Book: The Meaning of Suffering

Where have we gone wrong that we suffer so meaninglessly? Archimandrite Seraphim answers this question with penetrating clarity and with a compassion that warms the heart, helping us to come to the point where “quiet hope has taken the place of the bitter despair of suffering, and suffering is not unbearably heavy anymore, because it gives birth to sweet fruit.”

“The question of suffering is one of the most sensitive questions. Many ask themselves: why has God created us to suffer in this world from diseases, sorrows, calamities, troubles, and misfortunes? … For those who do not believe in God, this world is a hopeless valley of sorrows.”

—Fr. Seraphim Aleksiev

Lack of faith in God and lack of repentance are the causes of great suffering in our times. Repentance and reconciliation lead to the gateway of heaven. It not only alleviates the anguish of suffering but actually transforms this suffering into the intense joy of being reunited with our Lord Jesus Christ.

“… Godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of this world worketh death.”

—II Corinthians 7:10