Religious and Pastoral Responses to Trauma

Religious faith and spiritual life are an essential part of human nature. Positive beliefs and existential hope give people zeal to thrive and flourish. Psychosocial resiliency is deeply rooted in religious values, communal heritage, and generational wisdom. Disasters and tragedies seriously interrupt the flow of emotional stability, collective tranquility, and equilibrium of spirituality.

Following a major loss or trauma, communities as well as individuals often become much more reflective, religious, contemplative, and worshipful than usual. Traumas have a way of opening up the gates of the soul to seek what is beyond the scope of the immediate troubles and to transcend the limits of one's condition. Some of the first responses to wars, tragedies, and disasters have been religious and spiritual in nature. People often seek ...