Jul 05, 2007 03:01 PM

The Meaning of Suffering: Part XIII

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Roundtable Index: Introduction | Part I: Roth | Part II: Palazzi | Part III: Pearl | Part IV: Yellin | Part V: Guimond | Part VI: Glazov | Part VII: Evanier | Part VIII: Kimball | Part IX: Roth | Part X: Palazzi | Part XI: Pearl | Part XII: Yellin | Part XIII: Guimond | Part XIV: Glazov | Part XV: Evanier | Part XVI: Kimball (Conclusion) |

Fr. Maurice: Thank you, Jamie, for inviting me to share with such a distinguished panel. After reading the last interventions, I was filled with awe and gratitude for such beautiful and brilliant minds, well served by exquisite talent for writing. For a little while, I was tempted to give in to self pity, feeling like a dog in a bowling alley. Like Jeremiah, I feel like saying to God: I can’t speak, for I am but a child.

But then, doing my Lectio Divina, a while ago, I came upon these words in Mathew’s gospel (Mt 10:7-13) where Jesus sends off his apostles with an awfully tall order: “As you go, proclaim the good news. ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons…”; then he sends them empty-handed and half naked: “Take no gold, or silver, or copper in your belts, no bag for your journey, or two tunics, or sandals, or a staff; for labourers deserve their food.” So, I feel that I have nothing more to add to what has already been so beautifully said, except that “the kingdom of God has come near”, for there are people of all cultures and religious backgrounds who are daily questioning Him, seeking Him, be it by denial! Let then my silence and my life with my brothers proclaim: “The kingdom of heaven has come near”!