Living Through Pain: Psalms and the Search for Wholeness

By Kristin M. Swenson and Kristin Swenson

Book Overview

Pain disintegrates a person, fracturing self and relationships. In Living Through Pain Kristin M. Swenson charts the multifaceted personal and social problems caused by chronic pain and surveys professional efforts to mitigate and manage it. Because the experience of pain involves all aspects of a person--body, mind, spirit, and community--Swenson consults an ancient resource for wisdom, perspective, and insight. Her close reading of selected psalms from the Hebrew Bible demonstrates that the challenge of living through pain is timeless. Swenson shows how these ancient texts offer a vocabulary and grammar for understanding and expressing the contemporary experience of pain. The psalms tell of suffering and healing. They decry pain's propensity to fracture even as they demonstrate a person's ability to mend. Pain is a universal experience, and this book invites readers to consider more fully what is involved in the process of healing.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1602583390
• ISBN13: 9781602583399
• Release Date: November 2011
• Publisher: Baylor University Press
• Length: 284 Pages
• Weight: 0.69 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.0" x 8.0"
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Invites readers to consider more fully what is involved in the medical, psychological, spiritual, &

Pain can have a deleterious impact on personality and on relationships. In Living Through Pain: Psalms And The Search For Wholeness, Kristin Swenson (Assistant Professor of Religious Studies, School of World Studies, Virginia Commonwealth University) charts the multifaceted personal and social problems caused by chronic pain and surveys professional efforts to mitigate and manage it. Swenson also consults selected psalms from the Hebrew Bible which demonstrate that the challenge of living through pain is both timely and timeless as these ancient texts offer a vocabulary and a grammar for understanding and expressing the contemporary experience of pain. Pain is a universal experience, and Living Through Pain invites readers to consider more fully what is involved in the medical, psychological, spiritual, and personal process of healing. Highly recommended reading for anyone who suffers, or who has a friend or loved one who suffers, from the debilitating effects of chronic pain.