Faith Unravels
A Rabbi’s Struggle with Grief and God
Foreword by Mayim Bialik
Imprint: Resource Publications
Every year, thousands of young people die, leaving in their wake circles of grieving friends in need of support. Many look to how clergy understand loss but few religious traditions have a defined mourning process--or even a role in mourning--for non-family members. Faith Unravels speaks to the profound pain experienced by a forgotten mourner, not by making an argument about God or by offering a recipe of rituals, but by sharing a profound story of faith lost and regained anew.
Daniel Greyber is rabbi at Beth El Synagogue in Durham, NC and author of Faith Unravels: A Rabbi's Struggle With Grief and God. Formerly a nationally ranked swimmer, he served as USA Team Rabbi at the 2013 World Maccabiah Games. His articles have been featured in a wide range of Jewish publications.
"Rabbi Greyber has done something magnificent with the book you are holding in your hands. He has shared of himself, revealed in the most intimate way where loss can take you, and where it can't. He has allowed us a peek inside a world of religious observance, beauty, and joy, and in doing so has laid bare the profundity of Judaism. This book is not preachy or full of instructions. It's a personal testament of love for the Jewish people, God, and those friends he loved and lost."
--From the foreword by Mayim Bialik, TV actor, Big Bang Theory and Blossom and author of Beyond the Sling
"We have all loved and lost, but too often we lack the tools to grieve and heal. In Faith Unravels, Rabbi Daniel Greyber has given us a path back to wholeness and to God. It is an inspiring work of comfort, faith, heart, and hope."
--Rabbi Naomi Levy, author of Hope Will Find You
"Rabbi Greyber is smart, inspired, and empowering. His book Faith Unravels gives me comfort and faith! It's not a good read; it's a must-read."
--Craig Taubman, singer songwriter
"Families grieve a loss, but how do we mark the loss of the families we create--friends, teachers, students, colleagues? Rabbi Greyber's story touches each of us who mourn, and his wisdom helps us cope with our own bewilderment and grief."
--Rabbi David Wolpe, author of Why Faith Matters
"In this poignant and intimate memoir, Rabbi Greyber reveals how unspeakable tragedy can pave the path to enduring faith. Inspired and inspiring, Faith Unravels confronts our spiritual struggle to transform devastating grief into courage, love, and hope."
--Brad Delson, Linkin Park guitarist
"Faith Unravels teaches on many levels. It touchingly explores a young rabbi's heart and troubled faith as he confronts the deaths of two friends. But offering more than his own experience--always a flimsy platform on which to stand--Greyber illumines the riches of Jewish traditions and practices in the face of death. Two irresistible forces--a young man's first encounter with death, and the eternal vastness of God--make for a powerful story when they collide. All people of faith will benefit from this story."
--Richard Lischer, Duke Divinity School
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