ways to put an end to corrupt systems, like the ones which allow the girl to suffer in her cage in Amsterdam. We find strength for the day, and we find community and purpose. We find a personal relationship with Christ and with the people of God, too. We find pardon for our sins and the joy of holiness. We learn the most amazing, terrifying, and yet comforting thing we can learn: God has always been concerned about all of life. When that happens to us as persons and especially as communities, then all of life begins to come into right relationship with God. That is the good news . . . Thy kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.
A Helpful Conversation Partner
I don’t know if we realize it, but when we consider heartbreaking issues like sex slavery, or poverty, or racism, or economic injustice, we’re actually struggling with the problem of suffering. Suffering is everywhere, and it is inescapable. Much of our life’s time and energy will be spent trying to avoid, endure, and overcome suffering. One of the things which makes the Christian faith so incredible is this uncanny ability to find the presence of God in the midst suffering. Suffering is not always eliminated by God’s presence. In fact we would not want to eliminate all suffering, because it seems to be one of the only sure ways we humans change and grow. Yet, we believe suffering can somehow be redeemed through the presence of God. This is an important component of the good news. Jesus has the ability to redeem our suffering and open up the world to new possibilities of life and peace in the midst of suffering.
I once took a class at seminary in which we were asked to read eight or nine books by the most renowned theologians of the early twentieth century, a century marked by more human suffering than nearly any before it. One of the books I was assigned was by a pastor and theologian named Walter Rauschenbusch. When you are faced with a stack of required reading like that, you really want to know if every book will be worth your time, right? Most of the authors were people I’d heard of: Karl Barth, Rudolf Bultmann, Paul Tillich, Reinhold Niebuhr and the like. I was up for reading them, but seriously, Walter Rauschenbusch? I had never even heard of this guy. However, since it was required reading I figured I’d start with Rauschenbusch’s book just to get it out of the way and get on to the good stuff. The book was called A Theology for the Social Gospel.
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