Letters to Marc About Jesus: Living a Spiritual Life in a Material World
Originally published in Dutch in 1987 in response to a publisher friend’s challenge for Henri Nouwen to “write a book in Dutch,” Letters to Marc About Jesus: Living a Spiritual Life in a Material World is a profound and beautiful collection of letters that Henri addressed to his 18-year-old nephew, Marc van Campen.
Written with publication in mind, the letters afforded Henri the opportunity to tell his nephew – as well as a growing audience of readers – his thoughts on faith, on Jesus, and on the meaning of our existence.
In the process of writing the letters, Henri was surprised to discover that each missive provided a platform to explore and deepen his own understanding of what it means to live a spiritual life. The focus for his letters quickly switched from writing “something helpful” for Marc to conveying “the enthusiasm I was feeling about my own discoveries.”
I want to give you a taste of the richness of life as a Christian as I know it, undergo it and continue to discover it. I really believe I have something important to tell you.
-Henri Nouwen, “Letters to Marc About Jesus”
The book’s subtitle ‘Living a Spiritual Life in a Material World’ is as appropriate today as it was in 1987, only now we could easily tack on any number of additional descriptors for today’s anxious, fearful, and politically polarized environment. Regardless of the state of the world or the state of our own personal circumstances, Henri encourages Marc – and us – to live from the very heart of our existence. “By heart“, he writes, “I mean the center of our being, the place where we are most ourselves, where we are most human, where we stand most fully in reality.”
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Join us here on Ash Wednesday, March 2nd for greetings and introductions. Then beginning Sunday, March 6th, we’ll journey through Lent reading and discussing this particularly timely and meaningful publication.
Facilitated by Ray Glennon, the Lent online book discussion can be a meaningful, enriching addition to your Lenten season. We do hope you will join us.
A reading schedule will be posted prior to the beginning of the book discussion.
Need a copy of the book? It is available at many bookstores, or you can order it online through the Bookstore tab in the menu bar above.