Lead Minister
This morning’s scripture reading comes to us from the Book of Job, one of the most famous and most ancient stories we have inherited addressing the question of human suffering. In fact, this story is so ancient, that although it’s believed to have been first recorded about 3,000 years ago, similar stories have been said to have existed for over 5,000 years. Humanity has been grappling with the question of suffering and particularly the question of why bad things happen to good people, for a very, very long time.
For those of you who may not be familiar with the story of Job, the story begins with conversation between God and Satan in which God encourages Satan to have a go at Job to see if Job will remain faithful to God even under tragic circumstances. Bit by bit, Job begins to lose everything he ever held dear. First his animals die and his servants are killed. Then, all 10 of his children perish. If that isn’t enough, Job himself becomes afflicted with a debilitating skin disease. Adding insult to injury, Job’s so-called friends try to come up with explanations for his suffering. Surely he’s done something to deserve what has happened to him. They plead with him to scour his past looking for the misdeeds that have led to his sorrow. They even suggest that the severity of his suffering is an indicator that he probably deserves even greater punishment than he has received. But Job insists he has done no wrong.
As Job wrestles the question of why these horrible things have happened to him and to his family when he has been such a blameless and faithful man, as he wonders why wicked people prosper and the innocent suffer, he calls upon God over and over again to tell him the reason why this is happening. For 37 chapters of the story the voice of God is silent.
Finally, the writer of the book of Job has God respond. When that happens, they essentially have God say “Job get out of your head. Quit trying to figure out things that you will never figure out and searching for answers that simply cannot be found. Suffering is part of life. Get out of your head and into your heart, get into a place of reverence, awe and humility at the very miracle of being alive, being part of my creation”
Whenever tragedy strikes, whenever something bad happens to good people, to us or to those we love and we are left feeling blindsided or bewildered. Even when disasters occur that we know could have logically been prevented, there’s something in our human nature that makes us want to figure out why. It’s one of the ways our minds try to help us control the uncontrollable. If I can figure out why this happened maybe I can prevent it from ever happening again. If I can make sense out of what has happened then maybe I won’t feel quite so vulnerable or quite so humbled.
If there is one thing we humans really don’t like, it’s being out of control. That’s why a 5,000 year old story still has wisdom to offer us about suffering today and beyond that about life in general.
In chapter 38, when God finally speaks to Job out of the whirlwind, Job’s focus is redirected away from his personal suffering and towards the vast array of life that surrounds him. When that happens, he’s pointed towards truths about the nature of God and life itself that are embedded in the cosmos and in our kin, the animals. What’s insinuated is that these truths are embedded within us as well.
Consider the lionesse, God says to Job. Do you know how to instruct her to stalk her prey? What about the ravens. Was it you who figured out what diet suits the ravens best? Did you teach the hawk to fly or command the eagle to build her nest in the heights? No you didn’t did you? I made her so that she would know how to do that for herself says God.
Now we actually do know a lot more about the natural world then we did 3,000 years ago when the Book of Job was written. And isn’t it true that the more we know, the more incredible nature seems to be? For example, we now know that male seahorses carry and give birth to their young. The female seahorse transfers her eggs into a pouch on the belly of the male and he carries them around for about six weeks until he gives birth to the baby seahorses. How amazing is that?
Several years ago, a zoologist at the Central Park zoo in New York city observed two male penguins pairing up. He watched them make a nest and take turns sitting on a rock just like the other penguin couples made nests for their eggs. He decided to see what would happen if he gave these two male penguins a real egg to sit on. So he brought them an egg and sure enough they took turns sitting on it until it hatched. When baby Tango was born, he became the first penguin in the zoo to have two daddys.
Our awareness of these and other realities doesn’t just elicit wonder and awe. It teaches us things about the nature of God and the created world. Observing what happens in the wild shows us that God loves diversity.
Considering even one type of animal illustrates the incredible creativity with which we have been made. There are 71 different types of domestic cats, 9 types of tigers, 7 types of leopards, 5 types of cougars, two main categories of lions and more. God has an amazing imagination. Why would we want to limit our own imaginations when it comes to honoring our human diversity and to dreaming up new solutions to the problems we have created here on earth.
Observing the fauna also teaches us there is great resiliency built into nature. Over and over again species have evolved and adapted to their environment. Science has taught us that there was a point in history when sea creatures grew legs that brought them up onto land and insects grew wings and learned how to fly. There are birds that have grown longer beaks over time to adapt to birdfeeders and reptiles living in the desert that have developed skin that “drinks” dew.
Of course we know also that many species have not been able to adapt to changes in our environment but a remarkable number have.
When we reach those moments when we think we have come to the edge of our knowing, observing and connecting with our animal kin can encourage us to keep an open mind about what’s possible.
If there is anything the last few years have taught us, surely it is that we are more resilient than we often think we are. We are capable of adaptation. There are more possibilities in seemingly impossible situations than we think. If God so abundantly provides for the lioness, the raven and the hawk, when we find ourselves in need, we too are compassionately and graciously provided for.
Our human centered thinking has created a myriad of problems for us and for our world. It is currently bringing us to an unprecedented crisis. We are on track for catastrophic changes to our environment.
The story of Job provides no truly satisfying answers for presence of suffering in our world. It gives no good reasons for why the wicked prosper and the blameless perish. It doesn’t help us understand why one person gets a life threatening illness and the next person doesn’t or what anyone ever did to deserve any of the challenges they have faced in life.
What it does is point us towards our connection with the living world. And in so doing, it redirects us to the mystery and awe in which we were created and the power we have within us to thrive and to flourish, to find solutions to the problems we have created It reminds us of the wonder of creation itself and the inherent possibilities that have been embedded in our dna. It encourages us to pay attention to our kin the animals and to see in them the revelation of something bigger and beautiful at work in the world and a reason for working to save it.
As we approach the end of the Season of Creation in the church, I want to encourage each one of us to seriously consider at least one practical change we can make to our own behaviour to signify our commitment to caring for our planet.
It could be that you are going to choose to walk or take public transit more often; or cut down or cut out your consumption of meat; perhaps you will buy more second hand clothes, furniture or other household items; or gift people only with consumables this coming Christmas season and wrap your presents in recyclable or reusable materials; will you volunteer to clean up our shoreline a few times a year.
These may seem like small things in the face of such a large challenge facing us and our planet but each small change we make, changes us and when we are changed, the world is changed. We were made for greatness just like the raven, the lioness and the hawk. Let’s remember who we are and what we were made for.