Enstatic Phenomenology and the Meaning of Suffering

This paper explores the question of the meaning of suffering by comparing the work of Michel Henry with that of Max Scheler. Henry's "enstatic phenomenology" is proposed as an approach to existential disclosure that deepens our understanding of the paradoxical character of human affect in light of a phenomenology of Christ by delving into the mystery of suffering and following a path of exploration opened up by Max Scheler in his seminal essay "The Meaning of Suffering." I suggest that our understanding of suffering needs a phenomenology of sacrifice to make possible the integration of enstatic and ecstatic ways of phenomenologically disclosing affect.