The great saint Therese of Lisieux once said, “The world is thy ship and not thy home.”

A great heaviness seems to have filled the air in the wake of recent tragedies, violence and human frailty. It is a stark reminder to us that we live in a fallen world.

This is not our final destination, where one can attain perfect peace and harmony. Since sin entered the world through the disobedience of our first parents, God has continued to stand by us even in the midst of great injustices. It is during difficult times that we must renew the promise that God gave us: He will never abandon us. Now, it is up to us to share that good news with those among us who find themselves perhaps in grief and disbelief. The light of God’s love for us shines brightest when the world is looking for answers.

Our Lord has never left his children without direction during troubled times. In the Old Testament, God began by revealing himself directly to us. One of the most prominent examples of his reassurance is to our forefather in faith, Moses, at the burning bush. Hearing the cries of his people, the Lord reveals his name to Moses and promises to lead his people out of slavery into a free and prosperous land. “Therefore I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and lead them up from that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey.” (Exodus 3:8)

In later days, the Lord sent the prophets to comfort us instead of presenting himself directly. The prophet Isaiah, who preached over 700 years before the birth of Christ, proclaimed, “The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; He has sent me to bring good news to the afflicted, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, release to the prisoners…” (Isaiah 61:1). And through the Psalms of King David, he says, “In their distress they cried to the Lord, who saved them in their peril, sent forth his word to heal them, and snatched them from the grave. Let them thank the Lord for his mercy, such wondrous deeds for the children of Adam.” (Psalms 107:19-21)

Then, in the fullness of time, the Living Word himself came to comfort us, taking on the likeness of a man. That promised Messiah lived, breathed and died to set his people free. Jesus Christ entered into our broken world, not as a distant observer, but as one of us, fully experiencing our pain, suffering, betrayal and even death. In other words, God knows firsthand what our suffering is like, because he lived it.

During his ministry, Jesus brought healing to the sick and forgiveness to the sinner that is each of us. “Come to me,” he says, “all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28) His life, death and resurrection are the ultimate comfort and hope for us, his sheep. Our Good Shepherd laid down his life for us. The True Light of the world still shines in the darkness, “and the darkness has not overcome it.” (John 1:5) In Christ, we find the assurance that no matter how heavy the burdens of this life may be, we are never alone. “Behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)

Very Rev. Gregory B. Wilson is vicar general for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charleston and rector of the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist. He was ordained to the priesthood in 2001.