Grief for the Dead and Dying

Questions: How does Wolterstorff find joy after his loss? What is the meaning and significance of death in light of the Christian narrative? How does the hope of the resurrection play a role in comforting Wolterstorff? Answers: Introduction: It is universally accepted that human beings have emotions which leads them to emotionally involve with others. The emotion is felt when they are about to lose their near ones with whom they becomes emotionally attached. The grief that grows is not for the dying person but for the short-lived attachment. The discussion highlights the book named Lament for a son written by Wolterstorff in the honor of his deceased son who was just twenty-five years of age and died in an accident occurred during his mountain climbing. Lament for a son became a voice for those who also lost someone near to them. The stages of grief: Many researchers in this field identified that there are five stages classified for grief due to death of a person or the person himself dying: The stage of denying: In this stage the people who are dying or whose close relatives are dying are not prepared to accept the reality, hence they isolate themselves in order to believe the fact which is supported by others and not themselves (Mallon, 2008). The stage of anger: Here the person gets angry, and expresses their uncontrolled anger to others (Green, 2010). His actions become the reflection o the anger he has adopted for himself. The stage of dealing: In this stage the person starts bargaining with the present circumstances. They seek for advance treatment facilities and trust people who give a positive hope for survival. The stage if Depression: Depression is almost equal to mourning. It is of two types, the first being the implication of reactions and the second one is private reaction. The stage of Accepting : At this stage the person is prepared to accept the circumstances. This is commonly indicated as a resistance for grieving. It is also marked as an act of bravery. At this phase the sufferer tends to be withdrawing and calm in nature. The joy found by Wolterstorff after he lost his son: It was no sooner after the death of his son that Wolterstorff found he took for granted the presence of his son (Wolterstorff, 1987). When he realized that he understood how much he loved Eric, his son. He kept on saying about his son instead of forgetting. Christian narrative significance of death in light: The separation of the eternal soul form the mortal body is known as death according to Christianity. It was believed that God created human-beings in light of creatures of the ancient times and mentioned the good about it (Taylor, 2005). But a person doesnt really crave for quintessence beyond time. This leads people to be afraid of death. Death in light refers to the sudden death which makes a positive overview and makes people believe that death is not supposed to be afraid. When a soul enjoys the beauty of death more than being afraid of dying, it is called death in light. Wolterstorff hope of resurrection: The biblical context did not console him nor did remind him for the hope of resurrection. Forgetting this thought would have brought a light for reminding about the hope. According to Wolterstorff death is not an incessant pit. He felt something has ended and in the end of every hope he adapted, he knew that his son is not going to come back. Everything made him remember his son till he reached the point of acceptance. Conclusion: The reactions for loss is general yet there are diverse type of reactions. It is the degree of attachment that determines the response of a person (Dastur, 2012). The mental strength of a person also plays a big role. If the person is very practical then he can deal with any type of grief and sorrow. The stages are not always applicable for every kind of grief. The person needs to understand about people who are gone will never return. Grief cannot be defined in the stage of dealing but when the person has successfully overcome the grief. References Dastur, F. (2012).How are we to confront death?. New York: Fordham University Press. Green, L. (2010).Understanding the life course. Cambridge: Polity. Mallon, B. (2008).Dying, death, and grief. Los Angeles: SAGE. Taylor, I. (2005).Religion and life with Christianity and Islam. Oxford: Heinemann. Wolterstorff, N. (1987).Lament for a son. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans.