(Press-News.org) The notion of being angry with God goes back to ancient days. Such personal struggles are not new, but Case Western Reserve University psychologist Julie Exline began looking at "anger at God" in a new way.
"Many people experience anger toward God," Exline explains. "Even people who deeply love and respect God can become angry. Just as people become upset or angry with others, including loved ones, they can also become angry with God."
Exline, an associate professor in Case Western Reserve's College of Arts and Sciences, has researched anger toward God over the past decade, conducting studies with hundreds of people, including college students, cancer survivors and grief-stricken family members.
She and her colleagues report their results in the article, "Anger toward God: Social-Cognitive Predictors, Prevalence, and Links with Adjustment to Bereavement and Cancer" in the new issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
Anger toward God often coincides with deaths, illnesses, accidents or natural disasters. Yet anger is not limited to traumatic situations. It can also surface when people experience personal disappointments, failures, or interpersonal hurts. Some people see God as ultimately responsible for such events, and they become angry when they see God's intentions as cruel or uncaring. They might think that God abandoned, betrayed, or mistreated them, Exline says.
Exline notes that it can be difficult for people to acknowledge their anger toward God. Many people are ashamed and don't want to admit their feelings, she says. In particular, people who are highly religious may believe that they should focus only on the positive side of religious life.
"But religion and spirituality are like other domains of life, such as work and relationships," Exline says. "They bring important benefits, but they can bring difficulties as well. Anger with God is one of those struggles," she adds.
According to Exline's findings, Protestants, African Americans, and older people tend to report less anger at God; people who do not believe in God may still harbor anger; and anger toward God is most distressing when it is frequent, intense, or chronic.
Overcoming anger at God, she says, may require some of the same steps needed to resolve other anger issues.
"People may benefit from reflecting more closely on the situation and how they see God's role in it," Exline suggests. "For example, they may become less angry if they decide that God was not actually responsible for the upsetting event, or if they can see how God has brought some meaning or benefit from a painful situation."
People who feel angry toward God also need to be reassured that they are not alone. Many individuals experience such struggles, she adds. She suggests that people try to be open and honest with God about their anger, rather than pulling away or trying to cover up their negative feelings.
INFORMATION:
Readers who would like to participate in an online study of anger toward God can go to this web address: http://psychology.case.edu/research/god/index.html
Exline, a noted expert in forgiveness issues, is a licensed psychologist and a spiritual director trained by the Ignatian Spirituality Institute at John Carroll University.
Co-investigators on the article are: Crystal L. Park from the University of Connecticut and Joshua M. Smyth and Michael P. Carey from Syracuse University.
Click on the link below to download a brief sound bite from Julie Exline: http://rcpt.yousendit.com/982620135/36fe287c8ebc259bb66c436359255397
For a broadcast-quality version of this sound bite without graphics, contact Mary Gerity at mary.gerity@case.edu. To set up an interview, contact Susan Griffith at susan.griffith@case.edu.
Angry at God? If so, you're not alone, says CWRU psychologist
2011-01-01
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Study shows that CPAP therapy reduces fatigue, increases energy in patients with sleep apnea
2011-01-01
DARIEN, IL – Patients with obstructive sleep apnea often report that they feel like "a new person" after beginning treatment with continuous positive airway pressure therapy. A new study in the Jan. 1 issue of the journal SLEEP provides objective evidence to support these anecdotal reports, showing that three weeks of CPAP therapy significantly reduced fatigue and increased energy in patients with OSA.
Results of the randomized controlled trial show that CPAP therapy significantly reduced self-reported, mean fatigue scores on two independent measures: from 8.76 at baseline ...
Study finds evidence of increased lung cancer risk among tuberculosis patients
2011-01-01
Although a clear association of tuberculosis with lung cancer remains to be established, a new study published in the January issue of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology provides compelling evidence of increased lung cancer risk among people with tuberculosis.
Researchers at China Medical University and Hospital in Taiwan randomly selected 1 million patients covered under the country's National Health Insurance (NHI) program. All patients aged 20 years and older with a new diagnosis of tuberculosis between 1998 and 2000 were identified as the exposed cohort and all people ...
Soundcrafting.com release the new Goldmind Producer Pack Hip Hop Sound Series
2011-01-01
Soundcrafting.com releases the new Goldmind Producer Pack. This the best to date hip hop sound series that we have ever released. There are four packs in this series. It has the Mannie Fresh Series, Trap Star kits, Nu Urban Tools, and The Big Bang Kitz. The Goldmind Producer Pack is load with hip hop samples and Hip Hop Sounds. There are 745 sounds in this series. You can buy the whole series or buy each kit/and or pack individually.
This series will work with FL Studio and Fruity loops. It will also load into the MPC Drum Machine Series, as well as any software sampler ...
South Moon Under Nationwide Casting Call
2011-01-01
This free nationwide online-based casting call will start on Monday, December 6, 2010, and will continue through the end of February 2011. The casting call is open to females and males, aged 16 and above. Each contestant is required to submit an entry form with photos (professional not required) on ExploreModeling.com. South Moon Under will then select six lucky winners (three females and three males) to be featured in their Spring 2011 photo shoot in New York City. Each of the six models will receive $250 in clothing products and professional tear sheets from the shoot.
Immediately ...
Dream Cartel Teams With Nobody Jones Boutique For January 15th Fashion Networking Party
2011-01-01
Dream Cartel, a Los Angeles-based fashion public relations agency for emerging designers, models, and stylists, will be presenting a networking party at Nobody Jones Boutique on January 15, 2011. The event will be located at 4703 Crenshaw Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90043 from 6:00-9:00pm. This is a free event with complimentary liquor, wine, and treats. Mingle with the fashionistas of L.A. while shopping, networking, and building professional relationships with fashion industry insiders.
Invited guests include designers, models, stylists, bloggers, editors, photographers, ...
Metro NY Chapter of National Black MBA Association Calls on High School Mentors
2011-01-01
The Metro New York Chapter of National Black MBA Association is calling on mentors to lead a series of academic enrichment and leadership workshops to begin in January. College Awareness Symbolizes Hope (C.A.S.H.) is a free and fun team-based mentoring program that strives to educate African-American students about the advantages of graduating from high school and attending college.
Mentors will play a critical role in giving students the tools and resources for setting goals, applying to college, seeking financial aid, budgeting, resume writing, public speaking, networking, ...
Calgary Home Inspector list out Benefits of Hiring a Home Inspector
2011-01-01
For those who are serious about making sure that their house is immaculate, hiring a home inspector makes sense. A home inspector comes with his whole baggage of equipments and expertise to identify hidden problems that if uncovered later can cause a lot of damage. In fact a number of real estate agents get a routine inspection done on every house that they've undertaken to sell.
"A home inspection can be likened to an examination by a physician. The inspector inspects the physical structure and the major interior systems of a house and points out possible problems ...
Online Recruitment with Recruitment Genius
2011-01-01
Online recruitment specialist, Recruitment Genius, has today (16 November 2010) been presented with the Best New Product Service Award by the Best Business Awards.
The Best Business Awards are open to organisations of all sizes and aim to highlight and reward excellence with entries judged by an independent panel of business experts and past winners. The Best New Product / Service category is not just about innovation but also looks at pricing, after-sales service, design and performance. Each submission is scored against specific category criteria with particular emphasis ...
Vegas Entrepreneur Launches FingoGames.com
2011-01-01
Fingo Games (http://www.fingogames.com) announced today that they have launched the debut of their online presence in the Gaming Industry, with FingoGames.com. FingoGames.com will be the home to a series of games they will be releasing over the next three months. The Fingo Games concept was developed by the company's owner and is a new spin on Bingo where players are required to build non-traditional patterns, at an accelerated pace. Company head and game inventor, Dave D'Matrix developed the concept of Fingos after creating finger daubers for his Grandmother to help her ...
Unemployed Christians Using FindAChristianJob.com for Christian Jobs
2011-01-01
For the first time in more than two years, the number of Americans filing for their first week of unemployment benefits fell below 400,000 last week -- a ray of hope in the one of the longest job droughts in U.S. history. Job seekers are using job search engines like FindAChristianJob.com (http://www.findachristianjob.com) to locate Christian jobs, ministry jobs, church jobs and pastor jobs. FindAChristianJob.com's growth in the last three months can be seen in its exponential website traffic and nearly 18,000 Twitter followers.
The number of initial claims fell to 388,000 ...