Religion and Theology

The Crucified God of Compassion, Chapter 3 of the Quest for the Living God by Elizabeth Johnson, talks about God who is compassionate enough to suffer along with his people. In this chapter, the works of Johann Baptist Metz, Dorothee Soelle and Jurgen Moltman are discussed and emphasized.

The idea of compassionate God in times of suffering came along after the end of the Second World War in Germany. The suffering during this time includes poverty, rape, slavery, war, genocide and hunger. These sufferings damaged each persons character and gift of love. Political theologians viewed God to be always present in the sufferings in Germany, particularly with the Holocaust of the Jews. Soelle believed that God stands along with all who suffer and in pain.

The views and reflections of God having been always along with those who are in pain can be realized through the Holy Scripture itself. The compassionate God had cried and face the suffering along with his people through Jesus Christ. They particularly believed that God is actually not just watching people to suffer but is always our companion every time we face challenges and sufferings. The crucifixion of Jesus Christ showed God as a compassionate and self-giving God.

The crucified God of compassion shows a God who suffers and stand up and raise after all the sufferings. This power by God of bringing death to an everlasting life transcends all sufferings his people could ever imagine.