In a book for new widows, author Ella Pritchard describes her experience of grief, recovery and “return to joy” in the months and years following the death of her husband, Lev, after 46 years of marriage.
You CAN go home again
When we use our imaginations, our grief and loss have the potential to become the silent, fertile seedbed for redemptive, life-giving deeds.
Churches should act to counter ‘Blue Monday’ blues, ministers say
Over a decade ago, a travel company launched an advertising campaign declaring the third Monday in January to be the most depressing day of the year. Some scoff at the calculations used to pick “Blue Monday,” which would be Jan….
Blue Christmas service seeks to comfort the grieving
Christmas can be anything but the most wonderful time of the year for those suffering from grief and loss, and a number of churches seek to comfort the afflicted with a Blue Christmas service providing a safe place during the…
To help someone grieving at the holidays, avoid platitudes, experts say
The holidays are especially hard on those mourning the loss of loved ones and friends. And that suffering is often made worse by well-meaning-but-nervous friends who don’t know what to say — or not say — to those who are grieving. “A…
Who will we be tomorrow?
There’s been a lot of conversation about exactly how folks — especially church folks — are feeling about this dreadful election season. Anger, resentment, disappointment, offense, shock — the list goes on. I’ve certainly felt each of those at some…
No one warned me that ministry would make a mortician out of me
I want to build the casket and dig the hole. We usually hire those jobs out, but I want to do it myself. Remember the scene in Harry Potter where Harry buries Dobby, but refuses to use magic? Something about…
Denying grief over ‘sting of death’ brings its own sting, say ministers
Seasoned pastors with hundreds of funerals under their belts have seen the rites go from one extreme to another over the past three or four decades. “Growing up, almost every funeral was morbid, with open caskets and everything from the pulpit…
Praying the Psalms in time of grief
By Joe LaGuardia Like many who grieve the loss of a loved one over the holidays, this past Christmas was particularly difficult for me. I lost my father over two years ago as a result of a mass shooting in…