What if glorified suffering only legitimizes oppression?

After acknowledging the heavy burden of racism, Baldwin pens a clarion call for the acceptance of life in all of its suffering—and our duty to do it together.

“The discipline of suffering, of great suffering … has been the sole cause of every enhancement in humanity so far.”

While many dream of a painless life, a life of complete bliss remains unattainable. How, then, do we reconcile pain with our idea of the good life?

There’s a lot of suffering in the world. Much of it could be prevented or stopped.

In 399 BCE, Socrates was sentenced to death for impiety and corrupting the youth.

The “American Dream” is one particularly tempting narrative of the good life.

Think of the last time you were angry; the last time you were really, truly, boiling with rage.

The relationship between human suffering, divine presence, and endless compassion.

What could we possibly want other than for ourselves and others to feel good?

"There is a certain way of being human that is my way."

If we accept the existence of an omnipotent God, how do we make sense of the existence of suffering in our lives?

Each of us bears the fingerprints of the communities and people that raised us.

Nietzsche challenges us to think about how deeply we are willing to affirm life and the world despite the great suffering it includes.

A young Buddhist nun goes to great lengths to show how enlightenment has allowed her to live in peace.

What do we owe future generations?

Mencius suggests a strategy for prioritizing things of meaning in our lives that otherwise appear to conflict with one another.

Alice Walker reminds us that, to the environment, humans exist as one collective force, with all of us holding a collective responsibility to care for our world.