In the book Go Tell It On The Mountain by James Baldwin it is about a boy named John, his church, and his family. John is struggling with emotions but the main one is grief. John deals with grief due to his father’s actions. His father is a leader at his church but beats John and his siblings. Which makes him question his relationship with God. He believes that he must kneel to his dad before he kneels to the Lord.

This source addresses my essential question because it talks about emotions and pain is one of them which is related to grief. The writer addresses that people who struggle with an emotion is due to a fearful thought or situation. In the novel, Go Tell It on the Mountain a boy named John is beaten by his dad and he doesn’t really understand why if his dad is a leader at their church. He questions if God is like who his father is because his father is God’s minister. Eckman talks about clarity being a big part when dealing with emotions. “... clarity is needed concerning the place of emotions.” (Eckman 5). When we have clarity about God you learn to trust him more and etc. and your relationship with God grows stronger and stronger as well as your character. Eckman said “A happy heart is the greatest evidence of the apprehension of spiritual truth.” (Eckman 9)

This source relates to my novel because John is struggling with negative emotions like pain, confusion, hurt, and anger. His dad is the source of his pain.