Why Is Life So Hard A History Of Suffering

"Anxious? Depressed? You might be suffering from progress and civilization." Today we go to therapy, read self-help books, take psych meds. Yet still feel that it's not enough. Habits are hard to break, they tell us. Decisions are mostly emotional; made by our unconscious mind, and not by the conscious part of our brain.[1] But the problem might also come from outside; from our mores, ways, and values; from various social and cultural forces that shape our minds. And this is where history may be good at giving us a hand, perhaps, in some cases, even going beyond psychology. Why is life so hard? History has good answers to this question. It tells us how deep cultural roots go. How 10,000 years of growing control, not wellbeing have shaped our lives. How rituals, cults, status, fear, individualism, and loneliness have many times blocked our betterment, and even left us in a mush of sickness and trauma that has been piling up for centuries or millennia. In short, history can help us look at our present in a different way by showing us a different picture of past, and dare even suggest to us a few pointers on how to deal with these many emotional wounds and scars we carry, some of which we might now always know are there.

Why is life so hard? On the face of it, this question may not be all that hard to answer. After all, our species has devoted 10,000 years to gaining control over people and resources instead of consolidating its wellbeing. But what is less evident is how deep this trend goes; how much we keep feeding it; and how unaware we are about its very toxic consequences. For the purpose of this book, human history is broken into three main parts. The first covers the rise of farming, which gave us our unique ability to dominate the world, but also to corral ourselves into ever rising levels of stress, violence, and conflict --what we now call "progress." The second part covers the rise of governments and well-ordered societies, but also of permanent misery, poverty, and debt --what we now call "civilization." The third part covers the modern industrial era; its rapid innovation, mass literacy, and growing levels of safety and comfort, but also rising levels of stress, isolation, and despair --what we now might call "affluence," "success," and "prosperity." This explains why therapy, psych meds, meditation, and/or self-help books may not always work as well as we might hope for, but also why, and in spite of all the odds against it, there are also ancient, root forces pushing us towards the betterment of the human condition.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A stunning “portrait of the enduring grace of friendship” (NPR) about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves. A masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century. NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST • MAN BOOKER PRIZE FINALIST • WINNER OF THE KIRKUS PRIZE A Little Life follows four college classmates—broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition—as they move to New York in search of fame and fortune. While their relationships, which are tinged by addiction, success, and pride, deepen over the decades, the men are held together by their devotion to the brilliant, enigmatic Jude, a man scarred by an unspeakable childhood trauma. A hymn to brotherly bonds and a masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century, Hanya Yanagihara’s stunning novel is about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves. Look for Hanya Yanagihara’s latest bestselling novel, To Paradise.

Why Suffering Exists: God's Purpose for Pain in the Life of Job and throughout Scripture Why does God allow suffering? The pain of suffering can be overwhelmingly mysterious, but the Bible does provide answers. Throughout Scripture, God allows trials in order to accomplish specific purposes in the lives of his people. When faced with suffering they experience spiritual growth; repentance from sin; or, as in the Old Testament story of Job, the chance to demonstrate devotion to God in the face of inexplicable agony. In Suffering Wisely and Well, Eric Ortlund explores different types of trials throughout Scripture, revealing the spiritual purpose for each and reassuring readers with God's promise of restoration. The majority of the book focuses on Job, one of the most well-known yet misunderstood stories of suffering. Ortlund thoughtfully analyzes the text chapter by chapter, including the doubt of Job's friends, God's response to Job's questions, and the meaning behind important imagery including references to Leviathan and Behemoth. Suffering Wisely and Well shows readers how to deepen their relationship with God during painful experiences in their own lives and how to comfort others who are hurting. Explores Lament and Redemption in Scripture: Helps readers understand how to interpret suffering from a Christian perspective Applicable: Each chapter ends with a "What Have We Learned?" summary Biblical Advice on Grief and Support: Teaches Christians how to avoid blame or legalism when addressing the suffering of others

Sources of Holocaust Insight maps the odyssey of an American Christian philosopher who has studied, written, and taught about the Holocaust for more than fifty years. What findings result from John Roth’s journey; what moods pervade it? How have events and experiences, scholars and students, texts and testimonies—especially the questions they raise—affected Roth’s Holocaust studies and guided his efforts to heed the biblical proverb: “Whatever else you get, get insight”? More sources than Roth can acknowledge have informed his encounters with the Holocaust. But particular persons—among them Elie Wiesel, Raul Hilberg, Primo Levi, and Albert Camus—loom especially large. Revisiting Roth’s sources of Holocaust insight, this book does so not only to pay tribute to them but also to show how the ethical, philosophical, and religious reverberations of the Holocaust confer and encourage responsibility for human well-being in the twenty-first century. Seeing differently, seeing better—sound learning and teaching about the Holocaust aim for what may be the most important Holocaust insight of all: Take nothing good for granted.

One Bible, Many Answers In God's Problem, the New York Times bestselling author of Misquoting Jesus challenges the contradictory biblical explanations for why an all-powerful God allows us to suffer.

Twilight of the Idols presents a vivid, compressed overview of many of Nietzsche’s mature ideas, including his attack on Plato’s Socrates and on the Platonic legacy in Western philosophy and culture. Polt provides a trustworthy rendering of Nietzsche’s text in contemporary American English, complete with notes prepared by the translator and Tracy Strong. An authoritative Introduction by Strong makes this an outstanding edition. Select Bibliography and Index.

How can a good God allow evil? What does it all mean? Where lies happiness? Adele Gonzalez, founder of the Get-With-It organisation, provides answers to these questions. Her answers are based on theology as well the experiences of people through the ages.