In Christianity, suffering has always been seen as a virtue. A sufferer is a person who has the special favor of the Lord, because for the worthy transfer of suffering, the Almighty promises to reward what, if not on earth, then beyond the threshold of death in blissful eternity.
The commandments of bliss and suffering
The sermon of Jesus Christ, embodied in the Gospels, is clearly oriented to people who are not rich, oppressed, and who suffer one or another bad weather. The word “suffering”, whose synonym in Christianity is the word “holy,” refers to different categories of people by Christ. The so-called commandments of bliss speak eloquently about this.
In them, the sufferer is a beggar, crying, hungry and thirsty, driven out for the truth, a man who is unjustly slandered. However, Christ does not say that God will immediately deliver the suffering of the person who turns to him. Suffering can come from above and only patience, humility and resignation are credited to merit. If suffering is carried with resentment and anger, envy and anger, they become a source of a curse, not a blessing. Such behavior indicates that a person did not pass the school of spiritual life and did not pass the test.
Suffering as a test of faith
The Bible speaks of suffering as a test more than once in the Old Testament. “Sufferers” - the meaning of the word, as such, is determined by the basis of “guards”, going back to the common root with the word “suffer”, that is, to endure pain, torment and adversity. Such tests are sent or allowed by God in order for a person to establish himself in front of himself in his beliefs and values. And besides, he was distracted from everyday fuss and, in the context of suffering, laid God on his self-care, faithfully surrendering to his providence. A sufferer is a person chosen for the highest reward, if, of course, he adequately transfers his fate. This idea is vividly illustrated in the book of Job, the textbook image of an unjustly suffering righteous man who later, through a worthy endure of trials, earned the highest mercy of God.
Suffering as a punishment for sins
However, there is another view of suffering. It is also reflected in the Bible and consists in the fact that suffering is interpreted as a punishment for committed sins. From this angle, the sufferer is a sinner who redeems his guilt before God. At the same time, such an interpretation puts the image of the biblical God in an ambiguous position: the vengeful character is not to face the Almighty, who is love. Punishment in order to educate the criminal is one thing, but the merciless avenger, sending a flood, incinerating Sodom, punishing the death of the guilty (and not so) people creates some problems for Christian theology. How these problems were resolved is another matter. Some groups of believers have consistently refused to acknowledge the role of God as the creator and avenger of sins. Others, on the contrary, tried to develop this image to the extreme and were guided by it in their own actions. Ultimately, this issue is still awaiting resolution and reflection.