From grief to hope

All are invited to join in a shared journey in a two-part exploration of LAMENT, an ancient and modern expression of a personal and communal journey through grief to hope.

The Rev’d Dr Frank Williams will lead this workshop. It will be held 6:30pm-8:00pm on Wednesdays, June 11 and 18, in the Murphey Gallery.

To plan for each session and provide materials, please register in advance by Monday, June 9.

Participants are welcome to bring a brown bag of food.

What is LAMENT? “Lament is a crying out of the soul, a pathway between the Already and the Not Yet. Lament minds the gap between current hopelessness and coming hope. Lament helps us hold on to God’s goodness while battling evil”s evil at the same time.”

Lament is a complex language of complaint, protest and appeal directed to God. The expressions have one commonality: deep faith in God in the midst of pain. Lament is an overlooked genre of prayer found throughout scripture. The Psalms contain more than 65 laments, but beyond the Psalms, there are the laments of Jeremiah, Job, Rachel, Hannah, Moses, and Jesus.

We live in a difficult and very stressful time. Our personal losses bring grief. Our communal losses bring grief.  We live in a time of fear and anxiety, of divisions in our society, of anger and despair.  Lament helps us navigate the wilderness of our grief—personal or communal.

In this workshop participants will explore the what and how of Lament; the pattern of lament; and personal and communal grief. In community, participants will write and share their laments (as they are comfortable) as they journey from grief to hope and healing.