Suffering is a fact of human existence. In his interdisciplinary investigation of the causes, types, value, and outcome of human suffering, Adrian C. Moulyn has discovered a purpose in it. In The Meaning of Suffering Moulyn presents his thesis, (Suffering) heals the blemishes and the fractures in our problem ridden existence, in light of the binary nature of human temporo-spacial structure. Moulyn analyzes the source of suffering as a combination of the arbitrary nature of life itself (no one actually chooses to be born), and the dichotomy of the world as we see it (objectively) and the world as we want it (subjectively). While the melancholy of being thrown-into the world lays the groundwork, the discrepancy between desires and wants and the degree to which they are satisfied becomes a source of suffering. The value of suffering is in its healing powers. Suffering helps close the gap between what we desire and what we obtain. The outcome of constructive suffering is an increased ability to deal with the inherent contradictions of life, an enhanced awareness of the truly necessary and desirable, and a stronger, more secure conquest of happiness when it is achieved. Moulyn's thesis is an intriguing and optimistic analysis of human experience, and will be an asset to philosophy collections.

Suffering is a deeply personal problem. Why is this happening to me? Guiding readers through the seven most significant theodicies, Richard Rice uses theory and personal stories to help each of us form a response to suffering that is both intellectually satisfying and personally authentic.

This 1986 classic has been renewed with fresh graphics and crisp typesetting. Elisabeth Lukas artistic discovery of the uniqueness of each individual shines across dozens of case studies and examples; thus she illuminates the potential for meaning in the presence of even intractable pain, guilt, and suffering. Lukas demonstrates a living logotherapy, not by standardized techniques, but by the compassion and insight she brings into each therapeutic relationship. The true heroes of life are not the triumphant victors, but the defeated who find a ray of hope (p. 52). As Lukas notes in the introduction: For thousands of years, people have done pretty well without the science of psychotherapy. Yet, something like psychotherapy has always existed through persons who, with charisma, persuasiveness, and force of conviction, were able to bring comfort to those looking for help. Such help was usually based on a specific philosophy of life. The afflicted were promised eternal well-being and justice in the hereafter, their suffering was presented as a test on their way to happiness, or philosophical-ethical images were invoked to make blows of fate bearable. Psychotherapy was religion and vice versa. This embeddedness in mysticism made it difficult for psychotherapy to find a scientific approach. Today, if we try to find rational explanations for irrational behavior and offer rational help for irrational psychological problems, we stand on a narrow ridge between two abysses: On the one side lies the danger of reverting to mysticism; on the other, slipping into a mechanized manipulation of the human person. Has psychology, on its long development through magic, exorcism, trickery, and fanaticism, finally attained the status of science? In recent decades, great strides have been made in that direction. Successes were conspicuous and resulted in a great variety of tools in a giant psychological workshop to serve people, but unfortunately the specifically human dimension -the spirit- was left out. Psychotherapy without magic has been replaced by psychotherapy without spirit. What was gained in the field of science was lost from humanity. Psychotherapists may choose from a great number of methods, but are forced to walk on that narrow ridge between old views and new perspectives, between speculative interpretations and human programming. It is a path illuminated by alarmingly few firm criteria. This book is written for those who trust psychotherapy to find comfort. The trust of patients is valuable but must not be blindly given, or they may be pushed into one of the abysses on either side. They may fall under the spell of speculative [psychoanalytic] hypotheses from which they cannot free themselves, or they may be wrecked by a cold, impersonal [behavioral] conditioning process because they no longer can sense the meanings of their lives. The book is also for psychotherapists who walk that narrow ridge, weighed down by responsibility for those who trust them. Few are the guideposts, many the contradictory theories, the confusions, the criticisms. What school are they to believe, what concepts to make their own? This book suggests a path for both lay reader and professional, a path through the maze of psychological schools to a psychotherapy that no longer is a myth. To do so, it must include the human spirit, combine science and humanity; in so doing, it can justify our trust, especially the trust of the suffering person. The value of a psychotherapy is tested by what it can do for those who suffer. Where help is no longer possible, comfort must be given; where no comfort is possible, any psychotherapy is useless. "

Compelling, timely, and essential reading for healthcare providers, Meaning in Suffering addresses the multiplicity of meanings suffering brings to all it touches: patients, families, health workers, and human science professionals. Examining suffering in writing that is both methodologically rigorous and accessible, the contributors preserve first-hand experiences using narrative ethnography, existential hermeneutics, hermeneutic phenomenology, and traditional ethnography. They offer nuanced insights into suffering as a human condition experienced by persons deserving of dignity, empathy, and understanding. Collectively, these essays demonstrate that understanding the suffering of the "other" reveals something vital about the moral courage required to heal—and stay humane—in the face of suffering. Winner, Nursing Research Category, American Journal of Nursing

Everyone suffers at some time or other - it's simply a part of life. But however bad things seem, we are never completely helpless. For the deeply affirming truth is that we can choose how to respond to adverse circumstances. In this lively and engaging volume, Trystan Owain Hughes suggests that learning how to suffer and how to wait patiently may be the secret of finding joy in our lives. Diagnosed with a degenerative spinal condition, he was surprised to discover that, instead of increasing his unhappiness, it spurred him on to seek out sources of hope and meaning. In the first part of the book, the author encourages us to embrace the practice of 'awareness' and 'acceptance' in our daily lives, so we may take a step back from our anxieties and worries and rest in the love of God. He then explore five areas where that love may be found in the midst of pain: in nature, memory, art, laughter and other people. By learning to reflect on our experiences in these areas, by becoming conscious of the echoes of the transcendent, we will gain new strength. And paradoxically, through facing our suffering, learn to truly live.

In this book James Davies considers emotional suffering as part and parcel of what it means to live and develop as a human being, rather than as a mental health problem requiring only psychiatric, antidepressant or cognitive treatment. This book therefore offers a new perspective on emotional discontent and discusses how we can engage with it clinically, personally and socially to uncover its productive value. The Importance of Suffering explores a relational theory of understanding emotional suffering suggesting that suffering, does not spring from one dimension of our lives, but is often the outcome of how we relate to the world internally – in terms of our personal biology, habits and values, and externally – in terms of our society, culture and the world around us. Davies suggests that suffering is a healthy call-to-change and shouldn't be chemically anesthetised or avoided. The book challenges conventional thinking by arguing that if we understand and manage suffering more holistically, it can facilitate individual and social transformation in powerful and surprising ways. The Importance of Suffering offers new ways to think about, and therefore understand suffering. It will appeal to anyone who works with suffering in a professional context including professionals, trainees and academics in the fields of counselling, psychotherapy, psychoanalysis, psychiatry and clinical psychology.

Peter Kreeft observes that our world is full of billions of normal lives which have touched by apparently pointless and random suffering. He then records the results of his own wrestling match with God as he struggles to make sense out of this pain.

Why would a loving and powerful God allow so much pain and suffering? In Why Suffering? Ravi Zacharias and Vince Vitale carefully walk you through a variety of responses that considered together provide a clear, comprehensive, and convincing answer. Responses like: Where there is the possibility of love, there has to be the reality of freedom, and therefore the possibility of pain. Wishing God had made a different world is to wish yourself out of existence. The cross is the key to a compelling and rational explanation for trusting in God in the face of suffering. In comparison with other world religions, the Christian response is highly distinctive. The reality of evil only makes sense in light of the reality of divine goodness. Relational knowledge about God takes the argument beyond reason to the presence of God amidst suffering. God's decision to allow temporal suffering is understandable when viewed from an eternal perspective. Divine goodness shows how to conquer not in spite of, but even through suffering. Here is a book written with great respect for the complexity of the issue, recognizing that some who read it will be in the trenches of deep suffering themselves and others questioning the very existence of a loving God. Why Suffering? provides an answer to the problem of pain and suffering with emotional sensitivity and intellectual integrity.

Published on February 11, 1984, Salvifici Doloris addresses the question of why God allows suffering. This 30th anniversary edition includes the complete text of the letter plus commentary by Myles N. Sheehan, SJ, MD, a priest and physician trained in geriatrics with an expertise in palliative care. Acknowledgments of recent episodes of violence bring the papal document into a modern context. Insightful questions suited for individual or group use, applicable prayers, and ideas for meaningful action invite readers to personally respond to the mystery of suffering.