Tony Rodriguez was a compassionate and well-respected trauma therapist who devoted his life to helping survivors thrive, until his life was cut short in a tragic accident. Traumatized by the sudden loss of her husband and overwhelmed by the impact of his untimely death on their two sons, Jennifer Ohman-Rodriguez was determined to blaze a path toward healing. From the excruciating days immediately following his death, to navigating the bewildering labyrinth of young widowhood, to forging a new life for herself and her sons, A Time to Mourn & A Time to Dance chronicles her story with unabashed honesty and deep vulnerability, blended with authentic faith and teeth-clenching determination to do the hard work of healing. From the depths of despair back into the joy of living, retraced by the one who blazed her own path out of trauma’s grasp, this book is infused with the Jennifer’s heartfelt prayers, real-life applications of somatic and spiritual healing practices, and the kind of profound and practical wisdom that only reveals itself in life’s moments of truth.

Anthropologists have long known that different cultures give expression to their symbol systems through external mediums such as food and clothing, but they have not recognized as readily that cultures also mold emotional life to fit particular patterns of meaning. This prejudice against the role of behaviors in shaping the emotional and cognitive life is especially strong in the study of religion. Gary Anderson's study reveals that, in the Israelite culture (and later, the Jewish culture), mourning and joy as emotional experiences have visible behavioral components for both the individual and the community at large. The best evidence of this can be found in rabbinical texts that prescribe behaviors appropriate to joy and determine when this ritual state supersedes that of mourning. For example, on religious feast days, mourning is forbidden and joy is prescribed. Mourning cannot resume until after the festival. The terms "mourning" and "joy" so employed do not refer to simple emotional states, but rather constitute a discrete set of ritual behaviors. In fact, the types of discrete behaviors that constitute joy (eating, drinking, festal song, anointing with oil, festive attire, sexual relations) all have exact anti-types in the ritual of mourning (fasting, dirges, putting ashes on the head, rending one's garments or putting on sackcloth, sexual continence). Anderson shows that it is not only the rabbinical texts that use the terms "mourning" and "joy" in this way; rabbinic tradition is simply heir to a much older tradition, as witnessed in biblical and other ancient Near Eastern narratives such as the Gilgamesh Epic.

All loss is difficult, but death by suicide is a traumatic loss that brings with it more than just grief. Suicide leaves the surviving family members and friends with unfounded feelings of guilt and shame, questions that can never be answered, and regrets that make accepting the death almost impossible. When my husband took his own life in 2009, my life spiraled out of control for a time. I struggled to understand what had happened, why it happened, and, most of all, why I didnt see it coming. I blamed myself and for a time wanted to give up and die. Living and dealing with the events surrounding his death were just too difficult and painful. I questioned everybody and everything in my lifeincluding God. In time, with the help of family members, friends, counselors, pastors, and prayer, I found my way out of the depths of my despair. I gradually began to put my life back together againslowly but surely, one piece at the time. My life is drastically different now from what I imagined it would be when I first married. Ive had to accept changes that were forced on me, but Ive tried to make the best of those changes and use them in a positive way. I began writing a blog two years after my husbands death as a means of therapy for myself. I never dreamed it would turn into something that would help others as well. After keeping my blog going for two years, I decided to pursue turning it into a book. Life Goes On: Picking Up the Pieces After a Loved Ones Suicide is the result of my personal experience and is told straight from the heart with total honesty.

How do you find hope in hard times? Learn not only how to survive the difficult seasons, but to live a full life in the midst of them and beyond. Grounded in God's constancy and rooted in eternal hope, Nouwen guides you towards the kind of life that you can dance to—even through the darkest night. Deeply comforting and profoundly realistic, Turn My Mourning into Dancing discusses five movements we experience during hard times: From Our Little Selves to a Larger World From Holding Tight to Letting Go From Fatalism to Hope From Manipulation to Love From a Fearful Death to a Joyous Life Healing begins with taking our pain out of its toxic isolation and seeing our sufferings in communion with all humanity, and all creation. Nouwen teaches us that our lives participate in something much larger. Turn My Mourning into Dancing is a must read for: Those seeking growth and insight on the struggles of life Anyone going through the grief process and searching for real solutions Those who have experienced a loss, betrayal, or hard times Everyone grieves differently. It is a process, not a science experiment. Mourning shouldn’t last forever. Do you want the kind of life that allows you to dance even in the middle of the darkest night? Get the answers and find hope within your hard times.

At age 17, I was raped. By 27, I lived in despair, thinking the only way to end the pain was to end my life. By the time I turned 37, my life was and now is filled with hope, joy, and peace. What happened? God met me in the center of my pain, and using the power and truth of His Word, He taught me who I am in Jesus and who He is. In His character, I found the perspective and possibility I needed to learn to live with my pain and to use it for His glory, blessing others and growing my faith.

This 1991 book was the first ever English rendition of the classic statement of divine right absolutism, published in 1707. Jacques-Benigne Bossuet argues in the Politics that a general society of the entire human race, governed by Christian charity, has given way (after the Fall) to the necessity of politcs, law, and absolute hereditary monarchy. That monarchy - seen as natural, universal and divinely ordained (beginning with David and Solomon) is defended in the first half of the book. The last part, added soon before Bossuet's death, goes on to take up the rights of the Church, the distinction between absolutism and arbitrariness, and causes of just war. Patrick Riley has provided full supporting materials including a chronology, guide to further reading, and a lucid introduction placing Bossuet in his historical and intellectual context.

"A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance." Ecclesiastes 3:3,4.