A Grief Unveiled: One Father's Journey Through the Death of a Child [Paperback]

Gregory Floyd (Author), Thomas Howard (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1999

It was a lazy afternoon in April, 1995, when the unthinkable happened. Six- year-old John-Paul, the youngest son of Gregory and Maureen Floyd was playing in the front lawn with his brother David when both were struck by an out-of-control car. Rushed to separate hospitals, David survived with bruises, but John-Paul died instantly. In A Grief Unveiled, Floyd reveals his heart-breaking journey through the sorrow of losing a young child, as he deals not only with his own broken heart, but also with the struggle to reconstruct his role as husband, father, and protector. With rare candor, Floyd captures the almost indescribable moments of pain as well as the palpable moments of grace as he openly shares his struggle with the theological why's and the personal emotions that question the goodness of God. This book is a witness to the intimate presence of God in the midst of unbearable lossoffering hope to all who struggle.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"An extraordinary account . . . at once emotionally devastating, at times spiritually exhilarating, and most of the time both at once." -- First Things

A Grief Unveiled is a profound witness to the light and hope that Christianity offers to a hurting world. It is a rock on which those who grieve can re-build their lives. It's destined to be a classic work on the topic of grieving." -- Envoy, Matthew J. Pinto, August 1999

A good resource for those seeking to understand, as well as for parents who think that nobody understands. -- Discipleship Journal

Courage is a virtue that tends to show up on most lists, and Gregory Floyd has done us a remarkable turn in sharing how he and his family entered into the very heart of courage (which is Christ's heart). On April 24, 1995, an out-of-control-car careened out of its way and struck his fourth child, John-Paul, age six and a half, snapping his brain stem and killing him almost instantly. In "A Grief Unveiled", Floyd shows honestly the brutal reality of suffering and grief that attends the death of a child - and yet the grace and love that flow from God and from the Church into a family at such a time. This is not a book to be passive about or to imagine that you can observe from the sidelines. This book will grab readers and demand reactions. I grieved with Floyd and hoped with him, too, and came through the reality of both to, understand more deeply how good God has been to me in my own suffering. This is a tremendous and moving book and many, many contemporary Catholics should read it. -- New Covenant, Our Sunday Visitor, September, 1999

Father's Memoir on Grief -- Gregory Floyd's six-year-old son John-Paul was killed on the family's front lawn by an out-of, control motorist. John-Paul died instantly. In this personal memoir, "A Grief Unveiled: One Father's Journey through the: Death of a Child," Floyd reveals his heart-breaking journey through the sorrow of losing a young child as he deals not only with his own broken heart, but also with the struggle to reconstruct his role as husband, father and protector. Floyd understands with a newfound sympathy why people turn to drugs and alcohol and why so many marriages break up after the death of a child: " ...one must do something to numb the pain." A devout Catholic, Floyd captures the almost indescribable moments of pain as well as the palpable moments of grace as he openly shares his struggle. "A Grief is a powerful witness to the intimate presence of God in the midst of unbearable loss, offering hope to all who struggle with grief. -- The Family Digest, Sept/Oct 1999

Gregory Floyd has written the book that no parent ever wants to be in a position to read. In 194 autobiographical pages, Mr. Floyd tells of his heart-wrenching journey through despair after the loss of his 6-year-old son. He envelopes the reader in his pain but amazingly is also able to share moments of grace along his journey. A father of seven and a student of theology, Mr. Floyd opens his soul and outwardly struggles with questions about the goodness of God . . . The reader of this enlightening book cannot help but be moved by such a powerful journey. -- Alliance Magazine, November 1999

Uniquely poignant is this record of a man's struggle with grief over the death of his son . . .This book spares no detail of the family's struggle: from the moments on the lawn; to the hospital agony; the precious outreach of family and friends; the torrents of prayer . [..] -- Catholic Library World, March 2000

When his 6-year-old son was killed by a motorist, Gregory Floyd's family embarked on a journey of sorrow. Here the author details the process of their grief. This book offers hope and a sense of God's presence to those dealing with an unbearable loss. -- New Man, July/August 1999

From the Inside Flap

"A Grief Unveiled is potent, poignant, unsentimental and utterly honest. . . .This book has a sacramental power to make present the terrible and wonderful things it signifies." Dr. Peter J. Kreeft Professor, Boston College

"This is no ordinary book about grief. Gregory Floyd writes from the depth of a father's heart with sensitivity and spiritual reality." Thomas J. Monaghan Founder of Domino's Pizza

"In a most moving manner, Gregory Floyd has lifted the veil of grief that enveloped a loving Christian family and invited us to be a part of that experience of pain and love, of faith and hope. Thank you, Gregory, for enabling me to walk with you along the Way of the Cross towards the glory of the Resurrection." John Magee Bishop of Cloyne, Ireland

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Product Details

• Paperback: 194 pages
• Publisher: Paraclete Press (MA) (May 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1557252157
• ISBN-13: 978-1557252159
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #382,836 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tragedy - Hope - God's Grace, August 26, 1999

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[e-mail] (Illinois) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Grief Unveiled: One Father's Journey Through the Death of a Child (Paperback)

This was a difficult book to read -- because it's difficult to read through tears. Reading this account of the death of six year old John Paul Floyd and the unveiling of the grief process for his father, mother, siblings, family and friends was sad but also uplifing as Gregory Floyd allows us to enter into his thoughts, his prayers, his anger, his questioning of God, his extreme love of God, his fire-tested faith in God, and ultimately his hope. This is an important book that should be read by all who have suffered the loss of a loved one -- and a book that should be read by all parents and grandparents. You will consider your children and your grandchildren in an entirely different light after reading this powerful book. Thank you, Gregory Flood, for sharing your pain and your hope with us. I am a better person for having read this book!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Grace Revealed, September 25, 2003

By 

William Muehlenberg (Melbourne Australia) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Grief Unveiled: One Father's Journey Through the Death of a Child (Paperback)

This book is the attempt of one father to come to terms with the anguish, the heart-break, the devastation, and the questions that arise when tragedy strikes. Others books have attempted the same. The great English apologist C.S. Lewis wrote a book entitled The Problem of Pain, exploring these difficult questions. It is interesting to compare it with a book he wrote later, after his wife died of cancer. His A Grief Observed does not so much refute what he wrote earlier, but in many ways goes far beyond it.

A theoretical and theological reflection of suffering is one thing. A first-hand personal account is another. A Grief Unveiled is of the second type. Not that theological and biblical reflection is absent. But this is the very personal and very moving account of how one father copes with the worst pain imaginable, moments after the event, hours after, days after, months after, and years after. What does the journey of grief look like from the inside? This volume is an unforgettable account of one long and painful trip through grief.

For anyone who has experienced any comparable tragedy, the book will echo similar thoughts and emotions, and will bring forth many tears. The book does not over-sentimentalize, but neither does it over-spiritualize. It is brutally honest and totally real.

Anyone who suffers will resonate with these moving chapters. Yet it is not just a book about sorrow, grief and pain. It is also a book about hope, joy and victory. It is the story of a radiant faith; a faith that takes a terrible hammering, but a faith the survives and grows and triumphs. But it is triumphant faith because it has as its object a triumphant God. Indeed, God is the real subject of this book in many ways. It is only because of the great love, grace and mercy of God that the Floyds can make it through the valley of the shadow of death.

The opening chapters are the most painful. Descriptions of the accident. Cradling a dying boy. The nervous wait at the hospital. The bad news from the doctor. Watching a lifeless boy in a casket, bandages over the eyes, because the organs were donated. The burial. The days immediately thereafter.

The grief seems unbearable. But with time comes some relief. The hole in the soul is always there. It will never disappear. But the intense pain and grief slowly, and surely, begin to subside. And through it all, one believer's relationship with his God is sorely tested, but in the end, vindicated. And with it comes the spiritual understanding that comes with the suffering, the realization that the God we serve is a suffering God.

God the Father knows all about suffering. He too lost a son in tragic circumstances. And Mary, the mother of Jesus, also knows the heartbreak of losing a beloved son. But as Floyd makes quite clear, Good Friday is followed by Easter Sunday. John-Paul is not dead, but alive, waiting for the glorious reunion that will one day take place. The promise of the resurrection is the believer's hope. And the resurrection of Jesus is the guarantee that we too will one day be raised.

But it works both ways, There can be no Easter without Calvary. Suffering is the path chosen by Christ, and it is the path his followers must also accept. The hard questions may never fully be answered. But the ultimate answer to the problem of suffering and evil is not a proposition but a person. Jesus, who is acquainted with grief and familiar with sorrow, is the only one who can offer comfort and hope to those who suffer.

If God can take the most horrible and painful event in human history, the cross, and turn it into the most glorious and blessed of events, then there is hope for us as well. Suffering can be redeemed. It can make us more like the one who knows all about suffering.

This book is a testament to the way the death of one man two thousand years ago becomes the basis of hope for everyone today. This powerful story will help those who are suffering to make it through. And it will help all of us to get our priorities a little more straight, and help us refocus our attention on what is truly important and of value in life.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It happened to us, May 18, 2006

By 

David A. Watt "David A. Watt" (Fishers, In) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Grief Unveiled: One Father's Journey Through the Death of a Child (Paperback)

The specific circumstances of our son's death and his age were different than Mr. Floyd's child. The feelings and the pain were not. These events test you and your relationship with God as Mr. Floyd writes and he is on the mark.
I have bought this book for others, who have lost a child or loved one.