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Pain is inevitable; suffering is optional. Loss is unavoidable; grief isn't. Death is certain. And life? Well, life isn't certain. Its uncertainty, unpredictability, even its irrationality, make it what it is. Often, we run blindly into fire, we step on snakes, we get entangled in snares—these are the fires of desire, the snakes of attachment and the snares of jealousy and covetousness. If we are bitten, burnt and hurt, we call it suffering, and believe it to be the way of life, when, in fact, we are mistaking our pain for our suffering.

Every student asks questions about life beyond the classroom: What does it mean to be in community? How can I discern my vocation? How should I understand marriage and sex? How should I relate to money and power? What happens if I doubt my faith? How should I approach interfaith dialogue? To help students navigate these questions about some of life's most pressing and difficult issues, Gary M. Burge and David Lauber have gathered insights from Christian faculty who draw on their own experiences in conversation with students during office hours and over coffee.