The Rainbow: A Layman’s Guide to Managing Spiritual Crisis with The Confessions

The writings of the seventeenth-century German mystic Jacob Boehme are of great help to people of faith experiencing feelings of anxiety and persistent low moods.
 
Many people of a spiritual disposition often feel isolated when experiencing prolonged periods of psychological distress.  Such feelings arise from numerous causes, such a grief, separation, anger, fear, or other past trauma.  This work is aimed at giving both comfort and strength to those who, like Jacob Boehme, strive to make sense out of their experiences and the world around them.
 
Misplaced perceptions of faith exacerbate that imbalance.  Despite the challenges of faith in a world where suffering seems to hold the upper hand, Boehme decided to "take a chance on God" rather than give up on his faith completely.  Boehme's autobiographical discourses reveal how he came to terms with suffering and would come to regard negative feelings as a primal instinct deriving from fear.