Author, pastor, educator, counselor and storyteller Jeffrey Munroe shares his new book, Telling Stories in the Dark: Finding Healing and Hope in Sharing our Sadness, Grief, Trauma, and Pain. Jeff draws on a lifetime of ministry in churches, universities, and Young Life both in the USA and Europe. He’s concluded that spiritual health is not so much about right beliefs as it is about telling our stories in an environment of safety and affirmation. In a chapter entitled, “I’ll Go First,” he shares the traumatic moment, just a month before his planned wedding, when his fiance with no warning experienced a sudden, massive stroke. As a young man, he got very little support. He was told to “be strong.” “There’s a purpose.” You need to hear this story. It’s the age-old problem of theodicy - how can a loving God allow unimaginable tragedy? In a wide-ranging conversation, Jeff draws on significant sources like Bessel VanderKolk, Frederick Beuchner, and Richard Rohr. In sharing some very personal stories, he deals with issues like terminal cancer, racial disparity in health care, gun violence, white privilege, Alzheimer's and suicide. In each, he applies a strong message from the vulnerable writer, Frederick Buechner who introduced the notion of “the stewardship of pain.” SHOW NOTES