Suffering And The Christian Life

Description

Leading Catholic scholars reflect on the greatest challenge to Christian theology.

Suffering is an inescapable aspect of human experience, and one that raises many questions: Why do we suffer? Where is God in our suffering? Who is this God that allows us to suffer? Where is God’s purpose in our suffering?

While the negativity of suffering creates many quandaries, the Christian tradition has also viewed suffering in positive terms. Jesus’ suffering has been seen as salvific; indeed, followers of Christ are called to take up their cross and follow him. The contributors to this volume, all distinguished Catholic theologians, confront this conundrum, drawing on the wisdom of the scriptures, doctrine, and contemporary experience to explore the problem of suffering and its meaning for the Christian life.

Contributors: Daniel J. Harrington, S.J.; M. Dennis Hamm, S.J.; Susan A. Calef; Richard W. Miller; Michael J. Himes; and Elizabeth A. Dreyer.

Richard W. Miller is associate professor of systematic theology at Creighton University, Omaha, Nebraska. He is a founder of the Church in the 21st Century Lecture Series, from which this volume is drawn. He is also the editor of Women and the Shaping of Catholicism (Liguori, 2009) and God, Creation, and Climate Change (Orbis, 2010).