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1298 points jgrahamc | 1 comments | | HN request time: 0.207s | source
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hn_throwaway_99 ◴[] No.22879511[source]
Perhaps this is too philosophical, but for anyone who has dealt with someone with a long decline into dementia, it's very difficult for me to understand a belief in God after going through that (I certainly understand some people have the exact opposite reaction, so I'm in no way saying this belief is correct).

It's just difficult for me to envision a crueler God if that is indeed the case. A person who has died long before their body gives way, only to be a constant burden, with virtually no joy, and a constant reminder that your loved one is dead, yet still here.

In the worst cases I say unreservedly that it is a huge relief when the person's body finally joins their mind in death.

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1. PNWChris ◴[] No.22879986[source]
I have no wisdom to share, and certainly no opinion on higher power that I would consider profound. What you describe is an unbelievably trying experience.

If you are hoping to make some sense of it all, I found Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl really altered how I see suffering and my place in the world. It's a very concrete book, and outlines a way to live with meaning without needing God (though totally compatible with faith).

Stay strong friend, I believe in a tragic optimism[0] like that outlined in Frankl's 1984 postscript.

[0]: https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/6807951-i-speak-of-a-tragic...

edit: corrected the quote and added a link