Suffering is always hardest when it affects children
Music Provides Comfort for our Suffering
Some of the best music ever written was inspired by the raw emotion of shared human tragedies. Case in point, the blues (as a musical genre) were “born out of the collective experience of hardship and resilience, reflecting the struggles and triumphs of African Americans during and after the era of slavery.” (Source: The American Guitar Academy) People like BB King and Louis Armstrong wrote and played music that tugged at a common heartstring that resides in all of us – one that helps us cope with and make sense of that which has tested us. One that struck a particular chord with me was Louis Armstrong’s hit, “You don’t know the troubles I’ve seen, nobody knows my sorrows.” (circa: 1962) Louis was best known for what he could do with a trumpet. He had an uncanny ability to make us feel something. So below, I’ve extracted a snippet of his trumpet solo for this song. I hope you can feel the deep emotion of sorrow he’s trying to express. If you’d like to see and hear the entire performance, click here.
Although suffering is not foreign to us, few can claim the heritage of our African American brothers who’ve experienced more than their share – and not just here in America – for slavery was ingrained into many cultures, and the African people were often the ones to pay the price. Few of us can relate to, much less understand, the pain they’ve been through. Yet, thanks to their extraordinary gift, the world has been able to “feel their pain,” and in doing so, connect to our own inner struggles. Their music speaks to our souls and reminds us that we are all connected in a common effort to find our way. May God bless our African American brothers for the gift of their musical genius – it has helped so many of us cope with the troubles life brings.
A Common Bond in Suffering
I don’t know why our African brothers became the modern-day symbol for slavery, but I’m sure they did nothing to deserve it. Like so many things in life, misery does not discriminate according to what we deserve. Good people suffer right alongside those who are not good. This truth causes many to question why God would allow such things. The thought seems rooted in the belief that God should reward us with instant gratification for doing good and instant punishment for doing bad. Jesus disagreed with that perspective when He said, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He (God) causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” Matthew 5:44-45 NIV. The point Jesus is making is that what happens in this life is not where we will find our reward. The challenge is to learn how to “love” and to “pray” for those who choose to hurt you and not keep score along the way.
Clearly, that is a calling easier said than done. Especially if the world seems to have singled you out as a target of persecution. In the Gospel of Mathew, Jesus told His disciples, “You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.” (Matthew 10:22 NIV) Why would Jesus say this? Because He knew that, in a world consumed by sin, God is reviled! And anyone who takes His side is reviled as well. We know that His disciples suffered because of their faith, but so did His people, the Jews. They were chosen by God to be an example of what it would take to please the one and only true God and to have fellowship with Him. Although the disciples responded voluntarily to Jesus’ call, the Jews did not ask to be chosen, nor were they given a choice. God ordained it, and they lived with the results. Part of their cross to bear was that the world resented them because they reminded them that there is a God who will punish those who choose sin over God. The world resented that the Jews labeled their gods inferior and their lifestyles unacceptable. Countless times in the Old Testament, the Jews came upon some group that either God asked them to conquer or that group just attacked them. The outcome was almost always the same – God helped the Jews win. And that one fact didn’t make them very popular. There’s no evidence in the Bible that the Jews taunted other groups or lorded their position over them, but (if they did) it might explain at least some of the world’s resentment and hostility toward them. Bottom line, the Jews were hated, reviled, persecuted, and defeated many times by a wide range of enemies. Many of them, more than once! I think most Christians are vaguely aware of the suffering of the Jews, but they just don’t have a clear perspective on how pervasive that suffering was. The Jews did not share their anguish with the world in the same way as the Africans, so it’s hard to appreciate what they’ve been through. I think that once you see their journey, you’ll have a better understanding of the depth of their sorrow and maybe a greater respect for what they’ve been through.
An Unbelievable History
In ~1200 BCE, the Jews were enslaved by the Egyptians and kept in captivity for >200 years! (Some say it was 430 years). Most people only know this because of the movie, “The 10 Commandments.” But their enslavement was only the beginning of their suffering. Since they didn’t create a musical genre about their suffering, as the saying goes, they suffered in silence. In this blog, I hope to show that what they have been through goes far beyond the Egyptians or the Holocaust.
For example, did you know that (on four occasions) the Jews were completely expelled from:
- Jerusalem, by King Nebuchadnezzar, in 586 BCE.
- Jerusalem, by the Roman Emperor Claudius, in 70AD and again in 136AD
- The United Kingdom by King Edward I in 1290AD
- Spain by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella (the same royalty who sponsored Columbus) in 1492?
Further, the Jews went a long time before God allowed them to build Him a temple. Finally, in 967 BCE, King Solomon built the first Temple. It was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE, and the Jews were then removed from their homeland and taken into exile in Babylon. The second temple was built in 539 BCE, only to be destroyed again, this time by the Romans in 70 AD. The Romans killed many Jews during this period and finally concluded their conquest at the historic site of Masada in 73 AD, where ~967 Jewish men, women, and children chose to take their own lives rather than surrender to the Roman army. By 1095 AD, Pope Urban II (head of the very religion they had rejected – Christianity) launched the Crusades, which resulted in tens of thousands of Jewish deaths. In 1648, “Poland held one-third of the world’s Jewish population and was considered the center of Jewish life. Meanwhile, Poland’s serfs were engaged in a revolution that gave rise to one of the most sadistic pogroms in Jewish history — led by a Ukrainian nationalist, who, right up until the Holocaust, was considered the worst villain in modern Jewish history. He was so evil that Jews nicknamed him “Chmiel the Wicked.” (Source) It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of Jews were killed during this period. Then, as we know, during WWII, the Germans exterminated >6 million Jews. Finally, in 1948, the nation of Israel was established, and ever since, many nations and peoples have called for the complete and total annihilation of Israel (and every Jew in it). One thing is clear – the world has, for >4,000 years, consistently found reasons and ways to express its hatred for the Jews. But there is one more unbelievable fact to share about all their suffering!
An Unparalleled Day
It is a sad history of rejection, but what makes it even more unbelievable is that the Jews hold that all of the above events happened on the same day, in the same month – the 9th of Av (Tisha B’Av), which is the 5th month on the Jewish calendar, usually occurring in July-August of the Julian calendar. It is the darkest day on the Jewish Calendar. All the bad things that ever happened to their people are remembered on this day! It is a day set aside to weep for all the heartache that has befallen their people. On this day, Jews everywhere cry, “How can it be?” Why all this suffering? Is there an explanation? Yes. The Jews believe it began when Joshua sent 12 spies into the Promised Land to check it out and report on the prospects of defeating its inhabitants and claiming the land for themselves as God had promised. In Numbers 13:31 (NIV), the spies reported, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.” Two of the spies disagreed, but the people were persuaded by the ten that the land was unconquerable, and “all the members of the community raised their voices and wept aloud.” (Numbers 14:1 NIV) At that time, they forgot God’s promises and all He had done for them. Instead, they believed their journey from Egypt was a waste. They lost their faith that God could/would fulfill His promises. According to Jewish Oral Traditions, “that night God decreed, “Tonight they cried for nothing, so in the future I will give them a reason to cry!” Those words sealed the fate of generations to come.“[1] And so, the suffering of the Jews is deemed to be of their own making. On Tisha B’Av, all Jews weep, fast, and remember their sorrows. Lamentations 1:16 (NIV) expresses their grief: “This is why I weep, and my eyes overflow with tears.” To think of all the suffering that has preceded them is overwhelming. Will God ever forgive us? Is this what He wants for us because we failed to believe His promises and follow His edicts? The punishment seems unbearable, yet the Jews believe that their God allows such hardships to make them stronger, to save them, and to ultimately bring them back to the land He promised. Despite all their misery, they still follow Him and turn to Him for direction and mercy. They may not have created a musical genre that shares their sorrow and provides comfort for the rest of us, but one thing is clear – the song, “You don’t know the troubles I’ve seen, nobody knows my sorrows,” takes on new meaning when we apply it to what our Jewish brothers have been through.
WHY?
Now, we come to the crux of the matter. Why have our African and Jewish brothers suffered so much? I don’t know about you, but when I contemplate the totality of what they have been through, my problems seem insignificant. Yet, we all know that suffering is part of life. How we respond often determines whether we will survive the experience or not. Intense suffering can lead to deep depression, an inability to cope in society, and even suicide. Finding ways to navigate through our suffering is usually the only sane way out. For our African brothers, music helped them cope. For others, prayer helps. Still others find comfort and solace in the Bible. But, did you know that over 90% of the Bible was written by a Jewish author! THAT was their contribution to the world. The Bible provides us with music for our souls – a concert coming directly from divine inspiration. The Apostle, Paul (who was originally a Jewish Rabbi), wrote in his second letter to the Corinthians of the burdens he had endured for preaching the Gospel. In verses 3-9, he reveals how he dealt with his suffering:
…God is the Father who is full of mercy and all comfort. 4 He comforts us every time we have trouble, so when others have trouble, we can comfort them with the same comfort God gives us… We had great burdens there that were beyond our own strength. We even gave up hope of living. 9 Truly, in our own hearts, we believed we would die. But this (our troubles) happened so we would not trust in ourselves but in God… 2 Corinthians 1:3-9 NCV
The great truth of suffering is… misery loves company. When we are going through hard times, we need and appreciate the love and comfort others provide – especially fellow sufferers! The Jews excel at this! Their traditions, holidays, and culture are geared to provide opportunities for families and communities to mourn, share, celebrate, pray, comfort, and remember together. It is a lifeline for the soul. It inspires creative outlets like writing music, composing poetry, writing books, advocating for change, and sometimes – just praying. Great people and great accomplishments have risen out of the depths of great sorrows. Perhaps that is why so many admire the tenacity of the Jews. They are renowned for being accomplished and pragmatic businessmen, but more than that – survivors! In my life, I have thought more, felt more, prayed more, accomplished more, and listened more when I was going through tough times. How about you?
So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God (because your suffering is helping you to grow), keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you. 1 Peter 4:19 NLT
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[1] “A Time to Weep,” by The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
