Facing Death: Where Culture, Religion, and Medicine Meet
This profound and eloquent book brings together health professionals and distinguished authorities in the humanities to reflect on medical, cultural, and religious responses to death. Physicians and other caregivers describe their experiences witnessing death, and theologians, historians, anthropologists, literary scholars, and pastors tell how other cultures and religions perceive death and mourn. For medical personnel and for patients, this collection affirms that death is less an adversary...
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This profound and eloquent book brings together health professionals and distinguished authorities in the humanities to reflect on medical, cultural, and religious responses to death. Physicians and other caregivers describe their experiences witnessing death, and theologians, historians, anthropologists, literary scholars, and pastors tell how other cultures and religions perceive death and mourn. For medical personnel and for patients, this collection affirms that death is less an adversary than a defining part of life. Thomas E. Tucker The timeless topic of death is the focal point for this edited volume of essays. The first half considers clinical issues surrounding death and the second half presents cultural and religious responses. The purpose is to talk out loud about death and the multiple issues that surround this reality. It captures the fears, feelings, frustrations, and faith traditions that consider death. The book is intended for any thoughtful person who is interested in considering this topic from several vantage points. It has wide audience appeal. Naturally, it would be of great interest to healthcare professionals, but it could be used as a text in a university curriculum. This 207-page volume has 22 chapters equally divided into two sections. Part one covers the clinical aspects of the medical battle of facing death; part two presents the cultural and religious responses: framing death. Notes and useful references are found at the end of each chapter. Several black-and-white photos and medieval works of art tastefully add to the readability of this volume. The book presents the medical dilemmas facing healthcare professionals in light of the limits of past medical education. It describes how healthcare professionals can consider death in a broader context than just clinically. The cultural and religious dimensions of the book broaden the reader's understanding of other faith traditions, which are both diverse and remarkably similar. It makes a valuable contribution to the growing body of work on death. It is well written, thought provoking, and challenging.
ForewordPreface: Facing DeathAcknowledgmentsIntroduction: Defining a Life: The Western Tradition1Ch. 1Attending to Dying: Limitations of Medical Technology (A Resident's Perspective)22Ch. 2Before Their Time: A Clinician's Reflections on Death and AIDS33Ch. 3The Doctor's Role in Death38Ch. 4Thoughts on Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide44Ch. 5Learning to Care for the Dying52Ch. 6Thoughts on Witnessing Death60Ch. 7The Changing Face of Death in Children66Ch. 8When Children Mourn a Loved One77Ch. 9The Emergence of Hospice Care in the United States81Ch. 10Caring for Those Who Die in Old Age90Ch. 11Living in the Maelstrom103Ch. 12An Ars Moriendi for Our Time: To Live a Fulfilled Life; to Die a Peaceful Death114Ch. 13The Art of Dying in Hindu India121Ch. 14Reflections on Mortality from a Jewish Perspective129Ch. 15Catholic Theology's Main Thoughts on Death137Ch. 16The Law of the Spirits: Chinese Popular Beliefs142Ch. 17The Meaning of Death in Islam148Ch. 18From This World to the Next: Notes on Death and Dying in Early America160Ch. 19Ars Memoriandi: The NAMES Project AIDS Quilt166Ch. 20Bearing the Spirit Home180Ch. 21Witnessing Death versus Framing Death184Ch. 22Conclusion: Retrospect and Prospect189List of Contributors199Index207
\ Thomas E. TuckerThe timeless topic of death is the focal point for this edited volume of essays. The first half considers clinical issues surrounding death and the second half presents cultural and religious responses. The purpose is to talk out loud about death and the multiple issues that surround this reality. It captures the fears, feelings, frustrations, and faith traditions that consider death. The book is intended for any thoughtful person who is interested in considering this topic from several vantage points. It has wide audience appeal. Naturally, it would be of great interest to healthcare professionals, but it could be used as a text in a university curriculum. This 207-page volume has 22 chapters equally divided into two sections. Part one covers the clinical aspects of the medical battle of facing death; part two presents the cultural and religious responses: framing death. Notes and useful references are found at the end of each chapter. Several black-and-white photos and medieval works of art tastefully add to the readability of this volume. The book presents the medical dilemmas facing healthcare professionals in light of the limits of past medical education. It describes how healthcare professionals can consider death in a broader context than just clinically. The cultural and religious dimensions of the book broaden the reader's understanding of other faith traditions, which are both diverse and remarkably similar. It makes a valuable contribution to the growing body of work on death. It is well written, thought provoking, and challenging.\ \ \ \ \ Juliet Wittman"Infused with a deeply humanitarian spirit and crammed with essential facts and incisive observation." -- Washington Post Book World\ \ \ From The CriticsReviewer: Thomas E. Tucker, LCSW, MDiv, PhL(Loyola University Medical Center)\ Description: The timeless topic of death is the focal point for this edited volume of essays. The first half considers clinical issues surrounding death and the second half presents cultural and religious responses.\ Purpose: The purpose is to talk out loud about death and the multiple issues that surround this reality. It captures the fears, feelings, frustrations, and faith traditions that consider death.\ Audience: The book is intended for any thoughtful person who is interested in considering this topic from several vantage points. It has wide audience appeal. Naturally, it would be of great interest to healthcare professionals, but it could be used as a text in a university curriculum.\ Features: This 207-page volume has 22 chapters equally divided into two sections. Part one covers the clinical aspects of the medical battle of facing death; part two presents the cultural and religious responses: framing death. Notes and useful references are found at the end of each chapter. Several black-and-white photos and medieval works of art tastefully add to the readability of this volume.\ Assessment: The book presents the medical dilemmas facing healthcare professionals in light of the limits of past medical education. It describes how healthcare professionals can consider death in a broader context than just clinically. The cultural and religious dimensions of the book broaden the reader's understanding of other faith traditions, which are both diverse and remarkably similar. It makes a valuable contribution to the growing body of work on death. It is well written, thought provoking, and challenging.\ \ \ \ \ 4 Stars! from Doody\ \
