For most, when we think of pain, we relate to bodily pain. And yes, it can be excruciating, a crucifixion.
Yet, other levels of pain exist. Talk to someone who is filled with fear, anxiety, doubt, and the like.
St. Thomas Aquinas, explaining our emotions, states we have 11 base emotions in two categories. The first is concupiscible and the second is irascible.
Concupiscible emotions are perceived as desirable with their opposite. The list of concupiscible are:
Love/Hate
Desire/Aversion
Pleasure (Joy)/Pain (Sorrow)
Irascible, meaning ‘in anger,’ are those emotions that refer to more difficult and challenging ones:
Hope/Despair
Fear/Daring
Anger (stands alone)
All other emotions are but fine shades of these primordial eleven as described.
Sadly, emotions are powerful and also painful. Worse, our culture gives primacy to emotions as principles for behavior. ‘How does it make you feel’ is the root, making emotions the basis for decision making.
We are taught to do the things that make us happy — emotionally. Many times what makes us happy for the moment actually leads to dysfunction and addiction. St. Thomas tells us Reason – the power of our intellect that rightly orders – should temper our emotions.
Reason, or our mind, is also a source of pain. The mind seeks goodness, justice, and truth, and when we see evils, injustices and betrayals by lies, it is a deeper level of pain.
We have heard of the injustices concerning human trafficking, slavery, political and even ecclesial cover-ups, and the horror of genocide. These cause excruciating mental pain, for we know we are strangled and suppressed, unable to justify and vindicate the truth.
Finally, we have spiritual pain. This is the deepest level of pain as seen in depression. A person’s life becomes dark: Judas suffered this! So did Peter. Yet Judas despaired, Peter hoped. Judas thought he killed God, Peter believed in God. Today many despair thinking God is dead. This is spiritual pain, and sadly is much taught and believed today. What is the answer to this spiritual pain? Trusting Divine Love as stated in Psalm 23:
The LORD is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack.
In green pastures he makes me lie down;
to still waters he leads me; he restores my soul.