"Perfected Through Suffering". The Book of Job and C.S. Lewis‘ "The Problem of Pain" on the Meaning of Human Suffering (eBook, PDF)

Essay from the year 2007 in the subject Theology - Systematic Theology, , language: English, abstract: This paper explores the meaning and purpose of human suffering through a comparative reading of the biblical Book of Job and C.S. Lewis‘s "The Problem of Pain". It argues that both texts reject simplistic explanations of pain as either divine punishment or absurd misfortune. Instead, they present suffering as a means of moral and spiritual transformation. Job‘s endurance in the face of loss, affliction, and divine silence exemplifies a model of faithful perseverance rooted in relationship rather than explanation. Lewis deepens this insight by framing suffering as a tool of divine pedagogy-awakening the soul, purifying the will, and revealing the limits of self-sufficiency. Together, these two voices affirm that suffering, rightly understood and endured, is not a contradiction of divine love but its most demanding expression.