When Suffering Persists - by Frederick W Schmidt Paperback

About the Book

In "When Suffering Persists", the author offers an accessible and pastoral exploration of theological understandings of suffering that ministers to both mind and spirit. He re-examines the generic comfort offered by many answers and the social and theological explanations that people offer one another, and provides a theology that takes seriously the devastating character of suffering.

Book Synopsis

Sometimes pain passes quickly and small losses are easily absorbed. But when suffering goes on and on, for people of faith, the resulting crisis can be deeper and more destructive than the loss itself. We look for ways to comfort those who are hurting. But sometimes, in spite of our good intentions, the cliches and simplistic theology we offer only add to the pain and misery. In When Suffering Persists, Frederick W. Schmidt presents a pastoral exploration of ways to understand suffering theologically, offering an approach that ministers to both mind and spirit. He questions the value of our usual comforting words and examines the pat explanations we give one another. He provides instead a theology that takes seriously the devastating character of suffering, allowing for real help to those who continue in pain.