Conquering Fear: Living Boldly in an Uncertain World

Written by Harold S. Kushner

Narrated by Harold S. Kushner

From the best-selling author of When Bad Things Happen to Good People, an illuminating book about fear—and what we can do to overcome it.

An inescapable component of our lives, fear comes in many guises: fear of unemployment; fear of aging, illness, losing beauty; fear of a terrorist attack or natural disaster. In uncertain times, coping with these fears can be especially challenging, but in this indispensable, hopeful book, Harold S. Kushner teaches us to confront, master, and even embrace fear for a more fulfilling life.

Drawing on the teachings of religious and secular literature and on the true stories of people who have faced their fears, Kushner helps us to see that fear can present us with extraordinary opportunities—to connect with our emotions, rethink our values, and change our lives, and the world, for the better. For those who fear helplessness, he suggests empowerment: through prayer, service, and education. For those who fear for mankind’s future, he insists on hope and pragmatic measures, such as working to protect the environment. For those who fear death, he proposes life—lived boldly and purposefully.

In Conquering Fear, we are again inspired by Harold S. Kushner’s wisdom, at once deeply spiritual and eminently practical.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
• Release date: Oct 6, 2009
• ISBN: 9780739385197

Harold S. Kushner

Harold S. Kushner es un destacado rabino y autor estadounidense. Es miembro de la Asamblea Rabínica del Judaísmo Conservador y se desempeñó como rabino congregacional del Templo Israel de Natick, en Natick, Massachusetts durante 24 años. Sus 14 libros incluyen los bestsellers Cuando le suceden cosas malas a la gente buena y Viviendo una vida que importa: resolución del conflicto entre la conciencia y el éxito.

Reviews for Conquering Fear

[detailmuse · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In his 12th book, Rabbi Harold Kushner offers a place of comfort and hope amid the deepening worries of life in this 21st century.

Through chapters organized around change, divorce and unemployment, natural disasters and terrorism/war, and infirmity and death, Kushner acknowledges our fear (“Something terrible is likely to happen”) but refutes our implied helplessness (“Something terrible is likely to happen and there is nothing you can do about it”). Thus, while he doesn’t diminish the reality that events will likely cause us pain, he does help us to discard the hobbling layer of suffering (our emotional response to pain): “Fear, accepted and embraced, is no longer fear but at most a realistic concern with some future event.” His own wisdom is supplemented with stories from his family, congregants and colleagues, plus examples from popular fiction, nonfiction and the Bible (I wish he had included a bibliography).

Conquering Fear offers comfort more so than a checklist, and a gathering peace and confidence more so than revelation. Its focus on faith, spirituality and personal strength -- and not specifically religion -- makes it widely accessible.