Abstract

Building on the thought and life of Jürgen Moltmann, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Simone Weil and Teresa of Calcutta, this article demonstrates that it is possible for Christians to find joy in the context of suffering. This joy is the joy of being intimate with Christ, of experiencing Christ’s redeeming power at work effectively transforming one’s whole person. In Christ, spiritual darkness and suffering can become a most effective manifestation of the recreating communion of the human with the divine. Perfect discipleship identifies with the complete offer of Jesus Christ, the suffering God, received within one’s heart, so that invincible light might be brought into the night of the world.