek Fathers liken the human encounter with God …to the experience of someone walking in the fog over a mountain. The rush and he suddenly notices that he is on the edge of a precipice, below him. …there is no solid ground, but only a bottomless pit. For they also use the example of a man standing in the night in a dark room. The moment he opens the window, he is suddenly …he is struck by lightning and staggers back, momentarily blinded. Such is the purpose of the encounter with the living mystery of God. We are overwhelmed with dizziness, and it seems to us that we cannot, we can’t grasp anything firmly. Our inner sight is blinded. and our normal faculties of perception are in ruins.
The Fathers also use both symbols of the spiritual path two Old Testament figures, Abraham and Moses. Abraham, living peacefully in his ancestral home in the Chaldean Ur, he hears God’s voice: “Get thee out of thy land, out of thy …and from your father’s house to the land that I will show you.” ( Gn 12:1) They obey God’s call, which delivers them from his native environment, and boldly go into the unknown, without a clear plan and destination. He is simply invited, “Go forth…,”..and in faith he submits. Moses has three successive visions of God: first, he sees God as a vision of light in a burning bush (Ex 3:2), then God appears to him by day in a pillar of cloud, and by night in the pillar of fire that accompanies the people of Israel in the wilderness ( Ex. 13:21), and finally he meets God in a kind of “not vision,” when he speaks to God in an opaque cloud at meeting on Mount Sinai (Ex 20:21). Abraham wanders from his native home to an unknown, and so it is experienced by everyone who walks the spiritual path of his knowledge into the unknown, he advances into the darkness. It is not a simple stepping out of the darkness of ignorance into the light of knowledge, but we are moving from the light of partial knowledge to a greater knowledge that is so much deeper that it can be described only as “unknown darkness”. As Socrates and, we know how little we know. We see that the role of Christianity does not give easy answers to every question, but rather a step towards the realization of the mystery. God is not driven by of the many objects of knowledge, but the cause of wonder. If it is written in Psalm 8:1: “O Lord, our Lord, how wonderful is your name in all the earth.” St. Gregory of Nyssa states, “The name of God is unknowable, it is wonderful.” If we acknowledge that God is incomparably greater than
Then anything we can think or say about him, we will discover , that it is necessary to speak of him not directly, but in figures and parables. Our theology is therefore, to a considerable extent, however, symbols alone are not enough. If we want to express the transcendence and total otherness of God. To express such a great mystery, we must use negative statements just as much as positive ones. In this way, it becomes clear that God is something else, more than what we are able to say about him. Beyond the use of this way of negation, which is called the apophatic approach (theology), our talk about God will be entirely misleading. Whatever we say about God – however correct it may be – does not reach the power of living truth. If we say that he is good or just, we must add that his goodness and righteousness cannot be measured by our human by our human standards. If we say that he exists, we must add necessarily add that there is no such thing as an object of limitation to others. In this case, the word “exists” means something very special. This is the way of positive statements, as Cardinal Newmann puts it: “We are always capable and yet incapable of goodness a satisfactory result.” If we are to affirm anything about God,…we must go beyond that claim, even though we ourselves are not false. Words cannot fully express God’s transcendence. However, the spiritual path is shown to be a path of transformation in all a very radical sense. Metanoia , the Greek word for repentance, expresses a complete change of mind. When we approach God, we change our minds, we undress ourselves of all our habits and habitual ways of thinking. …and our habitual ways of thinking. We are not turning around by our will or by our intellect, we need to change our inner perspective completely.
We need to put the pyramid at the top! The thick darkness we are entering with Moses is being illuminated with light. The apophatic journey and the “not knowing” of our leads not to emptiness but to fullness. Our negation is in the of reality as super-claims. The apophatic approach, destructive in its outward form, is positive in its resulting effect: it helps us, in addition to all negative and positive
statements, beyond language and thought, to relate to the immediate experience of the living God. This in itself really includes the word “mystery”. In the most proper in its most basic sense, it includes the “mystery” of concealment and revelation.
The Greek noun “mysterion” comes from the verbs and “myein”, whose meaning is to close the eyes or the mouth. Candidates initiated into certain pagan minds were first blindfolded and led through a maze. When their eyes were suddenly uncovered, they saw that everywhere around them were the mysterious signs of the cult. This is what they see in Christianity. In the Christian context, by mystery we do not mean that which is impossible and mysterious, enigmatic or unsolvable – a mystery is that which is revealed in order to be understood, even if we know that we will never fully understand. This mystery points to the darkness of God. The eyes are open, but at the same time but closed. If we then speak of God as a mystery, we know
…we know that He is hidden from us, but at the same time He wants to reveal Himself to us. He wants to reveal Himself to us as a person and as love.

«There was a certain rich man. He dressed in purple and scarlet and feasted sumptuously day after day. A kind of beggar, named Lazar, was lying at his gate, full of sores. When the beggar died, the angels carried him into Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. And he cried: “Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus, let him at least dip the tip of his finger in water and moisten my tongue, because I am suffering terribly in this flame!” But Abraham said: “Son, remember that you have received everything good during his life and Lazar only bad. Now here he is happy, and you are worried” (Lk 16,19-20a.22.24-25).

Today I want to join you in the parable of the rich man and the poor Lazarus. The lives of these two people seem to flow on parallel tracks: their living conditions are opposite and do not correspond in the least. The door of the rich man’s house is always closed to the poor man who is outside, trying to eat at least the scraps from the rich man’s table. The latter was clothed in sumptuous clothing, while Lazarus was covered with sores; the rich man feasts lavishly every day, while Lazarus dies of hunger. Only dogs take care of him and come to lick his wounds. This scene recalls the harsh admonition of the Son of man at the last judgment: «For I was hungry, and you did not give me anything to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me nothing to drink; (…) I was naked, and you did not divide me; I was sick and in prison, and you did not visit me” (Mt 25, 42-43).

Jesus says that one day the man died. The poor and the rich die, they have the same fate. We all share it, don’t we? There are no exceptions. And so the man turns to Abraham, begging him with the address “father” (v. 24.27). He invokes himself as his son, belonging to God’s people. Nevertheless, during his life he showed no regard for God, on the contrary, closed in his world of luxury and revelry, he made himself the center of everything. Excluding Lazarus, he did not consider either the Lord or his law at all. To ignore the poor is to despise God! And this we must learn well: to ignore the poor is to despise God. There is, however, one peculiarity in the parable which must be noticed. The rich man has no name, only an adjective: “rich”; while the poor man’s name is repeated five times, and “Lazarus” means “God helps.” Lazarus resting at the door is a living call to the rich man to remember God, but the rich man does not accept this call. So he will be condemned not because of his riches, but because he was unable to sympathize with Lazarus and help him.

In the second part of the parable, we find Lazarus and the rich man after their death (vs. 22-31). There, on the other side of life, the situation was reversed: poor Lazarus was carried by angels to heaven to Abraham, while the rich man, on the other hand, is thrown into torment. Then the rich man «raised his eyes and saw from afar Abraham and Lazarus in his bosom». He seems to see Lazarus for the first time, but his words betray him: «Father Abraham», he says, «have mercy on me and send Lazarus» – so he knows him, right? – «send Lazarus to dip at least the tip of his finger in the water and moisten my tongue, because I am suffering terribly in this flame!» Now the rich man recognizes Lazarus and asks him for help, while during his life he pretended not to see him. How many times, how many times, many people pretend not to see the poor! The poor don’t exist for them… He used to deny him even the scraps from his table, and now he would like,

He still believes that he can claim rights for his previous social status. Proclaiming that it is impossible to comply with his request, Abraham personally offers the key to the whole story: he explains that the good and the bad have been redistributed in such a way as to compensate for earthly injustice, and the door that separated the rich from the poor in life has turned into a «great chasm». As long as Lazarus was at his house, it was an opportunity for salvation for the rich man: he could open the door, help Lazarus… but now that both are dead, the situation has become irreversible. There is no direct appeal to God, but the parable clearly calls for vigilance: God’s mercy towards us is linked with our mercy towards our neighbor; if this is missing, it does not find space in our closed heart, it cannot enter. Unless I open the door of my heart to the poor, that door will remain closed. Even for God. And this is horrible.

Now the rich man thinks of his brothers, who are in danger of ending up like him, and begs that Lazarus may return to the world to warn them. But Abraham answers: “They have Moses and the prophets, let them listen to them”. In order to convert, we do not need to expect miraculous events, but we must open our hearts to God’s word, which calls us to love God and our neighbor. God’s word can bring a hardened heart to life and heal it from its blindness. The rich man knew God’s word, but he did not let it enter his heart, he did not listen to it, therefore he was unable to open his eyes and have compassion for the poor.

No messenger and no message can replace the poor we meet on the road, because in them Jesus himself meets us: “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers, you did for me” (Mt 25:40), says Jesus. Thus, in the reversal of fortunes that the parable describes, the secret of our salvation is hidden, in which Christ combines poverty with mercy. Listening to this gospel, all of us, together with the poor of the earth, can sing with Mary: «He has dethroned the powerful and exalted the lowly. He fed the hungry with good things and let the rich go empty-handed” (Luke 1:52-53

In this lecture, we will try to answer theoretically and at least partially
the question of the cause of human suffering; in the conclusion we shall find that the answer is not so simple as it appears to us after the first two paragraphs. This question is sufficiently well known, and it is the usual beginning of the discussion between atheists and Christians. It reads as follows: If there is a God , how come, that there is so much suffering in the world? The dialogue goes like this: Is God good? The atheist asks. Surely yes, replies the Catholic. Does God love man? Of course. Is God omnipotent? Certainly. Then why doesn’t he do something about the wars!!!
The atheist triumphs. The main point is obvious: If God is omnipotent
and merciful, why does he let innocent people suffer? Why are there gulags in Siberia, Terezin, Dacha u or Auschwitz? If God is omnipotent and merciful, why did He allow rape in Croatia, war in Kosovo, genocide in Chechnya, killing in Rwanda, hatred in Ireland, the attacks in Palestine and the slaughter in Somalia? God is in the position of a father, before whose eyes his own child is being abused and tortured, can he prevent it, and he will do nothing at all. Yet he claims to love his child. The conclusion is clear: either God is merciful but not omnipotent, or he is almighty but not merciful, or he does not exist at all.
So we come to the problem of suffering. We partly know the answer to this question, and partly we do not. Relatively easier to more easily explained by pointing to the freedom of man: God loves and desires to be loved. Man is created for love. He is loved by love, and he loves and the capacity to love. For love to be possible, there must be freedom. Freedom and love are two sides of the same coin; if I do not have freedom, I cannot love. In this sense I cannot love, for example, an animal. Love is a very voluntary thing, and you cannot force someone into it. If I as a human being (or an angel) have the freedom to love, I must necessarily also have the freedom to not love, to deny love. If I could not to choose between loving and not loving, it would not be possible to speak of love. It is a kind of cosmic law. So I can decide either to love, or to hate, or to be indifferent to . God gives us freedom ; and what he gives, he never takes back. If I choose evil, God respects my decision. Because man has freedom (and reason), he has, of course, responsibility. Gulags Someone had to invent them, someone had to build the camps, and someone had to someone had to kill them. It was men, not God. Wars are the responsibility of the people who invented and implemented them. Because these architects of wars are free, they are responsible for what they caused. The only reproach we can address to God is why God created man so ineptly.

Thus, we can explain the suffering caused by humans by pointing to the man’s freedom and the responsibility that results. What we cannot explain, however, is suffering not caused by man. Earthquakes in Turkey and India, volcanic eruptions and lava and mudslides in Central America, floods in Bangladesh and hurricanes in Cuba, cancer, AID Sand polio : who is responsible?
The ancient Israelites, in the early days of their history, saw things much more simply: whoever is godly and righteous, the Lord blesses. Yes , numerous family and wealth are a sure sign of God’s blessing. On the contrary, sickness, barrenness and poverty are seen as signs of God’s adversity, as punishment for sins. Yet in the New Testament, Christ’s disciples ask in the story of the blind man: “Rabbi, who sinned – he or his parents – that he was born blind? ” and Jesus has to laboriously explain that this is how it is not , that sickness is not a punishment for a person’s sins. Even the Israelites themselves in the course of their history begin to realize that the original theory has serious cracks: there are so many wicked and rich around us and so many godly and poor. The Psalms therefore often say: O God, where is your righteousness? How is it that the godly are doing badly and, conversely, the wicked do well?
The problem of the meaning of human suffering is the subject of an entire Old Testament Book of Job. Since there are a number of very good commentaries on this book, we will try to reflect only on the main idea and leave aside the bulk of the book, which is the dialogue of Job and with his friends. J o b is a righteous and godly man, and therefore it is no wonder that the Lord blesses him. J o b has seven sons, a prosperous farm, and numerous flocks. But the devil comes to the Lord, and the Lord boasts before him Job’s piety. The devil replies, “Is Job free to fear God? And hast thou not thyself made a hedge as it were about him, about his house, and about all his goods? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his flocks have flooded the wide land. But stretch forth thine hand, and smite all his goods, lest he curse thee to thy face. Then the Lord arranges with the devil that they will make a trial. The devil may do anything, but he must not touch Job’s health. And so come the familiar rumors of Job; one by one messengers come to Job with bad news: the enemies have driven away the flocks and have slain.
The house where Job’s children were feasting has collapsed, and they are all dead, other enemies have driven away other flocks, and so on. In a matter of minutes, the wealthy shepherd becomes a poor man without a family. Job, however, does not sin against God in any way and says: The Lord has given, The Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord! The devil therefore agrees with the Lord that he will now reach out for Job’s health, and he receives permission from God that he can do anything, but he must spare Job’s life. And so he does. Satan moves away from before the Lord’s face and strikes Job with a cruel boil from the heel of his feet to the crown of his head. So Job took a shard to give him something to scrape off, and he retreated to a garbage dump. The whole book then continues with a visit from Job’s friends, who try to somehow justify to him his suffering.

Please note that Job has not actually done anything wrong, it is only the reader sees behind the scenes to heaven and earth and hears from above the Lord’s dialogue with the devil and from below Job’s conversation with his friends. Job doesn’t know what’s going on in heaven has happened, he sees only his misfortune, and throughout the entire book – over forty for  chapters – he only cries out to God : “Why? ” – and his question remains unanswered.
J o b finally comes out of the ordeal successfully. It turns out that his piety was conditioned neither by wealth, nor by health, nor by joy of the family. In the conclusion of the book of Pc7″ he blessed the end of Job’s life more than his beginning, so that he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of horned farm animals, and a thousand donkeys. He also had seven sons and three daughters,  and after that Job lived another hundred and forty years and saw his children and his children’s children to the fourth generation. And Job died, old and full (of his) days. Yes , Job died old and full of his days, but his suffering remained unexplained. On Job’s o ‘why? ” God and even the book does not answer. Nor do we hear the answer in the New Testament, for even Christ himself did not take away the suffering of man. It is true that where Jesus comes, there he heals, cures, revives, gives sight to the blind and speech to the dumb. But not permanently. All whom Christ heals will eventually die, as other people die. Neither Lazarus of Bethany nor the young man of Naima are not excluded from the lot of other men. Jesus did not even explain the suffering. The problem of human suffering remains unanswered to this day and has resisted the consideration of theologians throughout the ages. Can I therefore make this chapter conclude with Blaise Pascal, who says that Jesus did not eliminate or explain suffering, but carried it with us.