Healing according to Fr. Jerry Orbos, SVD

Fr. Jerry Orbos, SVD, in person struck me as a tall, dark man with a pleasant manly voice and a calm-and-collected charisma. An Inquirer columnist, he writes essays that are deceptively downhome and simple. He has a knack for making the reader face life’s hardest questions through accessible, unpretentious distillations, helping the reader make sense of life's complexities by getting down to the bottom of things, and he means the bottom of things.

His words always give hope and courage, that is, after disturbing the reader to his very core. I have no idea how he does the delicate (but tough) balancing act.

Excerpts from the talk, Healing the Self, by Fr. Orbos:

Distilling life down to the barest essentials leads to healing, that is, the avoidance of stress from worry, anxiety, and diseases. The most common sources of stress are money troubles, relationship troubles, lack of love in the family, and wrong priorities.

We don't have to suffer because:

1. Money can be earned.
2. Stupid quarrels can be resolved.
3. The life of a loved one is irreplaceable. – Forgive your parents. No parent is perfect anyway. No human being can give fully unconditional love.
4. The loss of your soul is your greatest failure. - Do your best and God will take care of the rest.

God wants you to be happy. Carry no burden. There is hope amidst life’s trials.