To listen to this homily, click here.
Some of you might remember a show that aired on the Discovery channel for almost twenty years. It was called “Mythbusters” and the basic premise of the show is to take commonly held myths and urban legends and put them to the test. After these scientific tests, the myth was rated as confirmed, plausible, or busted. In a similar way, the readings we just heard serve as a sort of “mythbusters” moment for some of the spiritual myths that are thrown around to try and make sense of human suffering.
Myth #1: Suffering, sickness, and death are part of God’s will. We hear this all the time when someone we love is sick, has died or even when we have been ill. The truth is, sickness and death are a mystery, one we will never completely understand this side of heaven. In order to make sense of it, sometimes we pin it on God. But God never intended these things!
In the beginning, God created humans, starting with Adam and Eve, as a reflection of himself. He gave them dominion over all creation. In his incredible generosity and love, he even gave them free will, the ability to choose good or evil. By doing this, God actually limited his own power. Sadly, as we know, Adam and Eve sinned and literally threw creation out of sync with God. With their offense, death, sickness, suffering and every other misfortune was introduced into the world.
This is what sin does; it fosters chaos, upheaval, and conflict between people and between us and God. Every sin has this effect, whether it is large or small, according to the gravity of the offense. Think of the effects of the sins of notorious people like Hitler, Stalin, or Osama Bin Laden. Think of the millions of people who suffered because of their evil choices! Even more humbling and personal, might be to ask, “who is affected by my sins?!"
So how do we reconcile the fact that God is all-good, all-powerful, all-loving, all-knowing and yet he still allows (which is not the same as willing or wanting) sickness, suffering, and death? Part of this is and always will be a mystery. However, the primary reason why God allows these terrible things in our world is because he respects our freedom. When God created us, he gave us the complete freedom to choose good or evil, life or death. The only way to eliminate the possibility of bad things is to take away that freedom, to make our choices for us. And while this might sound like a good idea, to eliminate human freedom is to also take away the possibility of love. God wants us to choose to love him and others freely. He is not interested in a forced love. Therefore, he accepts the risk that we might choose the opposite, which is to decide to not love God or others.
Every bad thing in our world, every suffering, sickness, disaster, or death has its origin in sin and is never part of God’s active will. This is not to say that suffering and death is the result of an individual’s personal sin, but it is always due to the fact that nature has been wounded and set against God because of sin in general.
Myth #2: God takes our loved ones to be with him in heaven.
This myth can be dismantled quickly if we remember the first reading. God did not create death nor was it part of his plan for us. Because of the original sin of Adam and Eve, we have inherited the effects of their bad choice, just like we would have inherited the happy blessings if they had chosen correctly. The gospel reminds us that our God is a God of healing and life. He restores the suffering woman who touches his cloak. He raises the little girl who had died. This is not a one-time thing but happens over and over again in the gospels and throughout history. God, in his wisdom, did not eliminate death from this world. Rather, he redeemed it. What used to be the end has now become the beginning of new and eternal life. This is the wonderful mystery of God; when we, or someone we love, is suffering or dying, remember that God is not willing or wanting these terrible things. However, he is so good and powerful that he can transform these tragedies into something worthwhile and meaningful.
Myth #3: God lets people die because he needs another angel in heaven.
If this was true, God would be incredibly cruel and selfish. There are several issues here:
- God can create anything he wants. If his angel inventory was running low, why would he snatch a loved one rather than just making a new angel from scratch?
- More importantly, people do not become angels nor do angels become people. They are two different creatures. Angels are created with an intellect, will, and soul. They never have and never will have bodies. Human beings are created with an intellect, will, soul, and body. When a person dies, their soul meets God and is judged according to their deeds. At the end of time, each person’s soul will be reunited with their body wherever the soul was sent, be that heaven or hell. For those in heaven, their bodies will be a source of dignity, joy, respect, and honor because their body was instrumental in helping live a life that was pleasing to God. The opposite will be true for those in hell, whose bodies will be an eternal source of shame and regret because they were used to offend God and man.
It’s important we challenge the many myths that exist about God in our minds and in our world. Otherwise, he becomes cruel, arbitrary, distant, and untrustworthy. Our faith and the scriptures remind us that our God is a God of love, life, and healing. Let us remember this in times when we suffer sickness, persecution, loss, and death, knowing He suffers with us. Let us be patient, knowing that our understanding and knowledge are limited and avoid the temptation to answer the mystery of suffering with a sound byte or simple explanation. The real answer is to pray for a greater faith and trust in the God who made us, saved us, and wishes to love us forever in heaven. May we never doubt that God, somehow, some way, will redeem our moments of pain and loss and make them worthwhile.
