Why Is There Evil in the World?

"Do not yield to the temptation to regard pain as an experience which is only negative, to the point of doubting God’s goodness. In the suffering Christ every sick person finds the meaning of his or her afflictions. Suffering and illness belong to the human condition—we are fragile, limited creatures, marked by original sin from birth. In Christ, who died and rose again, however, humanity discovers a new dimension to its suffering: instead of a failure, it reveals itself to be the occasion for offering witness to faith and love."

"Man is called to joy and to a happy life, but every day he experiences many forms of pain. Illness is the most frequent and common expression of human suffering. In the face of it we spontaneously wonder: ‘Why do we suffer? For what do we suffer? What does people’s suffering mean? Can physical or moral pain be a positive experience?’ Each one of us has certainly asked these questions more than once, either from our bed of pain, during convalescence, before undergoing surgery or whenever we have seen a loved one suffer. For Christians these are not unanswerable questions. Suffering is a mystery, often inscrutable to reason. It is part of the mystery of the human person, which is only explained in Jesus Christ, the One who reveals to the human person his or her own identity. Only through Jesus will we find the meaning of all that is human. ‘Suffering,’ as I wrote in the Apostolic Letter Salvifici doloris, ‘cannot be transformed and changed by a grace from outside, but from within…. However, this interior process does not always follow the same pattern…. Christ does not answer directly and he does not answer in the abstract this human questioning about the meaning of suffering. Man hears Christ’s saving answer as he himself gradually becomes a sharer in the sufferings of Christ. The answer which comes through this sharing…is above all a call: Follow me! Come! Take part through your suffering in this work of saving the world, a salvation achieved through my suffering! Through my cross’ (n. 26). This is why, when faced with the enigma of suffering, we Christians can say: "Your will be done, Lord," and repeat with Jesus: "My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will’ (Mt. 26:39)."

"Dear people who are sick, be able to find in love the salvific meaning of your sorrow and valid answers to all of your questions. Yours is a mission of most lofty value for both the Church and society. You who are weighed down by suffering are in the front line of those beloved by God. Just as he looked on all those whom he met on the roads of Palestine, Jesus looks on you with eyes full of tenderness. His love will never fail."

"Always look trustingly toward Jesus, the ‘Suffering Servant,’ asking him for the strength to transform the trial afflicting you into a gift. Listen with faith to his voice repeating to each of you: ‘Come to me, all who are weary and oppressed, and I will give you rest’ (Mt 11:28)."

"The sick or suffering bear Christ’s cross. Each of them is a great prophet, a very great prophet who bears Christ’s cross with his strength, in his light."