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Henrik Hagnell
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Hi, guys —
Laudetur Iesus Christus!
One could argue that a sinner is a person fleeing from pain. All sins are basically fleeing from pain and the fact that we will all die on a certain day can be painful.
I think Thomas Aquinas said that it is unnatural for a man to flee from pain instead of facing it. One would then have to say that people who (masturbate, drink too much, or refuse to talk about death) are people fleeing from pain.
The goal of a faithful and humble Catholic would see reality as it is with all the pain.
Then we have another problem when speaking about pain. Pain is said to be evil but evil is simply a privation of good. Pain cannot be evil as it exists. Pain is something good that can lead us closer to God.
- What does the Church say about this?
Henrik
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What does the Church say about pain and how can pain be evil if evil is just the privation of good? }
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Bob replied:
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Henrik,
I am not aware of the Church addressing this point directly but I would say that the idea is akin to Redemptive suffering.
Christ suffered and, in essence embracing pain and in so doing, made it possible for all our sufferings to be united to Him and therefore to take on meaning and purpose. As St. Paul said,
24 I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ' afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the Church.
(Colossians 1:24) |
Christians learn not to run or hide from pain, but to embrace their Cross. That is our goal, that is our challenge.
Peace,
Bob Kirby
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John replied:
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Henrik,
I don't believe there is an official teaching that avoiding pain is sin.
The Church has a lot to say about suffering and how it can be redemptive in the temporal sense and distributive sense, if united to the sufferings of Christ and offered for one self or others but the Church doesn't teach us to be masochists.
- If you have a headache, it's not sin to take an aspirin or Tylenol.
- If you have more severe pain, it's not a sin to take a prescribed painkiller.
John
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