Lamentations is a fifty-cent word for 'grieving.' Hearing the words of the prophet Jeremiah this morning, we can imagine him looking out over the city of Jerusalem as smoke rises over the ruint settlement, weeping women search for the bodies of the dead and wail over those found, and enemy soldiers round up survivors to send into exile in Babylonia.
This is a truly devastating time. Jeremiah has lost his nation (Judaea), his city, and his people. If God has not stood up for his elect, who will be left to stand up for the true God? Lamentations engages the serious issues round what it means when tragedy strikes. And, of course, all of us, if we have lived long enough, have experienced the crises of death, disappointment, betrayal, and heartache. These are fibres woven into the very fabric of life, part and parcel of a free universe. In studying Lamentations, we learn three crucial stages of engaging these kinds of personal crisis.
First, there is grieving. It is not an option. We must engage the pain and work through it. In one book on Christian dying, the author mentions a young man who passes away while his cat sits on his chest. When he dies, the beloved pet lets out a blood-curdling howl. I wish, the author declares, that humans could learn to howl like that.
As with any good parental relationship, it is more than ok to be angry with God. The late Jewish author Elie Wiesel describes the conduct of a Bet Din (religious court) inside the Auschwitz death camp during World War II. The court put God on trial and found God guilty for abandoning the chosen people.
Second, there is admitting that we do not understand the injustice. Further complicating the process will be bone-headed but well-intentioned aphorisms. We will told that God won't let you face more than you can handle. (Really?) Or that everything happens for a reason. (Really?) Or that it was God's will that an awful tragedy struck your life. (Really?) Or maybe we are simply told to get over it, don't feel like that. People seem determined to explain, rationalize, or deny what we cannot, in our finite condition, understand.
Finally, the third stage is to decide (as the Bet Din did) to trust in God anyway. We were never promised a rose garden, we were promised God would be with us through all the dark times. The essence of New Testament faith (Gk. pistis) is trust, and confidence in God, and unshakeable commitment to the Holy One. Faith does not consist of cognitive certainties, of correct theological opinions, or assertion of a laundry list of dogmas and doctrines. It cannot be demonstrated in some scientific, objective way. It can only be experienced in the human heart, in relationship, in real gratitude for the good things of life, and confidence in moving forward in every trial and in every new circumstance.
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