Website design By BotEap.comWhile many tend to glorify suffering, the people who experience it will surely disagree. Having tasted the worst of life, thus far, I can vouch for this.

Website design By BotEap.comHowever, the belief in the virtue of suffering has been embedded in our psyche for centuries. Moreover, that there are also efforts to perpetuate such a sentence for reasons known only to the perpetrators. Some take suffering as a ticket to heaven. Others see suffering as a trademark of Christ’s followers. There are religious denominations that associate or even expect their clergy to inevitably submit to the process. The church members of our Baptist group, for example, basically call their pastors manugpangabudlay. This local dialect in the Philippines connotes hardship and hardship.

Website design By BotEap.comCountries with a colonial past, where religion is used in conquest, are the most vulnerable to this fate. Like the case of the Philippines. Historians note how the colonizers integrated religion into their scheme of subjugation. From feudalist to capitalist systems, religion plays an important role in the domestication of subjects. In the Philippine context, as nationalist historians point out, while the sword was used in conquest, the cross pacified resistance. The bliss of poverty, mourning, oppression, and persecution, as taught in the church, causes people to accept their fate, with relief, expectant of future reward.

Website design By BotEap.comThe belief in the virtue of suffering is most evident during Lent. Most of the time, emphasis has been given to the crucifixion and death in the observance. This can be attributed to the prevailing notion that the cross has saving power. Redemption has been closely associated with pain and suffering. Although Easter is considered the cornerstone of the Christian faith, in practice people place emphasis on the crucifixion.

Website design By BotEap.comCuriously, the church authorities have tried to discourage rituals of self-inflicted pain and suffering in the celebration of Holy Week. The clergy, of various affiliations, consistently stress the meaning of the resurrection in Lenten sermons and teachings. Still, it has yet to seep into the Filipino psyche. Filipinos are very predisposed to suffering, according to Archbishop Emeritus Oscar Cruz. “The Church can only do so much to highlight the importance of Easter among Filipinos because suffering and poverty, as well as love for children, are already deeply embedded in Filipino culture.” He noticed.

Website design By BotEap.comWhile working on this Slow reflection series, I am reminded of an article by a Filipino Jesuit priest. It was published after the execution of three overseas Filipinos convicted of drug offences. Fr. Manoling V. Francisco maintains that suffering is not virtuous, but love is. Suffering is not even redemptive per se. The love that underlies pain makes it salvific.

Website design By BotEap.comDo you then deny the impact of Jesus’ sufferings? Not precisely. Father Francisco qualified his statement: “The physical torment and emotional anguish of Jesus does not redeem us, his willingness to suffer for his convictions and for love of us is what he saves.” You may be interested in reading his article, in the Philippine Star, When suffering becomes a virtue.