Jemma

“A rereading of these two events—death and resurrection—is timely in light of what we know about trauma. The dynamics of traumatic experience press Christian discourse beyond the site of the cross to think about what it means to live in the aftermath of death. Studies in trauma suggest that trauma has a double structure: the actual occurrence of a violent event(s) and a belated awakening to the event.8 Trauma is not solely located in the actual event but, instead, encompasses the return of that event, the ways in which the event is not concluded. This phenomenon is described in different ways, but the nature of trauma is such that an inability to fully process an event means that it returns. This return distinguishes trauma and suffering. Suffering is what, in time, can be integrated into one’s understanding of the world. Trauma is what is not integrated in time; it is the difference between a closed and an open wound. Trauma is an open wound. For those who survive trauma, the experience of trauma can be likened to a death. But the reality is that death has not ended; instead, it persists. The experience of survival is one in which life, as it once was, cannot be retrieved. However, the promise of life ahead cannot be envisioned.”
― Shelly Rambo, Spirit and Trauma: A Theology of Remaining