Out of the Canyon

In his first book, The End of the Island, Jeffrey C. Tucker wrote an engaging, accessible theology of suffering. In his second book in this series, Out of the Canyon, Tucker focuses on the behavioral and pastoral care sides. We follow the canyon journey of one who suffers, written in the first person as a journal. Throughout the difficult and sometimes treacherous trek, the narrator reflects on the many challenges of human suffering encountered along the way. In the process, the traveler comes to understand more fully the biblical and human voices of suffering; the problems with those voices; our sometimes mal-adaptive coping mechanisms; our sometimes unhelpful views of God's power; the unique suffering of violence and trauma; the short and longer-term needs of suffering; human spirituality; the path of healing; coming to terms when we don't heal; and what we most need to give and receive as pastoral care providers and recipients. This book offers insightful, practical, and creative approaches to our own respective journeys of healing and transformation--all through the eyes of our narrator. And, as the story nears the final edge of the canyon, the trekker discovers the most valuable and unexpected lesson of all.


""In his second book, Tucker profoundly allows us to get 'into the head' of the journeyer, and sooner or later we find this journeyer in our head. A must-read for many walks of life. It is a book that could sequel Pilgrim's Progress.""
--Sheryl Allston, Board Certified Hospital Chaplain, Christiana Care Health System; Senior Level Police Chaplain, ICPC

""In Out of the Canyon, Tucker takes us on a metaphorical journey, sharing the insights he has gained about suffering, loss, and pain. A must-read for chaplains and pastors, I highly recommend this book for any deeply religious person who has undergone a 'canyon' experience of loss and pain.""
--Loida I. Martell, Professor of Constructive Theology, Palmer Theological Seminary, School of Theology and Ministry, Eastern University

""Tucker is fearless in expressing the tension between what it feels like to suffer as a human being, while desiring to trust God or be faithful to God when we simply cannot do it. This is Truth, with a capital T, about the human condition, and anyone who has truly suffered will recognize and relate to it.""
--Linda Grant, MDiv, BCC, ACPE Certified Supervisor; Associate Manager CPE

""[Tucker] offers a trail guide that seems to peel away the harsh layers of life, imparting peace, progress, and joyfulness. An invaluable, profoundly insightful tool for discussion in the classroom, book clubs, and among friends.""
--Jo A. Melson, MSN, RN, FNP-BC, Family Nurse Practitioner

Jeffrey C. Tucker is a chaplain and advocate for broadening the reach of pastoral care more fully into our communities. He believes that pastoral care is ""spiritual,"" experiential, and existential--not simply or even primarily, religious in traditional ways of thinking. Tucker earned his Master of Theological Studies degree from Palmer Theological Seminary, and is the author of The End of the Island: Finding Life in the Movements of Human Suffering, Pain, and Loss.