Suffering

How do I react when I see suffering? There is a man tortured, beaten and nailed to the cross. I am appalled. An inner voice yells out no. Let's do something to stop the hurting.

I would like to help people in emergency. It would be worse if people would inflict pain, in order to help me. How would I feel then? Stop, I would tell him. Leave it, I will cope with my life, I am an adult, I can take responsibility for my own life.

Through his pain,he suffers because of my existence,a debt imposed on me. I would not blame people if circumstances were opposite . I am fond of others owing me a favor.

To have a debt owed to a dead person is still weirder. Yes, I can no longer repay. How do I get rid of this debt, which I did not ask for? That depresses me, because it is an impossible task.

Unsolvable ? No, not quite. To what kind of action do I feel prompted? I can go to church, donate, pay contributions to ease my mind. Was this perhaps the intention of Jesus Christ, when he died for our sins? Only at that time there was no church. As I understand it, Jesus wanted to teach people to deal with love each other.

When other people suffer in my presence, then I want to help them. Therefore I could be manipulated. There is a button to be pressed within me. I think it is prudent to obey for my everyday life some sensible rules.

I ask myself: Is my counterpart in a real lurch, or does he play a story? In the first case, I help, in the second case, I cherish the successful show.

Is the sufferer willing to help himself , or is he suffering deliberately? Those who will not help themselves, are like bottomless barrels. I can support them until my forces are exhausted, help will have no effect. The helper will need help him selves in the end. There is no general recipe. Helping people to help themselves is ok. Everything else must be left to organizations that have more power to shoulder problems than a single man.

Would the assistance be a long-term commitment? Then, the suspicion of exploiting arises. I check whether I want to help by clarifying whether the it is help for self-help, and if so, whether to help is a decision of my heart. Without my heart I would not go for long term.

In my opinion, we need a social state, which allows the loving people to help without overstraining themselves. A social state, who jumps in, where individuals fail, which enlists all citizens (through taxes) to bear the task. I would gladly pay those taxes.

In the case of a dead man, I am not in a position to help. Church in the modern era should, in my opinion, orient her modern work to the survivors and to ethic, such as
The proscription of management ideologies to cut jobs despite profit.
The outlawing of war, based on lies, keyword Iraq war.
The proscription of rape camps, keyword civil war in Yugoslavia.
The outlawing of prisons devoid of civil rights, keyword Guantanamo.
The proscription of the exclusion of the unemployed and other minorities.

The list can be easily extended. Their common principle is one thing. When we see people suffering, then the individual should help according to his powers and talents and help for the rest must be left to the state or organizations.