Companions in the Darkness - by Diana Gruver (Paperback)

About the Book

The church's relationship with depression has been fraught, and we still have a long way to go. Drawing on her own experience with depression, Diana Gruver looks back into church history and finds depression in the lives of some of our most beloved saints, telling their stories in fresh ways and offering practical wisdom both for those in the darkness and those who care for them.

Book Synopsis

The church's relationship with depression has been fraught: for centuries, depression was assumed to be evidence of personal sin or even demonic influence. The depressed have often been ostracized or institutionalized. In recent years the conversation has begun to change, and the stigma has lessened--but as anyone who suffers from depression knows, we still have a long way to go.

In Companions in the Darkness, Diana Gruver looks back into church history and finds depression in the lives of some of our most beloved saints, including Martin Luther, Charles Spurgeon, Mother Teresa, and Martin Luther King Jr. Without trying to diagnose these figures from a distance, Gruver tells their stories in fresh ways, taking from each a particular lesson that can encourage or guide those who suffer today. Drawing on her own experience with depression, Gruver offers a wealth of practical wisdom both for those in the darkness and those who care for them.

Not only can these saints teach us valuable lessons about the experience of depression, they can also be a source of hope and empathy for us today. They can be our companions in the darkness.

Review Quotes

"Companions in the Darkness by Diana Gruver is a well-written, deeply touching, and very helpful book that succinctly describes seven saints' struggles with depression and doubt: Martin Luther, Hannah Allen, David Brainerd, William Cowper, Charles Spurgeon, Mother Teresa, and Martin Luther King Jr. I highly recommend it as enlightening, edifying, and essential reading on depression."

"Diana Gruver has given the church a precious gift in Companions in the Darkness. Every depressed Christian and his or her loved ones should read this book. Diana has labored painstakingly to unearth the previously hidden details of the stories of depressed Christians of great faith and told their stories compellingly and compassionately, chipping away at the stigma of depression in the church. The stories we tell matter, and Companions in the Darkness is crucial in telling the historically accurate one, revealing that the illness of depression has plagued people of great faith for centuries. It opposes using faith destructively as a judgmental hammer and instead shows how faith sustains the depressed Christian. The gospel of God's great love for his children, including those struggling with depression, cannot coexist with stigma. Thank you, Diana, for the gift of Companions in the Darkness."

"Diana Gruver writes with the wisdom and compassion of someone who knows the landscape of depression from the inside. In Companions in the Darkness Gruver introduces us to both well-known and lesser-known Christians who battled with despair and whose stories can speak words of comfort and solidarity to those who ache for healing and deliverance. This is a brave, nuanced, and vulnerable book that offers no easy answers but points unflinchingly to the God who companions us in the darkness."

"I've lived with bipolar mood disorder for thirty years, so trust me when I say that Companions in the Darkness offers help and healing for those who have lived in the valley of depression. Diana Gruver skillfully frames her own battle with depression around unexpected but real-life stories of saints who trudged through surprising depths of darkness. From Martin Luther to Mother Theresa to Martin Luther King, we see how the many faces of depression can obscure the light and love of God. But most importantly, Gruver shows us why depression and a faith-full life are not incompatible. Discovering these seven saints deepened my sense that I'm never alone in the darkness, that there is always hope, and that there is a well-worn path to follow Jesus in the dark."

"It is rare to say that there is no other book like this, but with Diana Gruver's Companions in the Darkness she has done something that no other book has done: given us true companions for dark times by exploring the depression of older Christian leaders. She weaves in her own story of depression, offers contemporary psychological insight about mental health disorders, and invites us to take heart; we are not alone. Through her keen eye--an eye sensitive to suffering--she helps us understand Martin Luther's melancholy and physical pain, William Cowper's despair, Martin Luther King Jr.'s exhaustion, and Mother Teresa's dark night of the soul. These biographies are interesting and informative, but more they are manna, light, and hope. Many will be grateful for this very fine and truly helpful exploration."

"With wise insight and palpable compassion, Diana Gruver recounts the oh-so-human stories of Christians revered across the centuries as leaders, as achievers, as exemplars. For all of their fame as 'great' Christians, these saints tasted their own radical vulnerability and knew the anguish of mental illness. To all who seek God yet suffer, there is comfort to be found in this sacred company among the brothers and sisters who lived faithfully amid struggle, the companions and guides who assure us that depression will not have the last word. Practical and deeply personal, Companions in the Darkness is a gift to us all."

About the Author