Two spiritual leaders teach the meaning of Christian suffering through their own experience and prayers. They are St. Philip Howard and Elizabeth Leseur.
St. Philip Howard (ca. 1557-1595 A.D.) was baptized a Catholic but raised as a Protestant. He lived after the time England broke its relations with the Vatican in 1536 A.D. From a politically privileged family, he did not do much good during his time in the royal court. However, when he heard how St. Edmund Campion debated at London, Philip began to rethink and reform his life. He was reconciled with his neglected wife and returned to the Catholic Church in 1584 A.D. As a Catholic, he was accused of treason when it became a common belief that he worked with Mary Queen of Scots. The charge was not proven, but he was fined with an amount of money. He was again charged with treason during the time of the Spanish Armada and ordered executed. However, the sentence was never carried out. But he was imprisoned for a long time until he died on October 19. He was canonized by Pope Paul VI in 1970 as one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales [1].
St. Philip Howard wrote a prayer that describes the context of the suffering he had to endure:
"O Christ my Lord, who for my sins did hang upon a tree, grant that your grace in me poor wretch, may still ingrafted be. Grant that your naked hanging there may kill in me all pride, and care of wealth since you did then in such poor state abide. Grant that your crown of prickling thorns, which you for me did wear, may make me willing for your sake all shame and pain to bear. Grant that your pierced hand, which did of nothing all things frame, may move me to lift up my hands and ever praise your name. Grant that your wounded feet, whose steps were perfect evermore, may learn my feet to tread those paths which you have gone before. Grant that your blessed grave wherein your body lay awhile, may bury all such vain delights as may my mind defile. Grant, Lord, that your ascending then may lift my mind to thee, that there my heart and joy rest, though here in flesh I be."
Another spiritual influence on the meaning of Christian suffering is Elizabeth Leseur. Elizabeth Leseur was a French mystic who was known for her diary and the conversion of her husband to the Christian faith. Because her husband was a medical doctor who was anti-clerical and part of the atheistic movement, Elizabeth suffered much in her married life before his conversion [2].
In her prayer, Elizabeth Leseur sees suffering as one with great use to others, if it is suffered with and for Jesus. She prays:
"Lord, make us realise that simply suffering for Jesus' sake and by bearing about our bodies the dying of Jesus, we can do more for him and for others than we can be being active. It is very hard to understand this, so please make us realise that our very helplessness can be of great use to others, if we suffer it with and for Jesus."
Those who are not in a state of suffering at present, may forget the value of human suffering if it is offered in union with Jesus who suffered on the Cross. They may even be adverse to its presence, in others and in themselves, seeking only what will bring comfort and ease. But once, like Elizabeth Leseur, one sees the meaning of any suffering and "graft" that suffering to the "dying of Jesus", it has much meaning in the Christian sense. In the prayer of St. Philip Howard mentioned above, it can even have a redemptive use.
It takes a certain level of suffering experienced by both St. Philip Howard and Elizabeth Leseur to pray as they did in the prayers written above. Some often view suffering from the outside, like the friends of Job, who present many theories for what Job had experienced in his suffering. This is when empathy and compassion weakens, leaving the soul open to pride and moralizing (as did the friends of Job).
Elizabeth Leseur, in another prayer, teach us about the meaning of Christian suffering:
"Our suffering works mysteriously, first in ourselves by a kind of renewal and also in others who are perhaps far away, without ever knowing what we are accomplishing. Christ on the cross has perhaps done more for humanity than Christ speaking and acting in Galilee or Jerusalem. Suffering creates life. It transforms everything it touches. Help us to understand this through Christ, our Lord."
It is in prayer and a deeper spiritual relationship with Christ crucified that the gift to understand Christian suffering is bathed in great light. Lent is therefore an opportunity to look at suffering not from secondary experiences, but within, in reflecting from the pain, burdens, and afflictions of our past. Much wisdom can be obtained from understanding why God "makes bad things happen to good people" at certain times in life. To penetrate the mystery of suffering and see the trials of this life as the passion of Christ will make one more according to His likeness and image: a man for others and in service to building God's Kingdom. Even at times when one has hurdled a "Job-like" suffering, Lent is a time to reflect on how suffering, seen in the context of Christ's suffering, can make us see hope and life beyond that suffering. Just as Elizabeth Leseur "bear about our bodies the dying of Jesus" in her life, and St. Philip Howard prays for the grace that will "bury all such vain delights as may [our] mind defile", we may be purified of pride and be led by the Spirit, who lifts us beyond all human suffering.
Related blog posts:
- [1] Dictionary of Saints, by John J. Delaney
- [2] AI Overview for search query "elizabeth leseur", March 9, 2025, Google.com
