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Many Christians are familiar with the idea that we are supposed to “offer up” our sufferings to God. Whether it’s a mild inconvenience like bad traffic, a major hardship like a layoff, or a tragic and devastating loss, there’s a pretty good chance that someone at some point will tell you to offer up your pain. Maybe the person telling you to do this will even be yourself.
For some people, the idea that we can offer up our sufferings is helpful and meaningful. But others might hear “offer it up” as an instruction to stay quiet and stop pestering people with their complaints. Or they may feel that their obligation to offer up their hardships means they’re not allowed to ask for help or try to change things.
What does that advice to “offer it up” even mean? Where did the idea come from, is it rooted in good theology, and is it really the best way for Christians to address suffering?
On this episode of Glad You Asked, the hosts talk to religion scholar Emilie Townes. Townes is professor of religion and Black studies at Boston University and an American Baptist clergywoman. She has taught at multiple schools, including Chicago Theological Seminary, DePaul University, Saint Paul School of Theology, Union Theological Seminary in New York, Yale Divinity School, and Boston University School of Theology. She is the author of Breaking the Fine Rain of Death: African American Health and a Womanist Ethic of Care (Wipf and Stock) and Womanist Ethics and the Cultural Production of Evil (Orbis Books).
You can learn more about this topic using these links:
- “Can the church venerate child saints without celebrating suffering?” by Ellyn Sanna
- “Lament and Hope: Defying this Hot Mess,” by Emilie Townes
- “No one can avoid suffering, but Jesus points a way to healing,” by Kevin Considine
- “Good pain widens possibilities. Bad pain just hurts.” by Alice Camille
