Viktor Frankl, the eminent
psychologist and founder of the so-called Third Viennese School of
Psychotherapy (Logotherapy), provides a revealing example of what it means to
express gratitude for wholeness and wellness. Frankl, who died in 1997 at the
age of 91, was a prisoner in the concentration camps during World War II. Dr.
Gordon Allport, in his preface to Frankl's significant work, Man's Search for Meaning,[1]
says that
"there he found
himself stripped to a literally naked existence. His father, mother, brother
and his wife died in the camps or were sent to the gas ovens, so that except
for his sister, his entire family perished in these camps. How could he --
every possession lost, every value destroyed, suffering from hunger, cold and
brutality, hourly expecting extermination -- how could he find life worth
preserving? A psychiatrist who personally has faced such extremity is a
psychiatrist worth listening to" (7).
Frankl answers Allport's question when he recounts his
experience immediately following his liberation from the camps:
"One day, a few
days after the liberation, I walked through the country, past flowering
meadows, for miles and miles, toward the market town near the camp. Larks rose
to the sky and I could hear their joyous song. There was no one to be seen for
miles around; there was nothing but the wide earth and sky and the larks'
jubilation and the freedom of space. I stopped, looked around and up to the sky
-- and then I went down on my knees. At that moment there was very little I
knew of myself or of the world -- I had but one sentence in mind -- always the
same: "I called to the Lord from my narrow prison and he answered me in
the freedom of space." "How
long I knelt there and repeated this sentence, memory can no longer recall. But
I know that on that day, in that hour, my new life started. Step for step I
progressed until I again became a human being" (96).
Frankl, released from arguably the
most "leprous" episode in the history of humankind, could do nothing
but kneel before his Creator in a posture of overwhelming gratitude. From that
point of thanksgiving, he marked his renewal as a human being. Likewise, our
wellness, our wholeness, our very healing and health, our becoming wholly human
depend on our being able to celebrate and give thanks for the "freedom of
space," for the liberation and cleansing God has brought to us, often
mediated by influential people we love and the people who love us.
When Jesus touches and cleanses us,
releasing us from the prisons of grease, grime and gossip, how does he do it?
Through people. Through relationships which have changed us. Unfortunately, we
often forget to go back and offer our gratitude to these God-inspired and
enabled persons who have changed our lives.
Sue Bender, in her book Everyday Sacred,[2]
describes how she began to develop an attitude of gratitude. It had, she says,
something to do with an exploding turkey:
Last month my husband
Richard and I decided, at age 60 and 63, it was finally time to be grown-up and
responsible. Neither of us is practical about business or financial matters. We
went to a lawyer and started the process of making a will and a living trust for
our sons.
"What would you
like to do in case there's an 'exploding turkey?'" the lawyer asked. "Exploding turkey?" I asked.
"What if the
whole family was together at Thanksgiving and the turkey exploded?" he
asked. "If the four of you were killed at that moment, who would you want
to have your worldly goods?" That
turned out to be a terrific assignment. A chance to think about the people in
our lives, a chance to be grateful and express our gratitude. I decided to
create a new ritual. I would stop at the end of the day, even a particularly
difficult day, and make a list: a gratitude list. Who or what do I have to be
grateful for today? (110).
I can imagine a preacher using the
story in a sermon.
I can also imagine a writer making
an invitation. It would go something like this. Take a blank sheet of paper. We
are going to take a few minutes now to play the role of the Samaritan in Luke 17:11-19 by
returning to the one person who has been a healing force and presence in our
lives. Many of us will think of our parents. For the purpose of this exercise,
let us assume that our parents have been there for us as the wonderful parents
they are. Let us go beyond the parental influence to that of a friend, teacher
or mentor. Please do three things: Write the name of this person on this paper.
Then, jot down a brief paragraph summarizing this person's role in bringing
cleansing and wholeness to your life and express your gratitude for him or her.
Finally, covenant with me to contact this person during the week to share your
thoughts.
In fact, I think I am going to do
that this week. I would invite you to give yourself some holy silence. Let the
holy hush be part of this experience of gratitude.
Let us remember as well, that Jesus
brought this person into your life at the right time. Do not forget to give
thanks to him.
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