LIVING AS THE BELOVED OF JESUS: PASTORAL PERSPECTIVES OF SUFFERING BASED ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN A THESIS-PROJECT SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GORDON-CONWELL THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE DOCTOR OF MINISTRY BY THE REVEREND MARK TEMPLEMAN MAY 2021 Copyright ©2021 by Mark Templeman. All rights reserved. To the past, present, and future members of The Church of the Holy Name in Swampscott, Massachusetts. CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................... v PREFACE ................................................................................................................................. vi ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................ vii Chapter 1. THE MINISTRY PROBLEM IN CONTEXT ........................................................ 1 2. A THEOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK .................................................................... 18 3. REVIEW OF LITERATURE ................................................................................ 47 4. SURVEY AND EVALUATION ........................................................................... 82 5. SEMINAR SERIES OVERVIEW AND A PASTORAL PERSPECTIVE ........ 102 Appendix A. SURVEY ............................................................................................................. 137 B. SEMINAR SERIES ............................................................................................. 139 BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................................................................. 152 VITA ...................................................................................................................................... 155 iv FIGURES 1. Are there instances where you believe God makes us suffer? .................................... 85 2. How often do you believe God intervenes in our suffering? ....................................... 86 3. Do you believe that God wants us to learn anything from suffering? ......................... 87 4. Do Christians or religious people suffer more than non-religious people? ................. 88 5. Does a spiritual person suffer differently for his or her faith in Christ? ..................... 89 6. Faith in God will always bring us healing. .................................................................. 90 7. Time, by itself, will always bring us healing. .............................................................. 91 v PREFACE Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. —John 20:30-31, NIV A disciple of Jesus two thousand years ago had a lifetime to reflect on the greatest love he had ever known. His teacher, Messiah, and friend, who called him and his brother James to leave their fishing nets and follow his call, was the one who cherished and loved him. Some traditions say John was the beloved disciple. Then everything changed, Jesus was tortured and put to death in one of the most cruel and inhumane ways known: crucifixion on a Roman cross. John must have felt his life had collapsed beneath him with the pain of this devastating loss. But that was not the end of the story, with Jesus, suffering and death is never the end. I pray by God’s Spirit that what may develop out of this thesis-project will bring life and hope to those who have concluded that God has nothing relevant to say to them in their pain. Jesus is present with them, and desires more than anything to walk with them, and us, through the endless years of pain in authentic ways that seem impossible to believe or understand. In John, we have a faithful pastor and friend, having learned to live and love through his own suffering by trusting in Jesus alone. John wanted others to know this life-changing love as he did. Inspired and moved by Jesus’ life-giving Spirit, he put pen to scroll so all might believe. In doing so, he echoed the opening words from the book of Genesis: “In the beginning…” vi ABSTRACT This thesis-project is intended to develop a pastoral theology of suffering based on The Gospel of John. Deeper intimacy with Christ is possible, despite the common reaction in painful circumstances to pull away from God. Prayer and communion with God within our soul and interior life develops as we are seen as the beloved of Christ and view ourselves in that light. The contents include a survey, literature review, theological framework, and seminar series for further engagement with the topic. vii CHAPTER ONE THE MINISTRY PROBLEM IN CONTEXT When…G.K. Chesterton spoke of “the furious love of God,” he was referencing the enormous vitality and strength of the God of Jesus seeking union with us. —Brennan Manning, The Furious Longing of God Introduction The problem of suffering in the world today encompasses numerous perspectives from various world religions to post-Christian secular society. Douglas John Hall writes in God & Human Suffering: An Exercise in the Theology of the Cross: “God… and human suffering! Perhaps the most difficult combination of words in the Christian vocabulary—in the human vocabulary!”1 The reality raises endless questions and speculation about God’s perceived lack of involvement and action within the church and outside of the stained-glass sanctuaries. Ridiculous religious cliches are carelessly bandied about, such as: “God needed another angel,” at the death of a child, or “It is beyond our understanding; we’ve just got to read the Bible and trust God’s will,” or “They’re in a much better place.” These responses, which pastors have heard good Christian people in the church say in situations of grief and death, seem cold-hearted and bloodless at best. Even somewhat reasonable answers offered to these complicated questions often provide more cold comfort than actual comfort after a devastating experience, such as the death of a spouse, child, friend, or parent. Additional layers of complexity in faith and belief arise when a person is involved in an accident or becomes ill with some disease, and at times it appears God intervenes and saves someone who walks away without a scratch from a fiery car crash. This appears to be a miracle, 1. Douglas John Hall, God & Human Suffering: An Exercise in the Theology of the Cross (Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1986), 13. 1 while another person dies in a minor accident. Pastors have prayed for many individuals in the hospital with dreaded diseases, and some have made a full recovery, while others have not. Why does it seem God answers certain prayers with healing, and in other situations, He seems to be completely silent and unresponsive, as if one person mattered more to Him, while another did not receive the healing that was also prayed for in faith. The process through which individuals synthesize personal experiences of suffering and death, as well as acts of terrorism, violence, suicide, and mass shootings that are rampant in our society, affects human beings in devastating ways and brings accusatory questions to the forefront of grief: Is God dead? Does God care? Why does He not intervene to prevent such awful tragedies from happening if He is a loving, caring, God? In the horror of suffering, it can be extremely difficult to offer perspectives that help others view how God works and moves within human lives and the world. John Stott writes of this difficult problem: “The fact of suffering undoubtedly constitutes the single greatest challenge to the Christian faith, and has been in every generation.”2 As a pastor in a small New England town, I see these painful realities and minister to those who live them every day. Not surprisingly, the most-read Bible verse on the popular website biblegateway.com is John 3:16. It seems almost obvious to say it and little more than a sign held up at sporting events to be ridiculed by television viewers and people in the stands. What is the path from catch phrase to the deep, abiding reality of what this single passage from John’s Gospel states with such clarity? How does it translate to people suffering in a post-Christian society? It is my goal to explore a pastoral theology of suffering as rooted in the Gospel of John and determine if such a theology might broaden these limited perspectives of God, how He relates to creation, and His 2. John R.W. Stott, The Cross of Christ (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1986) 311. 2 ultimate purposes for his people. Perhaps individual perspectives and personal perceptions of who God is, what He allows, is He loving, what kind of God allows His only son to die, or how to be in relationship with such a deity who seems silent and indifferent in the midst of the suffering of the world, needs drastic transformation and teaching. Consider the following case study. Case Study 1 The anger in the room was so intense, I thought the person in front of me might become physically violent. I was making a pastoral visit to a family who had just lost their six-year-old daughter several months before. Having never known the couple, this was my first contact with them, and I was met with white-hot rage. I had heard the story prior to the visitation from those who knew the family and the details of what happened. This beautiful little girl had drowned after falling into the family swimming pool in the backyard on a July afternoon. The parents were gone for just a few moments and asked their older daughter to watch over her sister while they stepped inside to prepare lunch. I knew going in that the situation would be difficult, but I was unprepared for the fury the mother unleashed at me, the church, and God. They had lost their youngest child. Pain and grief had consumed them. I wish I could say that years later, they had worked through the grief and loss. While the family walked the desolate months and years since that day, they never attended church again and had developed a thick shell around themselves. The mother said, “The only thing I have left is my anger, and I certainly don’t give a damn about God.” What are appropriate pastoral responses to the reality of a loving God who allows people to suffer? In those moments with that family, I had nothing tangible to offer them in their darkness, except my presence with them as their priest. Had I pulled out my Bible and pointed to 3