A modern dictionary of Catholic terms, both common and obscure. Find accurate definitions of words and phrases.
The experience of suffering. Pain can be physical, when the suffering is in the deprivation of some bodily want; or mental, when the mind is oppressed by uncertainty or doubt; or emotional, when the feelings are disturbed by anxiety and fear; or volitional, when desires are frustrated; or social, when a person is rejected or at least not accepted by others; and spiritual, when the soul is mysteriously tried by desolation and even a sense of abandonment by God. (Etym. Latin peona,punishment, penalty, pain.)
All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.