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Feb 22nd to Feb 25th: Lent 2023 – Welcome and Introductions

Reading: The Inner Voice of Love: A Journey Through Anguish to Freedom
Introduction & A Suggestion to the Reader, p. xiii to xxi

I never lost the ability to write. In fact, writing became part of my struggle
for survival. It gave me the little distance from myself that
I needed to keep from drowning in my despair. (p. xvi)

Do not read too many of these spiritual imperatives at once!
They were written over a long period of time and
need to be read that way too. (p. xxi)

A warm welcome to each of you—those returning for another Henri Nouwen Society book discussion and those joining us for the first time. As always, a wonderful, caring, and spirit-filled community of seekers will gather to read, reflect, and discuss one of Henri’s forty books. This Lent we will explore The Inner Voice of Love: A Journey Through Anguish to Freedom, Henri’s secret journal written during the most difficult period in his life.

As Henri describes in the Introduction, the sudden interruption of a deeply satisfying friendship led to an emotional and spiritual breakdown so severe that he needed to leave his community for six months for counseling and healing. Writing the spiritual imperatives in this book—originally intended for him alone—were an important contributor to Henri’s recovery. Many of Henri’s most significant books, including The Return of the Prodigal Son and Life of the Beloved, were written after he returned to his community and they are brimming with spiritual insights that Henri refined while in his emotional and spiritual crucible. This Lent we will enter the crucible with Henri by reflecting on the spiritual imperatives he wrote on his journey through anguish to freedom. We can follow Henri’s example as he turns his eyes upon Jesus, and therefore leads us to a place of hope and new life. This book is equally for those who are in a time of deep anguish and for those who are in a time of peace and joy, and want to be reminded of practical ways to keep their eyes on our Savior. We begin our discussion in earnest on Sunday, February 26th with the first 13 spiritual imperatives.

As we begin our Lenten journey together, it’s always nice to know something about our companions. Over the next few days you are encouraged to introduce yourself. You may choose to share:

  • Your general geographic location.
  • To whom or what you dedicate your days or energy, and why.
  • How you came to know and read Henri Nouwen and whether or not you have participated in previous Henri Nouwen Society online discussions.
  • What you hope to gain from this experience.
  • Any comments you have on Henri’s introduction

Please scroll to the bottom of the page to post a comment introducing yourself in the
“Leave a Reply” box and to share other thoughts as we embark on our Lenten journey.

Shown below my signature is a brief personal introduction followed by the book discussion instructions for those joining us for the first time or interested in a review.

In gratitude,
Ray

Ray Glennon, Moderator: Ray and his wife Dawn live in Columbia, Maryland. He came to know and trust Henri’s written word in 2004 when he discovered The Return of the Prodigal Son for sale after Mass in Singapore at a difficult and transformative point in his life. He began participating in these book discussions in 2010 and has served as a moderator since 2014. Ray has presented adult education courses based on the life and work of Henri Nouwen. Ray and his wife belong to the Secular Franciscan Order (OFS) and he volunteers in various ministries in his Catholic parish and at the Franciscan Shrine of St. Anthony. You may contact Ray by email at  ray.glennon@1972.usna.com and you can follow him on Twitter.

Henri Nouwen Society Online Book Discussion Instructions
Let’s briefly describe how our online book discussion works. If you’ve joined us before, this will serve as a review.

Beginning this Sunday, February 26th, and each Sunday throughout Lent, a new entry or post will be added to the book discussion (the blog) home page. The post will identify the reading for the week, present a brief moderator’s reflection, and suggest some questions for discussion. Participants are invited and encouraged to comment on the post by responding to the suggested questions, by sharing their own reflections, and by replying to the comments of others throughout the week.

To read the comments or to leave a comment of your own, scroll down to the bottom of the post.  If you don’t see any comments, click on the small link at the bottom that says
## Comments.  To leave a new comment, continue scrolling down and use the “Leave a Reply” box.  To reply to someone else’s comment, click the Reply link directly below their comment. After you submit a new comment or a reply, it needs to be “approved” either by me or Tammy at the Henri Nouwen Society so it may take a few hours before it actually appears on the blog page. If you have any questions or problems, please do not hesitate to contact me by email at ray.glennon@1972.usna.com.

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Announcing the Book Selection for Lent 2023!

The Inner Voice of Love: A Journey Through Anguish to Freedom
by Henri J.M. Nouwen

Welcome to the Henri Nouwen Lent Book Discussion!

We are delighted to present The Inner Voice of Love: A Journey through Anguish to Freedom as the featured book for Lent 2023.

The Inner Voice of Love is a journal of Henri’s darkest days, the most difficult period of his life. It has, however, been called a life-changing book; it gives us deep insight into Henri’s struggles that led to the most fruitful time in his life and to the publication of his spiritual masterpiece The Return of the Prodigal Son and Life of the Beloved, among others. This book is for everyone who is seeking spiritual growth. It is ideal for anyone looking for solace from the brokenness, grief or disappointment that touches each of our lives in one way or the other.

It is written during a time of recovery from a breakdown that left Henri feeling he had lost everything: self-esteem, the energy to live and work, the ability to love and be loved… even his hope in God. But out of this incredible personal anguish comes healing and hope – a light to dissipate the personal darkness in which Henri found himself enveloped.

Henri’s journal reflects a fierce inner struggle following what he called “an interrupted friendship,” a friendship that he had come to depend on, only to find himself seemingly abandoned and rejected. He left his community, went into counseling therapy, and during this period, after each counseling session wrote a “spiritual imperative” — “a command to myself that had emerged from our sessions. These imperatives were directed to my own heart. They were not meant for anyone but myself.” Which is precisely what makes them so powerful.

“Exhaustion, burnout, and depression are not signs that you are doing God’s will. God is gentle and loving. God desires to give you a deep sense of safety in God’s love. Once you have allowed yourself to experience that love fully, you will be better able to discern who you are being sent to in God’s name.”

-Henri Nouwen, “The Inner Voice of Love”

We hope you will join us during this season of Lent, as we read through this meaningful and challenging book, that will most definitely offer courage and hope to us all.

Our discussion moderator is Ray Glennon, familiar to many of our blog readers  who have participated in previous book discussions.

Need a copy of the book? It is available at many bookstores, If you don’t have a copy of “The Inner Voice of Love”, you can purchase it through Amazon USA or Amazon Canada. 

Things get underway on February 22, 2023, with welcome and introductions . The reading schedule is now posted and can be accessed by clicking on the 2023 Lenten Reading Schedule link in the top black bar. We’re looking forward to a meaningful, spirited and inspired discussion! Be sure to tell your friends. Everyone is welcome.

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Dec 18th to Dec 24th – 4th Week of Advent: V. Flying & Epilogue

Reading: Part V, Flying, Chapter 30 to Chapter 39; Epilogue; p. 183-230

The Flying Rodleighs express some of the deepest human desires.
The desire to fly freely, and the desire to be safely caught.
—Henri Nouwen in a letter to Bart Gavigan, p. 202

As we conclude our Advent book discussion during these final days before Christmas, Henri completes his final flight—the descent from his hotel window to the waiting ambulance, visits in the hospital with his father and siblings and his friend Nathan, the hopefulness of the apparent passing of danger, Henri’s death from an unanticipated massive heart attack, his two funerals, and finally being laid to rest with other members of his Daybreak community.

Author Carolyn Whitney-Brown shares Henri’s experiences while on sabbatical during the final year of his life, including several private jet flights into a “beauteous new world” (p. 185) to discuss spirituality with Joan Kroc, heir to the McDonald’s fast food fortune, and his last meeting with the Flying Rodleighs in July 1996. Henri was flying—he had fully recovered from his earlier breakdown, he was continuing to grow in his spiritual insights (many prompted by his friendship with the Rodleighs), and he was anticipating a new role at Daybreak where he would have more time and freedom to write. He was also doing too much and he ended his sabbatical exhausted, which contributed to his untimely death.

Throughout out time together, I have been looking at the photo of Henri, his friend Frank Hamilton (far left) and the Flying Rodleighs, trying to identify the trapeze artists by name. I made my best guess and sent it along to Carolyn. She replied, “Haha! Good try but…” and then she provided the correct answer.

Now it’s your turn. In the comments, identify the members of troop from left to right. I will update this post with the correct answer on Wednesday morning.
(Photo by Ron P. van den Bosch)
Answer: The Flying Rodleighs (l to r): Rodleigh, his wife Jennie, Joe, Rodleigh’s sister Karlene, and Jon.

As always, you are invited to share what touched your heart in this week’s reading. You might also review the entire book to share any insights you gained throughout the story. In addition, we’re pleased to have author Carolyn Whitney-Brown join us this week to reply to your comments and questions. She will participate in the discussion in the same way that you do—by posting and replying to comments. If you have questions or comments for Carolyn, please post them and you can expect Carolyn’s personal response generally by the following day.

Before closing, I’d like to share something I discovered this week. Carolyn quotes Rodleigh Stevens saying, “Sometimes I think that Henri desperately wants to be accepted, especially by God… I think he sees in us a visual representation of his spiritual feelings, something that he feels within himself.” (p. 195) Rodleigh’s perceptive insight is supported by something Henri wrote on prayer in 1972 in one of his earliest books, With Open Hands: “When you are invited to pray, you are asked to open your tightly clenched fist… A first prayer, therefore, is often a painful prayer because you discover you don’t want to let go. You hold fast to what is familiar, even if you aren’t proud of it. You find yourself saying, ‘That’s just how it is with me. I would like it to be different, but it can’t be now. That’s just the way that it is and this is the way I’ll have to leave it.’ Once you talk like that, you’ve already let the hope for a new life float by… When you want to pray, then, the first question is: How do I open my closed hands?”

During the intervening two decades, Henri suffered his emotional and spiritual breakdown and through Rembrandt’s painting The Return of the Prodigal Son and his counselors, Henri came to a deep understanding of God’s unconditional love and that we are all the Beloved. And as God’s beloved we are called to live with joy and gratitude on our life’s journey. But in order to do so, we often have to let go of what is familiar, the things that are holding us back. Rodleigh was right. Henri had long wanted to be accepted by God—or, better, to be caught by God. The Flying Rodleighs provided a visible, physical metaphor of the spiritual life—one in which we are all called to let go, fly, and trust, trust, trust that we will be caught by the One who loves us.

As we conclude, on behalf of the Henri Nouwen Society, I want to wish each of you a blessed and joyous Christmas season. It has been my privilege to share this Advent journey with you. I’m grateful to each of you for your participation, whether you posted comments or followed along silently. I’d like to recognize and express my thinks to those who chose to share their thoughts and insights that built up our Advent community. We hope you will join us for our Lenten book discussion that will begin on Ash Wednesday, February 22, 2023. The book selection will be announced in the coming weeks.

And as Henri’s favorite saint, Francis of Assisi, said to those he met, “May the Lord give you peace” in this most wonderful time of the year.

Ray