Suffering and HealingSuffering and HealingToward Full HumanityToward Full Humanity

The Many Faces The Many Faces

of of

Loss and SufferingLoss and Suffering

The Many Faces of SufferingThe Many Faces of Suffering

Suffering: The word Suffering: The word has a chilling sound has a chilling sound to it; it is something to it; it is something we would rather avoid we would rather avoid enduring or even enduring or even thinking about.thinking about.

But try as we might to But try as we might to avoid it; we will suffer.avoid it; we will suffer.

Necessary LossesNecessary Losses

Being human by Being human by nature entails certain nature entails certain losses that occur all losses that occur all through life, not just through life, not just when someone dies.when someone dies.

You left your mother’s You left your mother’s womb – a warm and womb – a warm and secure place – to face secure place – to face a cold jarring world.a cold jarring world.

Necessary LossesNecessary Losses

You lost the coziness You lost the coziness and familiarity of and familiarity of being at home with being at home with your family when you your family when you went off to day care went off to day care or nursery school.or nursery school.

Necessary LossesNecessary Losses

Perhaps you left your Perhaps you left your friends behind when friends behind when you changed to you changed to another school or another school or moved.moved.

Necessary LossesNecessary Losses

Facing graduation, Facing graduation, you are about to you are about to experience other experience other losses – the constant losses – the constant companionship and companionship and satisfactions of high satisfactions of high school and perhaps school and perhaps the security of living the security of living at home.at home.

Necessary LossesNecessary Losses

You can probably You can probably project into the future project into the future and see hundreds of and see hundreds of such losses coming in such losses coming in the ordinary events of the ordinary events of your life.your life.

Even in times of joy, Even in times of joy, such as having a baby, such as having a baby, you will be losing you will be losing something.something.

When Suffering Seems SenselessWhen Suffering Seems Senseless

Other forms of Other forms of suffering seem less suffering seem less necessary to us, but necessary to us, but they happen in the they happen in the normal course of normal course of everyone’s life: everyone’s life: for example being for example being

rejected.rejected.

When Suffering Seems SenselessWhen Suffering Seems Senseless

Or… falling and Or… falling and breaking a bone.breaking a bone.

When Suffering Seems SenselessWhen Suffering Seems Senseless

What is hardest to What is hardest to cope with are the cope with are the sufferings that seem sufferings that seem totally senseless:totally senseless:

A mother and father A mother and father grieve over the death grieve over the death of their child.of their child.

When Suffering Seems SenselessWhen Suffering Seems Senseless

A teenager has a long A teenager has a long bout with depression bout with depression that seems that seems unexplained by unexplained by events in his life.events in his life.

When Suffering Seems SenselessWhen Suffering Seems Senseless

A friend watches in horror A friend watches in horror as his longtime buddy as his longtime buddy from the neighborhood from the neighborhood gets dragged into a tough gets dragged into a tough gang, heavy drug use, gang, heavy drug use, and a spiral of violence.and a spiral of violence.

When Suffering Seems SenselessWhen Suffering Seems Senseless

When Suffering Seems SenselessWhen Suffering Seems Senseless

In times of immense In times of immense loss such as death, loss such as death, especially tragic death, especially tragic death, people may offer hollow people may offer hollow condolences like, “It condolences like, “It must be God’s will.”must be God’s will.”

When Suffering Seems SenselessWhen Suffering Seems Senseless

Such comments do God Such comments do God and those who suffer a and those who suffer a great disservice by great disservice by effectively telling them effectively telling them to cut off their grieving, to cut off their grieving, not to question, and to not to question, and to accept quietly what has accept quietly what has happened.happened.

A Feeling of DisintegrationA Feeling of Disintegration

When we suffer a great When we suffer a great tragedy or sorrow, we tragedy or sorrow, we feel that everything feel that everything (including ourselves) is (including ourselves) is coming apart.coming apart.

Suffering hurts; it is full Suffering hurts; it is full of pain, sorrow, and of pain, sorrow, and anguish.anguish.

We cannot help but We cannot help but ask, “Why?”ask, “Why?”

For ReviewFor Review

Give two examples of necessary losses Give two examples of necessary losses involved in growing up.involved in growing up.

Why does great suffering feel so Why does great suffering feel so destructive to a person?destructive to a person?