Blessed Are Those Who Mourn: Comforting Catholics in Their Time of Grief [Paperback]

Glenn M. Spencer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1999

Grief is an experience common to all humanity. It transcends culture and time. It is 'catholic' - that is, 'universal.' Grief is also Catholic. It is a well-charted experience in the Scriptures, in the lives of the saints, as well as in our common life in the Body of Christ ... Our task is to live this universal, or catholic, pattern of grief as Catholics. In this handbook for those who mourn, Glenn M. Spencer, Jr., looks at the grieving process within the context of the Church and the sacraments. By showing the reader how and why we must grieve all our losses, including but not limited to the death of a loved one, Spencer not only explains how to grow from the grief experience, but how to be a better friend to those who are grieving. Some of the topics include: The universality of grief The necessary steps of grieving and mourning The grief process experienced by the Church herself Anger and denial as elements of grief How to cope with special circumstances like holiday and anniversary grief How to help children mourn The role of forgiveness in healing How to find others who have experienced your type of loss How to establish a program in your parish to help with grief How the sacraments and the Church help in healing About the Author Glenn M. Spencer, Jr., has served as a chaplain and director of pastoral care in a psychiatric hospital where he has had extensive experience in helping people work through the grief process.

Editorial Reviews

Review

I thoroughly enjoyed...(Blessed Are Those Who Mourn) and found it a very comprehensive guide for any Christian who has experienced a significant loss. Father Spencer has managed to describe the grieving process in a way that those suffering from a wide array of losses (deaths, job loss, illness, etc) could relate and find comfort in his words. Likewise, I believe this book will be helpful to those who are watching a loved on grieve, as it give a very descriptive account of the phases of grief and uses poigant scenarios to demonstrate the variety of grief reactions. -- Emily F. Carter, Ph.D. University of Delaware

Reviewed by Katie Forster

There are many books on grief, but very few deal with the Cathoic perspective. Written by a priest with many years of experience in grief therapy, Blessed Are Those Who Mourn, deals admirabley with this subject while remaining clear and simple. Because this book is written for those who know little about the "technical" aspects of grief, the author begins by listing real grief situations and how the people in each reacted. The author then moves through the patterns of grief, describing each stage... Throughout the book the Bible stories are used to illustrate grief. This not only provides a Christian theme for the book, but also shows the common bond of all humans - a bond that spans cultures and times. -- AD2000 - A Journal of Religious Opinion

Spencer,a...Catholic chaplain and pastoral care director, offers a finely blended look at grief's sacramental aspects - that is, how it can become a form of grace. God, the church, and grieving individuals can work together to transform loss and bereavement into something good. Spencer covers a wide range of topics, including the many kinds of losses grieved, how to help children grieve, the stages of grief, and the question of evil. He quotes contemporary and ancient writers, Christians and non-Christians, but always brings readers back to a biblical perspective. A compassionate, intelligent look at grief's role in the church... -- Book Reviews CBA - Lynn Waalkes

About the Author

Glenn M. Spencer, Jr., studied philosophy at Elon College in North Carolina and English literature at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and holds a master of divinity degree from the Divinity School at Duke University. He has served as chaplain at Duke University Medical Center and Director of Pastoral Care at Charter Medical Center in North Carolina. He is the Rector of All Saints Church in Charlottesville, Virginia. He teaches dogmatic theology and pastoral care for his diocesan training academy. St. Augustine's, and he presents workshops for other professional caregivers in the field of grief and loss.

Product Details

• Paperback: 173 pages
• Publisher: Our Sunday Visitor (IN) (March 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879739460
• ISBN-13: 978-0879739461
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 1.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #391,742 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Catholic?, February 3, 2010

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This review is from: Blessed Are Those Who Mourn: Comforting Catholics in Their Time of Grief (Paperback)

I bought this book in a somewhat needy state of mind as my Mom had just died recently. I wanted something consoling, helpful, informative, and imbued with my Roman Catholic faith. This book didn't do it for me. I found it to be mostly psych talk with Scripture and references to certain Church teachings thrown in. My other question/concern about it is that I can't figure out the author - is he Catholic? This book title says "Catholic" in it, he refers to himself as a "priest" in the introduction; but within the book, he refers to The Book of Common Prayer (from the Anglican church) and the bio at the end of the book says he's an Episcopalian. What gives?