It is a pity that to-day's first reading finishes at v.7. If it went on to v.12 we would realise that St. Paul was referring to an actual threat to his life. We do not know the nature of the threat but it seems to have been long-standing and it was causing him distress and anxiety. There was a plus-side, though, to his suffering. Firstly it bred in Paul a great trust in God which enabled him to keep on going despite all the difficulties he was experiencing. Secondly, the suffering made him a compassionate friend to all those in distress. Like Paul, the Corinthians, seemed to have been suffering and so Paul consoles and encourages them.

His confidence that in the end all would be well for those who suffer with Christ is shown by the Gospel to be well based. The Beatitudes predict a reversal of fortune for those who work and suffer with Christ.

Suffering,mourning, hunger and persecution are not good in themselves. They are evil. Accepted willingly, however, as inevitable consequences of an attempt to live a Christian life, they lose their dreadful sting.

We may not be saints and heroes and we may not have to face great sufferings. Nevertheless, in the moderate but exasperating difficulties we experience as we try to be kind and decent people the thought may suddenly strike us with an almost dream like quality: "everything is going to be O.K." With Christ we can endure and we can stretch out a compassionate hand to those who suffer.