why do bad people suffer? ti man! what about the good? - 25th sun B

Why do bad people suffer?  The bible has a ready reply for that question.  It has the story of Adam and Eve to prove it, it has the story of Cain and Abel and Lamech to further justify it, it has the story of Babel and the flood to further explain it.  It is easy to understand why bad people suffer and I believe even bad people will understand more readily why they suffer.  “Ti man” is a good enough explanation, isn’t it?
But the more pressing question is why do good people suffer?  The bible is aware of it, Job questioned it, Sirach made some attempt to find a solution to it.  But until now there is no clear and definite answer.  Jesus was a good person and we all know how he ended up.  In fact our first reading today, the book of wisdom spoke of him already in prophecy when it says that the righteous person will be hated, he will be despised, he will be made to suffer and he will be killed by evil men.  Did Jesus do anything to merit their hatred and anger?  No.  Jesus healed their sick, he even raised some of their dead, he fed the hungry crowd and he spoke to them about love and peace and forgiveness.  He did good, and yet he was made to suffer, and eventually he will be nailed on the cross. 

He will not be the last.  Many will follow him. 
So can we explain now why good people suffer?  No we cannot.  What good people can do despite the difficulties and trials of remaining good is to hold on to that the final statement made by evil doers themselves in our reading today, when they said – “Let us condemn him to a shameful death; for according to his own words, God will take care of him.”
It is difficult to become good.  It is difficult to remain good.  Kadamo gid sang tsansa nga mahagaran ka, kadamo gid sang kahigayunan nga madala ka sa kalainan.  Kis-a suyaan ka pa kay wala ka pakikisama.  Kis-a madulaan ka mga migo kay indi ka magsunod sa ila dikta kag sa ila luyag.  But like Jesus you hold on to the final words in this passage from Wisdom – God will take care of you.  They can make you suffer, they can make you look and feel bad, but if you do the good that you need to do even against all odds, God will take care of you.  God will take care of you.
I never really wanted to become a priest.  In fact I was not accepted when I was first year high school because I told the rector the truth – I wanted to become a doctor and I wanted to study in UP.  It was not the truth that made me study here.  It was my pride that made me study here, the fact that I could not accept that I failed in an entrance exams.  But when I was already here there was something in the priesthood that attracted me.  It was the difficulty of the priesthood.  Hard work, low pay – those words attracted me.  It was posted for a while on the bulletin board just beside the telephone booth.  Hard work, low pay.  I do not know why it attracted me, but it did.  Is there a strain of sadism in me?  Do I take pleasure in being tortured?   I do not know. Probably it is the challenge to believe that against all odds and against all obstacles, God will take care of me, God will take care of us.  That has always been the greatest difficulty and challenge in my life – to believe that God will take care of me.