Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Ellen Painter Dollar

Home
Progressive Christian

suffering

Select a Category disability ethics parenthood Uncategorized

Select a Month September 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011

September 2015

September 25, 2015

A Cancer Memoir that (Mostly) Gets It Right

I have rarely read a book that inspired so many different reactions, in such quick...

June 2015

June 13, 2015

On a Difficult Anniversary, Making Room for the Better Stories

I will always remember that terrible June day in 2009. But I’ve reached a point...

April 2015

April 02, 2015

Easter is an Invitation to Believe the Better Story

Without the bright light of the resurrection, I would always believe the sadder stories. They...

November 2014

November 18, 2014

Not All Pain is Gain

Not all pain is gain. Pain is not always fixable. This is the truth. But...

October 2014

October 29, 2014

Shame on You, RNS, for That Brittany Maynard Poll

At first, I thought it was Onion-style satire. I kept seeing a link show up...

October 21, 2014

A Christian Response to Brittany Maynard’s Decision to Die

The face on this week’s People magazine cover is Brittany Maynard, a 29-year-old, recently married woman who went...

September 2014

September 29, 2014

Can You Regret Having a Child Who Inherits Your Genetic Baggage?

But while I sometimes wish I could have spared my daughter her genetic fate, I’m...

September 16, 2014

Don’t Sweat the Big Stuff?

A friend recently asked for support and prayers during a particularly stressful time. Her worries...

July 2014

July 14, 2014

A Letter to My 16-Year-Old Self

To my 16-year-old self: When people tell you that your scars are a kind of...

June 2014

June 02, 2014

“A Beautiful Disaster”: Marlena Graves on Suffering, God, & a Child-Like Faith

When people get all in a tizzy about how the Internet is ruining real human...

May 2014

May 07, 2014

A Broken Body, Redeemed

Eight years ago, when my three children were still very young, we traveled to Omaha...

April 2014

April 02, 2014

Yes, We Can Change Cultural Assumptions About Disabilities. Here’s How.

Last night, I gave a lecture at the University of Hartford to students in a...

March 2014

March 25, 2014

What Happens When We Pray

I don't understand how prayer works. But I believe in a God who is good,...

February 2014

February 28, 2014

A Christian Response to Genetically Modified Babies

An New York Times op ed by Marcy Darnovsky of the Center for Genetics and Society...

February 17, 2014

Why Do Parents Choose to Screen for Disabilities?

Imagine you are standing at an intersection with your child, waiting for a walk light...

February 04, 2014

God Does Not Make Me Happy (or Three Things I Learned About My Relationship with God)

Last weekend, I went on a one-night retreat with my church's vestry. (In an Episcopal...

January 2014

January 08, 2014

Painfully Aware of the Abyss: A Review of Holly Burkhalter’s “Good God, Lousy World, & Me”

I once read a novel in which the protagonist divided humankind into two categories: those...

January 07, 2014

Deep in a Place of Exile, Waiting for the Return

I don't much like when people I care about are deep in the "exile" part...

November 2013

November 04, 2013

My Story, and My Take on Narrative Ethics, in a Nutshell

I have a cover article in the current issue of the Christian Century that summarizes the...

September 2013

September 27, 2013

[Snapshots from Oak Ridge] What My Kids and My Garden Have in Common

I struggled to find a good photo subject for today's post. Right now, most of...

September 24, 2013

A Story About the Abundance, and Absence, of Memory and Faith

Walker has written a story about Alzheimer's, yes, and about her mother, and about her....

September 20, 2013

[Snapshots from Oak Ridge] I Wrote a Book. Want One?

I will confess something that will be not at all surprising to most of you,...

September 17, 2013

“Wonder” and the Paradoxes of Living with a Disability

R.J. Palacio's young adult novel Wonder tells the story of Auggie, a boy with a severe facial...

September 13, 2013

Finding God at Rock Bottom

Karen Beattie and her husband went through a difficult few years. She was unexpectedly laid...

September 03, 2013

Grappling for a Christian Response to Syria

Oh, but this is an uncomfortable place to be, this place of uncertainty, where we...

July 2013

July 08, 2013

Resurrection Year: Learning to Live, and Thrive, with Life as It Is Given

Our Western cultural attitudes are not well-equipped for failure. We are a culture of optimists...

May 2013

May 13, 2013

At Home in a Place Where Imperfect Bodies Are the Norm

At my local pool, people with limps and spots and wrinkles are the norm, and...

May 09, 2013

The Summer When I Didn’t Cherish Time with My Kids

Note: I wrote this in the summer of 2009. I am reposting it here as...

May 02, 2013

Parents-to-Be Have More Choices Than Ever, But We Can’t Choose Our Way Out of Pain

Jennifer Gilmore’s story is enough to scare anyone away from open adoption. (It also provides...

April 2013

April 30, 2013

A Different Take on Why Bad Things Happen to Good People

Questions around suffering and pain are stock in trade for me as a writer. I...