Supporting those who are coping with personal loss—through death of a loved one or catastrophic illness—is one of the greatest challenges shared by clergy and mental health professionals. What each can learn from the other, how spiritual and psychotherapeutic perspectives on illness, death and grieving inform and complement each other, will be the focus of three of the most influential international figures in mental health and spiritual guidance at Hebrew College this fall.

On December 3, Dr. Jerome Groopman, Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and author of The Anatomy of Hope: How People Prevail in the Face of Illness, will examine the tension between efforts to instill hope in patients and the need to inform them of the harsh realities of severe illness; Rabbi Harold Kushner, author of When Bad Things Happen to Good People, will speak on counseling clients about the ultimate journey of death, December 10; and Rabbi Earl Grollman, author of Living With Loss, Healing With Hope, will address Jewish and psychotherapeutic approaches to grief counseling, December 17.

All three Wednesday evenings begin at 7:30 p.m. and cost $10 in advance, $15 at the door, $25 for the entire series. Open to the general public, this series is designed for health and mental health professionals and for clergy and Jewish professionals. It is cosponsored by the Center for Adult Jewish Learning and the Hadassah Social Work Council. For more information, contact the Center for Adult Jewish Learning, 617-559-8709 or cajl@hebrewcollege.edu.

Photo courtesy Jerome Groopman

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