A few weeks ago, I wrote about Dan Crews, a quadriplegic in Antioch, IL. The blog post (and a corresponding article on Catholic Exchange and blog post on Reflections of a Paralytic) urge people to send encouraging words and letters to Dan.
Apparently they are. I accidentally came across this article today. Praise God, and keep the letters coming!
Praise God for his magnificent cruelty! Praise him for torturing someone for twenty horrendous years with quadreplegia. Praise God for a living hell. Thank God there's so many healthy people to write "letters of encouragement" to a man going through something they cannot even begin to comprehend. Yes praise God for the living hell of being kept alive in a condition worse than death. After all it is so very inspirational.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous, thank you for your comment. You are right ... none of us can imagine what it is like to be Dan Crews. Although each person in the world can have emphathy for another, none of us fully knows what it is like to be someone else. We all suffer in various ways -- some physically, some emotionally, some mentally, some spiritually, some a combination of these.
ReplyDeleteI happen to know that some of the people who contacted Mr. Crews with letters of encouragement were partially or fully paralyzed. They wanted to speak to him of the hope and joy that they have found even amidst their sufferings. It's an incredible thing to be touched by the love and hope of knowing that God Himself humbled himself to become man and suffer for us. It gives new meaning to suffering. There's far more to be said than would neatly fit in a blog comment, but Anonymous, I hope you come to know that the life of Mr. Crews, while being painfully difficult, does not have to be a "living hell."
God is good, even when it is difficult to see. If people wish to express this to Mr. Crews it is because each of us know that at times we need the reminder and encouragement from others when we feel overwhelmed or unloved.
Bl. John Paul II once wrote that "man cannot live without love." In reaching out to Mr. Crews, people from throughout the country wanted him to know the love that transforms lives and heals hearts.
God bless you.