Triumph Through Failure: A Theology of the Cross

We confront failure in all levels of our humanity. There is failure in the use of the gifts of the earth the unlimited exercise of intelligence the enjoyment of freedom and in the acceptance of the call of an infinite God. The failure to achieve fulfillment at any one of these levels may contribute to a particular frustration that may destroy the wholesome harmony necessary for happiness. In a period of utopian ideologies and theologies this book may serve as a reminder that we do fail and that our faith does not promise that we shall not fail. Yet precisely because we experience failures we find cause for hope and deliverance outside ourselves. This is the theology of the cross--triumph through failure. Patience is a theme that I have pondered over the years after having read the book of John Navone an Italian-American author with the striking title A Theology of Failure in which he explains how Jesus lived patiently. In the experience of limits patience is forged in dialogue with human limits and limitations. There are times when our lives do not call so much for our doing as for our enduring for bearing up (from the Greek hupomon[set macron over e]e) with our own limitations and those of others. Being patient he explains means accepting the fact that it takes time to mature and develop. Living with patience allows for time to integrate and shape our lives. --His Holiness Pope Francis in Papa Francesco: Il Nuovo Papa si Racconta John J. Navone is a Jesuit priest theologian philosopher educator author raconteur and Professor Emeritus of Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome Italy. Having reached the mandatory age he has retired from the Gregorian returned to the Society of Jesus Oregon Province and is now teaching at Gonzaga University in Spokane WA.