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| I am just off a shift from corporate headquarters and another work week finished. Not that the weekend is work free. I thought I would start a different series of posts focusing briefly on my collections, which are not massive but large enough for a few posts. This 'da Vinci' 'masterpiece' photo is from me at seven years old and is not my property and therefore we are off to a fantastic start with something which is not part of any of my collections. I just traveled to the downstairs part of the condo and borrowed this stored away 'treasure' for a few minutes. Of course all of you ladies that have read this blog hundreds or thousands of times only have a purely intellectual interest in me, and now you have an idea of what our hypothetical male child may look like.. Imitating female reader: 'Oh, he's so cute'. However, I suppose it can be stated that I shall inherit this 'da Vinci' at some point and it will become part of my collectibles. |
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| Lake Superior, Travel+Leisure, Facebook |
MPhil 2003
2003 The Problem of Evil: Anglican and Baptist Perspectives: MPhil thesis, Bangor University
Question A
A person within your denomination comes to you with a serious problem, for example the death of his/her small child.
What would be one key Christian concept to mention that you would see as vital?
With this question, I was looking for a pragmatic use of the Christian faith in times of crisis, in other words, a Christian concept offered to effect real hope in a time of tragedy.
Rvd. David Adams mentioned: " The resurrection. Without it, we have no hope." Adams (2002).
Dr. Wayne Mouritzen stated: "I would refer to Paul’s teachings of the resurrection from 1st Corinthians 15. However, I believe sympathy is most needed." Mouritzen (2002).
I agree that the concept of resurrection is vital at a time of tragic death because this alone is God’s ultimate remedy and reversal of the tragedy. It is not immediate but promised in Scripture.
The Rvd. Daniel Clark stated: The Incarnation.
Through that we understand that God himself has felt and experienced our human pain–he has known isolation, grief, betrayal, mocking, torture, false accusations and illegal trial, death. He has been a refugee and known taunting at his ‘dubious’ parentage, etc. It is because God knows our pain, knows what life is like, that we can draw comfort from him in times of distress. Clark (2002).
This would be another important concept at a time of tragedy. Through Christ’s resurrection, humanity will be resurrected, but through Christ’s Incarnation, Christ experienced the human experience, and thus is a suitable high priest to be sought by sufferers. He is relatable to human beings because he took suffering upon himself.
Dr. Kenton Anderson stressed that God was in control. He stated: "I would emphasize the sovereignty and the grace of God. While there is mystery in this, God can be trusted to act according to his character and his word, and in ways that are good for his people." Anderson (2002).
William Badke mentioned the sovereignty of God as well. He stated: I would work on the concept of the sovereignty of God, along these lines – If God is sovereign, we feel we can blame him for what has happened. That may be the case, but the alternative is that what happened came about by chance. While the alternative may be more comforting than believing that God actually allowed the problem and could have stopped it, in fact we are left with a universe in which there is no one to help us, no one in control. We thus abandon the only God who can give us the strength to carry on. The dark side (if you want to see it as such) of acknowledging that God is sovereign, is that you have to allow him to work in ways that seem disastrous to you, that seem cruel and unfair. It’s here that we have to balance God’s sovereignty with his love, his justice and his knowledge which is vastly superior to us. We may never know why certain things happen, but God calls on us to trust his working in our lives, regardless of how things look to us. The alternative is to have a universe in which there are no explanations and only chaos rules. Badke (2002).
Mr. Badke makes an interesting point. Because God is sovereign, Christians must take comfort in that, even in times of personal suffering and devastation because the alternative, a creation without God, is one without meaning. With a faith in a sovereign God who wills suffering, at least we know that tragedy has a purpose and it is not just part of a chaotic meaningless existence.
Dr. Sydney Page stated: "I would try to encourage them not to see this as God punishing them, but as a consequence of living in a fallen world (i.e., I would not play down the evil character of what had happened, but affirm the rightness of being angry that such things happen)." Page (2002).
He also notes the importance of showing God’s love and compassion, and that this type of discussion should not take place immediately in the wake of a tragedy. This is good advice, as people do need time to adjust to their new situation, and I think a healthy anger with suffering and tragedy can at times assist in healing. The suppression of hurt and anger is not healthy. It is better to be honest in anger with God and to seek his understanding in times of great turmoil.
Dr. Larry Perkins noted that: "I think that one concept to share would be our confidence in the goodness of God." Perkins (2002).
Dr. Brian Rapske stated that he "would gently and confidently assert the greatness of God based upon Scriptures, and resist the temptation to ‘redefine’ greatness to something less (which is idolatry)." Rapske (2002).
Both comments are valid. God is still good; he has demonstrated saving goodwill to humanity through Christ. Also, he is still great, and not unable or totally unwilling to prevent tragedy. Instead, at times, he uses human tragedy and suffering for his own good purposes.
Rvd. Stephen Felkner stated concerning this question and this type of suffering: "The context is eternity. The extreme pain of this world makes no sense outside of this context." Felkner (2002).
God’s plans indeed do not make sense unless everlasting life, and the healing that will take place within it are considered when dealing with pain and suffering.
My interviewees were:
Rvd. David Adams, Anglican Church of Canada
Rvd.Daniel Clark, Curate, Holy Trinity Anglican Church Manchester England
Rvd. Stephen W. Felkner, All Saints Anglican Church, Fountain Valley, California
Dr. Wayne Mouritzen, Retired, Former Presbyterian Minister, now a Lay Anglican Rvd.
Tony Roache, Priest-in-charge, Parish of Ringley with Prestolee in the Diocese of Manchester, Church of England
Dr. Kenton C. Anderson, Dean, Northwest Baptist Seminary, Fellowship of Evangelical Baptist Churches, British Columbia
William Badke, Associate Professor, Associate Librarian, Associated Canadian Theological Schools
Dr. Sydney Page, Professor of New Testament, Taylor Seminary, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Dr. Larry Perkins, Associated Canadian Theological Schools, Trinity Western University
Dr. Brian Rapske, Professor of New Testament. Associated Canadian Theological Schools, Trinity Western University
