Frankl: Pain, Guilt, Death
Friesen CLASSIC Update
Originally Sent July 13, 2002
Dear Family & Friends,
A friend recently send me an engaging book, Man’s Search for Meaning. The author, Viktor Frankl, survived the Nazi concentration camps of Dachau & Auschwitz. He came out of the horror stronger than he went in. He watched others and asked, “Why do some endure while others throw themselves on the electric fences to commit suicide?” He concluded that only those who had found a meaning for life could live through the terror. Those who had discovered a WHY for life were able to endure any HOW of life. He decided that meaningful life had to explain three things: pain, guilt and death. He concluded: Suffering must be turned into achievement. Guilt must motivate us to change for the better. Death must move us to responsible action now since life is transitory. I was humbled by what others have endured. I was moved to faith when Frankl defined man. “Man is that being who invented the gas chambers of Auschwitz; however, he is also that being who entered those gas chambers upright, …. with the Lord’s prayer on his lips.”
Garry
June 16th, 2007 at 7:40 am
Along with a meaningful life, the power of hope is important. Hope is what keeps one alive in the darkest of times. One must have hope if one is to survive the painful traumatic experiences of life. Once a person loses their hope and begins to despair, it becomes much much harder to live life, and that is when suicide can look like a much more viable option. Just a little addendum that I thought you might appreciate.