A FRANCISCAN SPIRITUAL REVIEW - VOL.X, NO.1 - JANUARY,1960 - SUFFERING

Oct 13, 2026

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A monthly Franciscan spirituality magazine issue (January 1960, Vol. X, No. 1) presents a major article titled “Suffering.” The text examines pain and distress in human life, including physical, intellectual, and spiritual struggles, and reflects on their meaning as Christians and Franciscans. It discusses the entry of sin, suffering, and death into the world, and argues that Christ’s suffering serves divine goodness and love, not mere punishment.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryReligion & Spirituality

FormatPDF

Pages36

Reading Time1 h 31 min

AccessFree to download

SUFFERING

Father Eligius M. Buytaert, O.F.M.

碗ARYGROVE COLLEGELIBRA?DETROIT,MICHIGANPLEASE DO NOT REMOVFCORD A FRANCISCAN SPIRITUAL REVIEW JAN20'60 VOL.X,NO.1,JANUARY,1960 A monthly magazine specifically devoted to Franciscan spirituality is publishedunder the sponsorship of the Franciscan Educational Conference by the FranciscanInstitute,St.Bonaventure University,St.Bonaventure P.O.,New York.Editor:Eligius Buytaert,O.F.M.,Assistant Editor:Sister Mary Frances,S.M.IC.ManagingEditor:Innocent Daam,O.F.M.Editorial Board:Ignatius Brady,O.F.M.,ColumbianDuffy,O.F.M.,Allan Wolter,O.F.M.Annual subscription $2.00. Entered as second class matter on November 25,1950,at St.Bonaventure P.O..New York,under,Act of March 3,1879.All communications,whether of a businessor a literary nature,should be addressed to THE CORD,St.Bonaventure University,St.Bonaventure P.O.New York.Cum permissu superiorum. VOL.X,NO.1,JANUARY,1960 CONTENTS SUFFERING……………… ….1Father Eligius M.Buytaert,O.F.M. CROSSES OVER NAGASAKI:V4Father Gerard Huber,O.F.M. STORY BY A BOOK….12Dorothy G.Wayman THE POVERELLO’S CHILDREN IN THE EMPIRE STATE………18Father Irenaeus Herscher,O.F.M. FRANCISCAN BRIEFS……………………………………27 POEMS: THE KINGDOM……………………11Sister Mary Francis,P.C. HOW TO PRAISE THEE,I KNOW NOT…………………………………17Sister M.Agnes,P.C. WITNESS TO CLARE:20th CENTURY……………………………26Sister Mary Francis,P.C. # SUFFERING Father Eligius M.Buytaert,O.F.M. The life of man is so full of pain and suffering that practically everythinker,Catholic and non-Catholic,has reflected upon the problem.Spiritual writers speak at length of the role of suffering and pain inour ascent towards God.And with reason.We have to contend withphysical pains.We are troubled by intellectual problems.We aredistressed by problems resulting from revelation and our faith.We arepained,rightly,by our past sins and by the feeling that we may relapse.We are afflicted by lack of progress in our spiritual life.Possiblywe are grieved by misunderstandings in our community or congregation.We are distressed by the sins of the world and our inability to do muchabout them.We wanted to be great missionaries,or preachers,orteachers,or artists,or writers,saints,and we end up by being im-mensely mediocre.We suffer from the mediocrity surrounding us andyet do not much better than average.Yes,indeed,pain is a problemin our life.What then is the meaning of suffering?Let us reflect uponit as Christians and Franciscans. We Franciscans,believe that Christ was intended by God to existregardless of whether or not mankind would remain faithful to God.Adam and Eve sinned.Thus sin and suffering and death entered theworld.In the words of God Himself as spoken to Adam:“Cursed isthe earth in thy work;with labour and toil shalt thou eat thereof allthe days of thy life.Thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to thee;and thou shalt eat the herbs of the earth.In the sweat of thy face shaltthou eat bread till thou return to the earth”(Gen.III,17-19).It isquite true that a number of biblical exegetes want to give this text theexclusive meaning of a“medicinal punishment”,as if God,by imposingall that pain,just intended to prevent Adam—and us—from committingmore sins.I think that Scripture goes beyond that.The words“thoushalt eat the herbs of the earth,"for instance,are seemingly opposed tothe words that Adam and Eve have eaten the fruit of life.In addition,one cannot understand suffering of innocent children and sinlesspersons,such as the Blessed Virgin and Christ,if the meaning of painis solely medicinal.Nonetheless,one may accept,with the exegetesmentioned,that suffering is indeed intended as a preventive medicine.Suffering certainly“puts us in our place”as simple limited beings,who . have every reason to be humble.Pangs of conscience surely haveprevented many a sin.Even among us religious,painful situations inthe community,between subjects and superiors or just between averagereligious,have a tendency to bring us back to the straight and narrowpath if we

FAQs

What does the article say about the meaning of suffering in human life?

It presents suffering as a universal problem that includes physical pain, intellectual distress, spiritual setbacks, and moral anguish. It then invites reflection on suffering as Christians and Franciscans.

How does the article connect suffering to the biblical story of Adam and Eve?

It states that Adam and Eve sinned, and therefore sin, suffering, and death entered the world. It quotes Genesis about cursed earth, labor, and return to earth.

What is the article’s view of why Christ suffered?

It argues that God chose a suffering Christ rather than only a glorious one, with reasons not fully revealed. The text presents Christ’s suffering as an act of goodness and love that shows both God’s horror of sin and what can be done with suffering.

Oct 13, 2026

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