In this remarkable application of a theology of the cross to pastoral care, Sharon Thornton shows that while suffering may seem to be our birthright, not all suffering is inevitable. The wounds society collectively inflicts on people over time, both intentional and through indifference to one another, challenge us the most and have been addressed the least by pastoral theologians-injuries such as interracial animosity, gender discrimination, and class divide, as well as injuries resulting from wars and genocide.