Fear of accidents or acts of terror, illness or dying, loneliness or grief – if you’re like most people such anxieties may be robbing you of the peace that could be yours. In Be Not Afraid, Johann Christoph Arnold, a seasoned pastoral counselor who has accompanied many people to death’s door, tells how ordinary men, women and children found the strength to conquer their deepest fears. Drawing on stories of people he has known as pastor, relative or friend, Arnold shows how suffering can be given meaning, and despair overcome. Interspersed with anecdotes from such wise teachers as Mother Teresa, Henri Nouwen, Fyodor Dostoyevsky and Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Arnold’s words offer the assurance that even in an age of anxiety, you can live life to the full and meet death with confidence.
Inhoudsopgave
Foreword
Introduction
1 Foundations
2 Fear
3 Despair
4 Losing a Baby
5 Reverence
6 The Childlike Spirit
7 Anticipation
8 Readiness
9 Accidents
10 Beyond Medicine
11 In God’s Hands
12 Suffering
13 Faith
14 Courage
15 Healing
16 Caring
17 Dying
18 Grief
19 Resurrection
Over de auteur
People have come to expect sound advice from Johann Christoph Arnold, an award-winning author with over a million copies of his books in print in more than 20 languages.
A noted speaker and writer on marriage, parenting, and end-of-life issues, Arnold is a senior pastor of the Bruderhof, a movement of Christian communities. With his wife, Verena, he has counseled thousands of individuals and families over the last forty years. His books include Why Forgive?, Rich in Years, Seeking Peace, Cries from the Heart, Be Not Afraid, and Why Children Matter.
Arnold’s message has been shaped by encounters with great peacemakers such as Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Teresa, César Chavez, and John Paul II. Together with paralyzed police officer Steven Mc Donald, Arnold started the Breaking the Cycle program, working with students at hundreds of public high schools to promote reconciliation through forgiveness. This work has also brought him to conflict zones from Northern Ireland to Rwanda to the Middle East. Closer to home, he serves as chaplain for the local sheriff’s department.
Born in Britain in 1940 to German refugees, Arnold spent his boyhood years in South America, where his parents found asylum during the war; he immigrated to the United States in 1955. He and his wife have eight children, 42 grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. They live in upstate New York.
To learn more visit www.richinyears.com