Religion, Psychotherapy and Making Suffering Sufferable

Inbunden, Engelska, 2026

2 899 kr

Kommande

Religion, Psychotherapy and Making Suffering Sufferable explores one of humanity's most profound questions: how do we cope with undeserved suffering? Drawing from the biblical story of Job, this groundbreaking work examines how individuals from diverse religious traditions navigate life's most devastating losses.Through the lens of Job's existential odyssey of "having a world, losing a world, and replacing a world," Paul Marcus presents a comprehensive analysis of how people from eight major spiritual traditions—Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Confucianism, and Taoism—utilize their religious resources to make suffering sufferable. The book introduces the concept of "creative suffering," characterized by steadfastness, patience, and humility, which allows individuals to maintain faith and reconstruct meaning after traumatic experiences. Marcus combines rigorous analysis of key religious texts with clinical insights drawn from his extensive experience as a psychoanalytic psychotherapist. The work addresses not only those who maintain their faith through extreme circumstances but also those who struggle with guilt, shame, anger, and hopelessness when their beliefs are challenged by life's tragedies.This book will be of significant interest to academics and scholars in psychoanalytic studies, spirituality, religious studies, and trauma and resiliency research. Mental health professionals, religious counsellors, and anyone seeking to understand how faith intersects with psychological healing will find valuable insights for both theoretical understanding and practical application.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum2026-11-25
Mått156 x 234 x undefined mm
FormatInbunden
SpråkEngelska
Antal sidor128
FörlagTaylor & Francis Ltd
ISBN9781041289616

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1. Religion and Psychotherapy 2. Judaism: A Toxic Marriage 3. Christianity: A Wife Who Died 4. Islam: A Son Who Died 5. Hinduism: A Dysfunctional Intimate Relationship 6. Buddhism: Grappling With Depression 7. Jainism: Being Fired from a Job 8. Confucianism: A Wife Who Says She Now is a Lesbian 9. Taoism. A Wife with Breast Cancer 10. Implications for Psychotherapy 11. Addendum, the “Faith” of Atheism: A Man Dying of Lung Cancer

“Paul Marcus has written a study of comparative religions, on the age-old problem of ‘when bad things happen to good people.’ He discusses eight of the major religious/spiritual traditions with sensitivity to their similarities and differences, especially as it relates to how individuals make their suffering sufferable. In part relying on narrative and Case vignettes, Marcus shows how enlightened versions of religion can enhance a person's life when they are in an extreme situation. This book is an important contribution to understanding trauma and resilience. It touches both surfaces and depths in ways that enhance contact with experience and opens possibilities of living.”Michael Eigen, PhD, Author, Contact with the Depths.“In this fascinating volume, taking his cue from the book of Job, Paul Marcus, through the lens of psychotherapy, examines the ways in which religions deal with the problem of the suffering of good people. His original perspective makes this a book of great value to those interested in the phenomenology of religion and comparative religions.”Lawrence H. Schiffman, Professor of Hebrew and Judaic Studies, New York University.