Birth, Suffering and Joy

Πληθύνων πληθυνῶ τὰς λύπας σου καὶ τὸν στεναγμόν σου· ἐν λύπαις τέξῃ τέκνα.  Τὰς ὠδῖνας ἐνταῦθα αἰνιττεται καὶ τὸν πολὺν κάματον ἐκεῖνον, ὄν ὑπομένειν ἀνάγκη, καθάπερ φορτίον ἐν μησὶ τοσούτοις τὸ βρέφος βαστάζουσαν, καὶ τὰς κατὰ μέρος φυομένας ἐνταῦθεν ἀλγηδόνας, καὶ τῶν μελων τὸν διασπασμὸν, καὶ τὰς ὀδύνας ἐκείνας τὰς ἀφορήτους, ἂς ἐκεῖναι μόναι ἴσασιν αἵ διὰ τῆς πείρας ἐλθοῦσαι. Ἀλλ' ὅμως τοσαύτην ὁ φιλάνθρωπος Θεὸς παρέσχε μετὰ τῶν λυπηρῶν τὴν παραμυθίαν, ὡς ἰσόῥῥοπον εἶναι τὴν διὰ τὸ τεχθὲν βρέφος εὐφροσύνην τῶν ὠδίνων ἐκείνων τῶν ἐν τοσούτοις μησὶ τὴν γαστέρα διακοπτουσῶν. Αἵ γὰρ τοσοῦτον πόνον ὑπομένουσαι, καὶ οὕτως ὑπὸ τῶν ἀλγηδόνων σπαραττόμεναι, καὶ ὡς εἰπεῖν πρὸς αὐτὴν τὴν ζωὴν ἀπαγορεύουσαι, μετὰ τὸ τεκεῖν καὶ τῆς ἀπὸ τῶν καμάτων εὐφροσύνης ἀπολαῦσαι, πάλιν ὥσπερ ἐπιλαθόμεναι τῶν γεγενημένων ἀπάντων ἑαυτὰς ἐκδιδόασι πρὸς τὴν τῶν τέκνων γονην, τοῦ φιλανθρώπου Θεοῦ οὕτως οἰκονομήσαντος πρὸς σύστασιν τῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων σωτηρίας. Ἡ γὰρ ἐλπὶς ἀεὶ τῶν μελλόντων ἀγαθῶν κούφως ποιεῖ φέρειν τὰ παρόντα λυπηρά. Καὶ τοῦτο ἴδοι τις ἂν καὶ τοὺς ἐμπόρους ὑπομένοντας, καὶ μακρὰ πελάγη διαπερῶντας, καὶ ναυαγίων ἀνεχομένους καὶ πειρατῶν, καὶ μετὰ τοὺς πολλοὺς κινδύνους ἐκείνους πολλάκις καὶ διαμαρτόντας τῆς προσδοκίας, καὶ μηεδὲ οὕτως ἀποστάντας, ἀλλὰ πάλιν τῶν αὐτῶν ἁπτομένους. Τοῦτο καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν γηπόνων ἔστιν εἰπεῖν· καὶ γὰρ καὶ οὗτοι ὅτε βαθεῖαν αὔλακα ἀνατέμωσι, καὶ πολλὴν τὴν ἐπιμέλειαν τῆς γῇς ἐπιδείξωνται, καὶ δαψιλῆ τὰ σπέρματα καταβάλωσι, πολλάκις αὐχμοῦ γενομένου ἢ ἐπομβρίας, ἢ πρὸς αὐτῷ τῷ τέλει τν δρᾶγμάτων ἐρυσίβης κατενεχθείσης, τῆς ἐλπίδος διήμαρτον· ἀλλ' οὐδὲ οὕτως ἀφίστανται, ἀλλὰ πάλιν τοῦ καιροῦ καταλαβόντος, ἅπτονται τῆς γεωργίας. Καὶ τοῦτο ἐφ' ἐκάστου εὕποι τιη ἂν ἐπιτηδεύματος γινόμενον. Τὸν αὐτὸν δὴ τρόπον καὶ ἡ γυνὴ καὶ αὐτὴ πολλάκις μετὰ τοὺς πολλοὺς μῆνας ἐκείνους, μετὰ τὰς ὠδῖνας τὰς ἀφορήτους, μετὰ τὰς νύκτας τὰς αυπνους, μετὰ τὸν τῶν μελῶν διασπαμὸν, μικρᾶς τινος περιστάσεως γενομένης, πρὸ τοῦ προσήκοντος καιροῦ τὸ βρέφος ὠθήσασα ἀμόρφωτον καὶ ἀδιατύπωτον, ἢ καὶ νεκρὸν πολλάκις, μόλις τὸν κίνδυνον διέφυγε, καὶ ὅμως ὥσπερ ἐπιλαθομένη τούτων ἀπάντων, τῶν αὐτῶν ἀνέχεται, καὶ συναποθανεῖν τῷ τεχθένται συνέβη, καὶ οὐδὲ τοῦτο τὰς λοιπὰς ἐσωφρόνισε καὶ ἀνέπεισε φυγεῖν τὸ πρᾶγμα· τοσαύτην ὁ Θεὸς ἐγκατέσπειρε τοῖς λυπηροῖς τὴν ἡδονὴν ὁμοῦ καὶ τὴν εὐφροσύνην. Διὰ τοῦτο ἔλεγε, 'Πληθύνων πληθυνῶ τὰς λύπας σου καὶ τὸν στεναγμόν σου· ἐν λύπαις τέξῃ τέκνα. Τοῦτο τοινυν καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς διαλεγόμενος τοῖς μαθηταῖς καὶ δεικνὺς καὶ τῆς ὀδύνης τὸ μέγεθος καὶ τῆς εὐφροσύνης τὴν ὑπερβολὴν, ἔλεγεν· Ἡ γυνὴ ὅταν τίκτῃ λύπην ἔχει, ὅτι ἦλθεν ἡ ὥρα αὐτῆς· εἶτα παραστῆσαι ἡμῖν βουλόμενος ὅπως τὰ μὲν τῆς λύπης ἀθρόον ἐκποδὼν γίνεται, τὰ δὲ τῆς χαρᾶς καὶ τῆς εὐφροσύνης διαδέχεται, φησίν ' Ὅταν δὲ γεννήσῃ τὸ παιδίον, οὐκέτι μνημονεύει τῆς θλιψεως διὰ τὴν χαρὰν, ὅτι ἐγεννήθη ἄνθρωπος εἰς τὸν κόσμον.' Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος, Ὁμῖλία ΙΖ', Εἰς Την Γενεσιν

'I shall multiply your pains and your groans, in grief you shall birth children.'1  Here is meant the labours of birth and the many troubles which it is necessary to bear, all those months carrying the baby as if in a sack, and there the pains of swollen limbs and the rending cares and the intolerable griefs which only she will know, which only she by experience will suffer. But at the same time the benign God has given consolation with these griefs, compensating with the joy of the birth of the child all those months she suffered carrying it. For she who endures such labour and is wracked by such pains, that it is said that she almost despairs of her life, after she has given birth, all her griefs are dissipated for joy, and all her labours are forgotten by giving birth to a child, for such is the dispensation of the benign God for the preservation of the human race. For he always provides hope for future goods that present difficulties be lightened. And it is as merchants who take themselves aboard ship and who pass over great seas, braving the dangers of shipwreck and pirates, who come through many hazards by which hopes are often frustrated, and then they do not refrain from doing such a thing, but again they turn to it. And here also we may speak of farmers, for they cut their deep furrows and expend much care on the soil and throw down their bounty of seed, and often they suffer drought or excessive rains, and even collecting their sheaves a blight may fall and cut off their hope, and yet then neither do they desist, but again, when the appropriate time comes, they go to their labour. And this we see happening in every good work. So it is often with a woman who after many months, after grave pains, after sleepless nights, after the swelling of members, a little accident befalling, she delivers before the appropriate time an unformed child, and frequently it is lifeless, and scarcely will that peril be avoided, and yet as if she had forgotten all these things, she returns to her labour and she suffers that she might give birth again and it does not occur to her to fear it, nor is she inclined to avoid it, such pleasure and joy has God placed in these griefs. Thus he said: 'I shall multiply your pains and your groans, in grief you shall birth sons'. And Christ said to his disciples, openly referring to great pains and exceeding joy,'When a woman gives birth, she has grief, because her time has come.' 2 And then wishing to declare how all suffering is taken away to be succeeded by happiness and joy, He says, 'When she has given birth to a child, she no longer has memory of her affliction, on account of joy because she given birth to a man in the world.2   Saint John Chrysostom, On Genesis, from Homily 16  1 Gen 3.16 2. Jn 16.21