Reading & Discussing Henri Nouwen

Reading: The Inner Voice of Love: A Journey Through Anguish to Freedom “Conclusion” (pages 116 to 118) & Review the Spiritual Imperatives that spoke to you

I discovered that I was no longer the person who had left the community
in despair. I discovered this not so much in myself but in those who,
instead of being embarrassed by what I had gone through, gave
me their confidence and trust. Most of all, I found
new confidence in myself through the gradual
renewal of the friendship that had
triggered my anguish. (p. 116)

We have arrived at Palm Sunday, the beginning of the most sacred week of the year for Christians, and the final post of our Lenten book discussion. In our reading this week, Henri looks back eight years to when he wrote the sixty-two spiritual imperatives during “the most difficult period of my life. . . a time of extreme anguish” (p. xiii) and reflects on his spiritual and emotional growth that allowed him to publish his “secret journal” (p. xiii) with the encouragement of Wendy Greer and several other friends. Henri acknowledges the “radical changes I have undergone. I have moved through anguish to freedom, through depression to peace, through despair to hope.” (p. 116) The impact of those radical changes in Henri’s life is captured in the quotation in bold at the top of this post. (Note: Henri completed the final preparations for the publication of The Inner Voice of Love during his 1996 sabbatical. The final copy was sent to the publisher in the months prior to his untimely death from a heart attack on September 21, 1996. It was published posthumously.)

Now let’s step back several years (1991-2) to the period closer to when these imperatives were first written. In the Prologue to his spiritual masterpiece The Return of the Prodigal Son: A Story of Homecoming, Henri alludes to the difficulties that led to his emotional and spiritual breakdown during which he wrote the spiritual imperatives. He writes, “Much of what has happened since my arrival at Daybreak is written down in diaries and notebooks, but, as it stands, little of it is fit to share with others. The words are too raw, too noisy, too “bloody,” and too naked. But now a time has come when it is possible to look back on those years of turmoil and to describe, with more objectivity than was possible before, the place to which all of that struggle has brought me.” (The Return… p. 15) We have been reading the words to which Henri is referring.

As the prologue continues, Henri points to the crucial role that Rembrandt”s painting the Parable of the Prodigal Son played in his healing. Henri came to see it as, “my personal painting, the painting that contained not only the heart of the story that God wants to tell me, but also the heart of the story that i want to tell to God and God’s people. All of the Gospel is there. All of life is there.” (The Return…, p. 15) And just what did Henri find in Rembrandt’s painting? Many, if not all, of the spiritual imperatives: “Trust the Inner Voice” (p. 6), “Come Home” (p. 12), “Open Yourself to the First Love”* (p. 28), “Let Jesus Transform You” (p. 40), “Avoid All Forms of Self-Rejection” (p. 86), “Know That You Are Welcome” (p. 101), and “Keep Choosing God” (p. 113), and many others. And most important, Henri realized in the depth of his being that, like Jesus, he and we are God’s beloved sons and daughters.

This week you are invited to reflect on Henri’s journey and to identify which spiritual imperatives spoke to your heart. Henri has provided us with a bountiful feast of ideas ands insights to enrich us on our journeys. Did you (re)discover something about yourself that will assist you as you continue your spiritual journey? Are there steps you can take in the coming days, weeks, and months that will allow you to better live your life as God’s beloved. (Full Disclosure: I often come to the end of these enriching discussions with the best of intentions and then fail to write them down or, if I do, to follow through and hold myself accountable.)

As was mentioned last week, we are planning to have an optional Zoom virtual meeting this Tuesday, April 4th at 8:00 p.m. EDT (UTC-4). Over 20 participants have already expressed interest and they should have received an email from me with the link to join the Zoom meeting. If you are interested in joining and haven’t received an email with the link, you can simply indicate your interest by posting a comment below or by contacting me directly at [email protected]. Anyone that wishes to participate must request the link in advance. I will not be publishing the link publicly on this site.

While I haven’t completely thought through how we will conduct the Zoom meeting, here are a few ideas for your consideration.

• A brief (literally 30-45 seconds) introduction: Name, Location, Why Henri? (e.g., what drew you to Henri, how has he been a companion on your journey)—Everyone that wanted to share would have the chance
• A brief (60-90 second) sharing about something that touched you in the book (e.g., a single or group of imperatives, thoughts about Henri’s journey, the impact this book had on you)—Everyone that wanted to share would have the chance; I might provide a very brief facilitator response to a sharing, if appropriate 
• Facilitated discussion where participants can engage with insights and comments of each other and ask questions about Henri, the making of this book, etc. 
  
  If you have other suggestions, please let me know in the comments. I look forward to meeting many of you in cyber-space on Tuesday evening.

Finally, on behalf of the Henri Nouwen Society, I want to express my deep gratitude for this wonderful and spiritually enriching Lenten discussion. It has been a privilege to share this journey with you. May you and yours be richly blessed during this Holy Week and the Easter season.

Peace and all good.
Ray

*Facilitator Note: “Open Yourself to the First Love” evolved to “The words ‘You are my Beloved’ reveal the most intimate truth about all human beings.” (Life of the Beloved, p. 30)

Reading: “Face the Enemy” to “Keep Choosing God” (pages 93 to 115)

Your vocation is to be a witness to God’s love in this world. (p. 93)

A desire for communion has been part of you since you were born. . . .
It comes from God and is part of your true vocation. (p.95)

Not being welcome is your greatest fear. . . .Everything Jesus is saying to you can be summarized in the words “Know that you are welcome.” (p. 101)

The question is whether you choose for God or for your own doubting self. . . . But you always have a choice to think, speak, and act in the name of God
and so move toward the Light, the Truth, and the Life. (p. 144)

As we enter the penultimate week of our Lenten discussion, I want to thank everyone that has participated by posting comments or following silently. This has been the largest and richest book discussion that we have had in several years. The active participation of the faithful community that gathers each Lent and Advent is the lifeblood of these Henri Nouwen Society book discussions. Without your ongoing engagement there would be no reason for these discussions to exist. I am deeply moved by the thoughtful and compassionate comments that are being shared. I also want to recognize in a special way the people that joined the online conversation this week by sharing their comments for the first time. We’re glad you’re here.

This week, the Fifth Week of Lent, we are reading and discussing the final twelve of the sixty-two imperatives. More about that in a minute. During Holy Week we will consider Henri’s conclusion and have an opportunity to look back across the entire book. Also during Holy Week we are rescheduling our planned Zoom virtual meeting to Tuesday, April 4th at 8:00 p.m. EDT (UTC-4). At that time our Lenten community can gather to share our impressions and insights on the Inner Voice of Love. The Zoom meeting will be available to anyone that indicates their interest in participating by submitting a comment indicating your interest or contacting me by email at [email protected]. There will be a reminder and additional information about the Zoom discussion in the Holy Week blog post on Palm Sunday.

Most of Henri’s imperatives this week focus on his calling, concerns, and fears as he and his counselors prepared for his return to daily life to live and minister in the L’Arche Daybreak community and to continue his ministry to the wider world through his speaking and writing. In the first two excerpts above, we see Henri clearly stating his vocation in the simplest of terms and recognizing that his vocation must be lived in communion with God and with others, especially his L’Arche community from which he will be sent out to the wider world and to which he can return. The next two excerpts address the Henri’s foundational fears that underlie his self-doubts, uncertainty, and insecurity. How do we know that we are welcome? How do we choose for God? We do so by knowing in our heart that we are God’s beloved.

As you reflect on the imperatives this week, you are encouraged to consider them from the perspective of your return to daily life at the end of our Lenten journey next week. As Henri was looking ahead, he was defining guidelines for how he can choose to live his newly acknowledged life as God’s beloved. It seemed to me that Henri wrote these final imperatives to assist him in living out the preceding fifty imperatives. Did any of Henri’s final twelve imperatives or guidelines resonate with you? What concrete steps might you take to put one or more of these guidelines in place in your life? Please share your thoughts to extent you are comfortable. Of course, you are always invited and welcomed to share whatever touched your heart in the reading.

May the Lord strengthen you and give you peace as we continue our journey together. We look forward to another spirit-filled and fruitful week of sharing.

Ray

Reading: The Inner Voice of Love: A Journey Through Anguish to Freedom
“Accept Your Identity as a Child of God” to “Claim the Victory” (pages 70 to 92)

Your true identity is as a child of God. . . You belong to God and it is
as a child of God that you are sent into the world. (p.70)

The more you come to know yourself—spirit, mind, and body—as truly
loved, the freer you will be to proclaim the good news.
This is the freedom of the children of God. (p.75)

The more you can feel safe as a child of God, the freer you will be to claim
your mission in the world as responsible human being. (p. 78-9)

Thank you, once again, to everyone that is sharing our Lenten journey—both those posting comments and those following along in silence. Before we get to this weeks’ spiritual imperatives, I’d like to address two comments from our discussion last week.

First, one participant asked if the drop off from the number of comments posted during the Welcome and Introduction and the First Week of Lent to the number of comments posted in later weeks was typical and why that drop off may occur. Based on my experience, I can say with certainty that this pattern is typical. Why does it occur? We really don’t know. In some cases, it may be that people introduce themselves with the best of intentions of participating and like other Lenten promises (including mine!), people sometimes don’t follow through. In other cases, as was noted in another comment last week, there are people that choose to follow the discussion but are not comfortable posting comments—and that’s perfectly fine too. Everyone is welcome. As a long-term participant and now moderator, let me offer a third possibility. During every discussion, including this one, we are blessed by people who post insightful, beautifully written, and deeply moving comments based on their personal experience. Our discussion is greatly enhanced by such comments and I know they lead all of us to reflect more deeply on Henri’s writing. Keep those comments coming! As moderator, I know that I am humbled when reading those comments, so much so that I sometimes question the value of my own posts each Sunday and my comments during the week. I would guess that there may be other participants that ask themselves whether their thoughts and comments are worth sharing (perhaps in comparison to the comments of others). Since you are still with us as we enter our fourth week and have been pondering Henri’s imperatives, I think you know how Henri would respond to that concern. He would encourage each and every person to share what you feel called to share from your heart—and to never feel obliged to share if you are not comfortable. Everyone gathered here is a member of a loving community, seeking to gain wisdom from the words of Henri Nouwen—any and all contributions to our discussion will be gratefully and respectfully received.

Second, and more briefly, there was interest expressed in having an optional Zoom virtual gathering to complement the traditional online book discussion. We are planning to schedule a virtual gathering during Holy Week on either Monday, April 3rd or Tuesday, April 4th at 8:00 p.m. Eastern time. If you would be interested in participating, please submit a comment, including your preferred day. Further information about the Zoom discussion will be provided in future posts. Based on the interest and group feedback, we may consider adding a Zoom virtual gathering component during future discussions.

Now, let’s turn to the reading for this week. Although these spiritual imperatives were all written during the seven months from December 1987 to June 1988, they were not necessarily written in the order shown in our book. In other collections of brief pieces written over time, Henri would group similar ideas and themes together. Last week Henri emphasized the importance of community. This week Henri implores himself, and us, to accept our identify as a child of God that is truly loved. It is that sure knowledge that allows us to be a friend, trust our friends, and avoid self-rejection as we take up our cross and claim the victory won by Jesus—knowing that we are encompassed by the love of God. The quotes at the top of this post show how Henri’s painful growth during his time of extreme anguish moved him toward his central spiritual insight that we are the beloved.

Several years later (in 1992), Henri’s sermon to the congregation at the Crystal Cathedral included this exhortation: “Dear friends, if there is anything, anything I want you to hear this morning, it’s that what is said of Jesus is said of you. You have to hear that you are the beloved daughter and son of God. And to hear it not here (points to head) but right here (points to heart), and to hear it so your whole life can be turned around.”

As always, you are encouraged to share whatever touched your heart in the readings. You might choose to reflect on whether you accept your identify as a child of God and experience yourself as the beloved daughter or son of God. If so, why? If not, why not? And in either case, how does the concept that we are a child of God—the beloved daughter or son of God—affect your life? Of course, you are also invited to continue to use the process we have suggested in previous weeks to ponder and comment on one or more imperatives.

We look forward to hearing from many of you, those that have been commenting regularly and others that feel called and are willing to share your insights with our Lenten community. We are blessed by your participation.

I’m confident we will have another fruitful and spirit-filled week.
Ray