judaism

This book is a treasure for anyone who would like to enhance their knowledge of Jewish healing resources with respect to all of the situations that life presents.

Rabbi Friedman has enlisted compassionate, experienced pastoral caregivers who are experts in their particular areas of counseling and who effectively convey the intimate details of what they provide, teach, learn and encounter in dealing with people in need and transition. The contributors share their own wisdom, insecurities, sorrows, and joys as they accompany those whom they counsel. The reader comes to know alot about each of the writers-getting an inside look at how it actually feels to be confronted by unexpected awkward situations(i.e., an engaged couple who shows up for all of their premarital counseling sessions with the mother of the groom in tow!).

Rabbi Friedman's own compassion and dedication to healing shine throughout the book, giving much of the material the feeling of a prayer, a blessing. Regardless of the pain inherent in so many of the situations addressed, (terminal illness, aging, domestic violence, abuse, addiction, family rejection of same sex partners), the humanity of the pastoral counselor and richness of the Jewish tradition provide hope and comfort.

You don't have to be Jewish or a pastoral counselor to benefit from the book's wisdom. It is essentially a primer on confronting suffering, identifying and using Judaism's resources and tools, and being comforted and strengthened.