Tag: Dying

Death, Where is Your Sting? Why Assisted Suicide is Anything But Compassionate

June 11, 2016 / Greg Garda

Since being exposed to the reality suffering on my first visit to the slums of Rio de Janeiro and serving the homeless and drug addicted in Toronto I have learned one important lesson: We can’t start to understand people’s suffering until we enter into it with them.

In the past two years two instances of suffering stand out in my life. The death of Jennine’s (my wife) grandmother and Jennine giving birth to our baby. Accompanying people in their suffering has taught me an important lesson about compassion and human dignity.

Courtesy of Unsplash.com by Ryan Moreno

Why Doesn’t God Always Stop Suffering?

May 14, 2016 / Greg Garda

If God is all powerful and all good why doesn’t he intervene to stop suffering? This is a question on the mind of many in the developed West.

“Better than I deserve!”

On a daily basis I come across several people in my job. When I greet them I typically ask, “How are you doing?” or “How is your day so far?” The typical response I get is, “Busy!” followed by a string of negative things. Even things that seem to be positive and self imposed such as taking children to recreational activities, seem to be infused with negativity and suffering.

I contrast this with my experience in working in developing countries and with the homeless. The first favela I entered on a trip to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, I encountered a young woman who was paralyzed from the neck down. She had no wheel chair or any effective means of transportation. I remember walking into a room where she laid on a sleeping cot placed on the ground. She smiled, laughed, told jokes and was so thankful to be alive with her family. She may never know this, but she was the first to force me to question what it means to be fully alive.

Courtesy of Flickr.com by mclolumnasana

Conquering Suffering: 3 Things I Learned From Witnessing Pain

April 28, 2016 / Greg Garda

When loved ones, close friends, or someone we admire dies we experience great sadness. For me, when someone close to me dies, initially a heavy burden of sadness weighs on my heart. But it is not long before the sadness is overwhelmed by peace.

This might seem inappropriate or even deranged, but allow me to share three reasons that suffering has taught me about authentic peace.

Courtesy of Amit Kujur from Flickr.com

The End of Reason

March 19, 2016 / Greg Garda

Walking Among Counterfeits

Numerous times I have had the experience of walking through a distinct mall in Lima, Peru called “Polvos Rosados.” Essentially it’s a giant dome with hundreds of vendors selling counterfeit versions of popular products. Counterfeits of expensive luxury brand watches, counterfeits of clothing brands such as American Eagle, Adidas, and Giorgio Armani, and occasionally the questionably acquired latest electronic gadget such as IPads, MacBooks, and smartphones.

To notice the difference between a counterfeit and an original when it comes to some of the products it would take a professional. For instance the luxury watches (Omega, Rolex…etc). Several vendors will carry similar, if the not the exact same counterfeits, but each vendor will insist that their fake is a more realistic fake than the one being sold around the corner.

Courtesy of Roy from flickr.com

Counterfeiting Truth

It seems that in the West (Canada, U.S., and Most of Europe) we live in an era where we are being sold several versions of counterfeit morality. Each insisting that their moral reasoning is more true than the other. Insisting that their fake is less fake than the next person’s.

Are Christians Afraid of Death?

October 8, 2015 / Greg Garda

Until Next Time!

She laid in her husband’s arm reminiscing the past 59 years of their marriage with an innocent and calming smile. With one mighty final effort she looked in her husband’s eyes with a familiar grin and passed away.

Doreen was Jennine’s (my wife) grandmother and my adopted grandmother. She was a devout Catholic Christian. For grandma going to church was not a chore but a privilege. She grew up in poverty, went to work at a young age to supplement her parents’ income, and helped raise 11 of her 12 siblings.

Despite the challenges of her early life she never failed to bring joy to the people who found themselves in her company. I find myself hard pressed to recall moments when she wasn’t filled with contagious joy. Even as cancer slowly tugged away at her life she laid in bed and marvelled at past family memories turning a gloomy atmosphere into one of laughter.

Grandma lived life to the full.

Photo by Rory Bjorkman from Flickr.com

Scared TO Death?

As I read the works of the late writer and cultural critic, Christopher Hitchens (may he rest joyfully in God’s presence) I am reminded of an earlier Greg Garda.

One of the accusations Mr. Hitchens continuously makes towards people of religious belief is that they are scared of death. Mr. Hitchens, along with my former self, believed that religious faith is a crutch that provides a simple explanation for a state after death. It is a placebo to medicate a fear, or “illness” as Mr. Hitchens implies.