At this moment we Americans are very aware of both the natural and the human phenomena of our world. On the one hand, many are the images, etched upon our memories, of the devastations Harvey has unleashed upon Texas and Louisiana (even though the above photo captures the destruction of WW2); on the other hand, the world’s political (and military) stage has shifted from the terrorism of the Taliban and al-Qaeda, with Syria, Iraq and Iran just off-stage, to the sabre-rattling or missile-launching of Kim Yong-un. (And of course, some suggest that this shift, reflecting the ongoing economic alliances operative in our world, is only a shift of perception: the same choir, just a different solo voice.)
With these events or escalating conflicts well before us, I find within me and hear from those about me the longing for normalcy: would that we could return to “the way life used to be.” However, with some reflection—and I’m not seeking to be pessimistic—the truth is that the way things were differs little from the way things are. As we’ve viewed the destruction left in Harvey’s wake, we have been reminded of hurricanes Katrina (2005) and Sandy (2012), as benchmarks for comparison.
Again, I am not seeking to be pessimistic, and yet recently I was captured by a comment C.S. Lewis made:
“We are mistaken when we compare war with ‘normal life.’ Life has never been normal. Even those periods which we think most tranquil, like the nineteenth century, turn out, on closer inspection, to be full of crises, alarms, difficulties, emergencies.”[1]
Thus what seems generally to be true of human life and/or history is equally so regarding the Christian life. And yet, somehow within Christian circles we have deeply imbibed the thought: all one need do is believe and one will experience a blessed life free from perplexing choices and consequences, and most certainly free from pain and suffering. We have imbibed such a draught, even though it is fully counter Jesus’ warning to His first disciples: “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.”[2]
Such a warning should quell any of our (and my) protests regarding present and normative difficulties and struggles; however, those struggles do not negate a life rich in faith, hope and love.
[1] C.S. Lewis, “Learning in War-Time,” The Weight of Glory (Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1972), pp. 44-45.
[2] Cf. Matthew 10:16.