His point is simple and, I feel, self-evident, but something about which we need to be reminded now and then.<\/p>\n But deserved or not, suffering has a powerful capacity to turn\u00a0sufferers\u00a0away from the illusions of self-sufficiency and invulnerability, both\u00a0of which appeal very readily to the successful but both of which, in the traditional Jewish view,\u00a0powerfully\u00a0inhibit the love of God and the strength and healing it brings. Sometimes suffering opens up the heart when nothing else can.<\/em><\/p>\n The Love of God<\/em>, p. 36<\/p>\n There is a reason, I suppose, why both Old and New Testaments deal so honestly with suffering.<\/p>\n Of course, a Christian angle would include something of how we \u201cparticipate\u201d in or even \u201ccomplete\u201d the suffering of Jesus when we suffer (Philippians 3:10<\/a>, Colossians 1:24)<\/a>.<\/p>\n I would also add the suffering of Jesus can and should be seen\u00a0an embodiment of Israel\u2019s story\u2014a \u201cfulfillment\u201d (as it were) of the Old Testament that doesn\u2019t get as much airtime as it probably should. And so when we suffer \u201cin Christ\u201d we connect with, are \u201cinvested\u201d in, the Old Testament narrative\u00a0on a very practical level.<\/p>\n The suffering pilgrim is part of a long tradition.<\/p>\n [For those interested, I lay out my own view on the role of doubt (which is a mental\/emotional suffering) in the life of faith in\u00a0The Sin of Certainty<\/a>.<\/em>]\n<\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/peteenns.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/k10560-193x300.gif\")
Below is a brief quote from Jon D. Levenson\u2019s recent book\u00a0The Love of God: Divine Gift, Human Gratitude, and Mutual Faithfulness in Judaism<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>(see also\u00a0<\/em>here<\/a>).<\/p>\n