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Explore the Concept of Human Suffering as Outlined in Luke's Gospel and Discuss It Relevance Today

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Explore the Concept of Human Suffering as Outlined in Luke's Gospel and Discuss It Relevance Today
The term suffering can be defined as any unwanted condition and the corresponding negative emotion. It is usually associated with pain and unhappiness, but any condition can be described as suffering. Christians suffer throughout the world everyday and it is not through their lack of faith. Christians under Nero were persecuted for their faith in God, through this suffering God promised them a place in his kingdom. God also promises us a place in his kingdom, even though throughout our lives we will face the good times and the bad, God is always with us. Others believe that since God is a ‘good God' why does all this suffering exist? We don't know the answer to this but perhaps some people become better people through suffering.

There are many examples of suffering in today's society. Suffering can be broken down into: natural suffering, over which humans are powerless or can do little to help such as tsunamis or volcanoes. Physical suffering is when a person is injured or suffers from an illness etc. Spiritual suffering is when the person does not have faith in God or those around them.

Throughout Luke's Gospel we notice his emphasis on suffering. Scholars have concluded that Luke was so sympathetic towards sufferers' because he was a physician. There are many examples when Luke dwells on people's suffering. In the miracle of the blind man we are told how his faith makes him well. The blind man in this story in Luke's Gospel cannot see but he can tell that Jesus is someone great and he addressed him "Jesus, son of David have mercy on me". The people in the crowd began to ignore the man. This used to be the situation in society when blind people were seen as having nothing to offer, so they were also ignored.

Today Christians should treat these people with respect. We should not see their disability but ‘see' the person themselves. In the past blind people were not given the same rights as everyone else. However, all that has changed. There are a


Bibliography: 1. Raymond Banks, The Gospel of Luke, Introduction and Theology, Colourpoint 2006 2. Denis Mc Bride, The Gospel of Luke, A reflective commentary, Dominican Publications 2003 3.www.bbc.co.uk/health/AIDS 4.www.bbc.co.uk/tsunami 5.www.womansaid.org.uk 6. Michael Keene, ‘Introducing Christianity ', Arthur James Berkhamsted 1998
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