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f7076bd
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When the younger son was no longer considered a human being by the people around him, he felt the profundity of his isolation, the deepest loneliness one can experience. He was truly lost, and it was this complete lostness that brought him to his senses.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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1174ba8
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Becoming like the heavenly Father is not just one important aspect of Jesus' teaching, it is the very heart of his message.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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f39961a
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The loud, boisterous noises of the world make us deaf to the soft, gentle, and loving voice of God.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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d2d1b9d
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The first and most basic task of the minister of tomorrow is to clarify the immense confusion which can arise when people enter this new internal world. It is a painful fact indeed to realize how poorly prepared most Christian leaders prove to be when they are invited to be spiritual leaders in the true sense. Most of them are used to thinking in terms of large-scale organization, getting people together in churches ... running the show as ..
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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2f458d1
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It is as if we have been wandering in a foreign land looking for peace and purpose in our lives and a true sense of who we are. Jesus stands in our midst and beckons us home so that we can be restored to our true selves.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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7e3bbcc
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It is in this solitude that we discover that being is more important than having, and that we are worth more than the result of our efforts.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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1249110
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We might be competent in many subjects, but we cannot become an expert in the things of God. God is greater than our minds and cannot be caught within the boundaries of our finite concepts. Thus, spiritual formation leads not to a proud understanding of divinity, but to docta ignorantia, an "articulate not-knowing."
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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2f2904e
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Doctors, lawyers, and psychologists study to become qualified professionals who are paid to know what to do. A well-trained theologian or minister is only able to point out the universal tendency to narrow God down to our own little conceptions and expectations, and to call for an open mind and heart for God to be revealed.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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474a53b
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I asked him how he had been able to take such a splendid picture. With a smile he said, "Well, I had only to be very patient and very attentive. It was only after a few hours of compliments that the lily was willing to let me take her picture."
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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0a3bc75
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Building a vocation on the expectations of concrete results, however conceived, is like building a house on sand instead of on solid rock, and even takes away the ability to accept successes as free gifts.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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035889f
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The Bible is primarily a book not of information but of formation, not merely a book to be analyzed, scrutinized, and discussed but a sacred book to nurture us, to unify our hearts and minds, and to serve as a constant source of contemplation
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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305ffb7
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The more we come to depend on the images offered to us by those who try to distract us, entertain us, use us for their purposes, and make us conform to the demands of a consumer society, the easier it is for us to lose our identity.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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f3a96d1
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I reached a healthy place in which I was able to stop projecting my needs on another human being. We both came to understand that each of us is limited in our capacity to be for another what is needed, and learned to forgive each other for not being God.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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e184408
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To care for others requires an ever-increasing acceptance.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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801cb5d
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We probably will never be free from all our hostilities, and there even may be days and weeks in which our hostile feelings dominate our emotional life to such a degree that the best thing we can do is to keep distance, speak little to others and not write letters, except to ourselves.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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03d3c5e
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We all are children and parents, students and teachers, healers and in need of care.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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0a89c17
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The first task of seeking guidance then is to touch your own struggles, doubts, and insecurities--in short, to affirm your life as a quest.8 Your life, my life, is given graciously by God. Our lives are not problems to be solved but journeys to be taken with Jesus as our friend and finest guide.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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131b669
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Durante mucho tiempo considere la imagen negativa que tenia de mi como una virtud. Me habian prevenido tantas veces contra el orgullo y la vanidad que llegue a pensar que era bueno despreciarme a mi mismo. Ahora me doy cuenta de que el verdadero pecado consiste en negar el amor primero de Dios por mi, en ignorar mi bondad original. Porque, si no me apoyo en ese amor primero y en esa bondad original, pierdo el contacto con mi autentico yo y ..
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bondad
católico
orgullo
vanidad
psicología
pecado
dios
autoestima
virtud
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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45ec698
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Spiritual formation prepares us for a life in which we move away from our fears, compulsions, resentments, and sorrows, to serve with joy and courage in the world, even when this leads us to places we would rather not go. Spiritual formation helps us to see the face of God in the midst of a hardened world and in our own heart. This freedom helps us to use our skills and our very lives to make that face visible to all who live in bondage and..
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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c011d4c
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everyone shares the handicap of mortality. Our individual physical, emotional, and spiritual failures are but symptoms of this disease.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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a9034bc
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There is suffering ahead of us, immense suffering, a suffering that will continue to tempt us to think that we have chosen the wrong road and that others were more shrewd than we were. But don't be surprised by pain. Be surprised by joy, be surprised by the little Flower that shows its Beauty in the midst of a barren desert, and be surprised by the immense healing power that keeps bursting forth like springs of fresh water from the depth of..
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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9210247
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In our mostly active lives and fast-paced culture, waiting is not a popular pastime. It is not something we anticipate or experience with great joy. In fact, most of us consider it a waste of time. Perhaps this is because the culture in which we live is basically saying, "Get going! Do something! Show you are able to make a difference! Don't just sit there and wait." But the paradox of waiting is that it requires full attention to the prese..
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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4b8b5bf
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When we lift the cup of our life and share with one another our sufferings and joys in mutual vulnerability, the new covenant can become visible among us. The surprise of it all is that it is often the least among us who reveal to us that our cup is a cup of blessings.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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6ebafe2
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One good way to listen is to listen with a sacred text: a psalm or a prayer, for instance. The Hindu spiritual writer Eknath Easwaran showed me the great value of learning a sacred text by heart and repeating it slowly in the mind, word by word, sentence by sentence. In this way, listening to the voice of love becomes not just a passive waiting, but an active attentiveness to the voice that speaks to us through the words of the Scriptures.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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4f3525d
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When we dare to speak from the depth of our heart to the friends God gives us, we will gradually find new freedom within us and new courage to live our own sorrows and joys to the full. When we truly believe that we have nothing to hide from God, we need to have people around us who represent God for us and to whom we can reveal ourselves with complete trust.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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b22354b
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Every time you do something that comes from your needs for acceptance, affirmation, or affection, and every time you do something that makes these needs grow, you know that you are not with God. These needs will never be satisfied; they will only increase when you yield to them. But every time you do something for the glory of God, you will know God's peace in your heart and find rest there.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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8eb5b18
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When you experience a great need for human affection, you have to ask yourself whether the circumstances surrounding you and the people you are with are truly where God wants you to be. Whatever you are doing--watching a movie, writing a book, giving a presentation, eating, or sleeping--you have to stay in God's presence. If you feel a great loneliness and a deep longing for human contact, you have to be extremely discerning. Ask yourself w..
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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118044c
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When you let your wounded self express itself in the form of apologies, arguments, or complaints--through which it cannot be truly heard--you will only grow frustrated and increasingly feel rejected.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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6b67b42
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all the good things our world has to offer are yours to enjoy. But you can enjoy them truly only when you can acknowledge them as affirmations of the truth that you are the Beloved of God.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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fa93a59
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It is important to think about the Church not as "over there" but as a community of struggling, weak people of whom we are part and in whom we meet our Lord and Redeemer."
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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41f35e6
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Drinking our cup is not simply adapting ourselves to a bad situation and trying to use it as well as we can. Drinking our cup is a hopeful, courageous, and self-confident way of living. It is standing in the world with head erect, solidly rooted in the knowledge of who we are, facing the reality that surrounds us and responding to it from our hearts.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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9eb8840
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A true disciple of Jesus will always go to where people are feeling weak, broken, sick, in pain, poor, lonely, forgotten, anxious, and lost.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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0e107a5
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Just when all those around me were assuring me they loved me, cared for me, appreciated me, yes, even admired me, I experienced myself as a useless, unloved, and despicable person. Just when people were putting their arms around me, I saw the endless depth of my human misery and felt that there was nothing worth living for. Just when I had found a home, I felt absolutely homeless. Just when I was being praised for my spiritual insights, I f..
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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Here the mystery of drinking the cup becomes clear. The coming and leaving of friends, the experiences of love and betrayal, of care and indifference, of generosity and stinginess can become the way to true human freedom. Yes, people who love us also disappoint us, moments of great satisfaction also reveal unfulfilled needs, being home also shows us our homelessness. But all of these tensions can create in us that deep, deep yearning for fu..
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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00ae709
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Deep spiritual formation is required, involving the whole person--body, mind, and heart. Formation in the mind of Christ, "who did not cling to power but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, who did not cling" (Phil. 2:6-8) is not what most seminaries are about. But to the degree that such formation is being sought after and realized, there is hope for the church of the twenty-first century."
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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c575cb9
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To live a spiritual life does not mean that we must leave our families, give up our jobs, or change our ways of working; it does not mean that we have to withdraw from social or political activities, or lose interest in literature and art; it does not require severe forms of asceticism or long hours of prayer. Changes such as these may in fact grow out of our spiritual life, and for some people radical decisions may be necessary. But the sp..
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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8aac6a8
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Deep and mature friendship does not mean that we keep looking each other in the eyes, constantly impressed or enraptured by each other's beauty, talents, and gifts, but it does mean that together we look at the one who calls us to a life of service.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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7d28aa2
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Indeed, living a spiritual life requires a change of heart, a conversion. Such a conversion may be marked by a sudden inner change, or it can take place through a long, quiet process of transformation. But it always involves an inner experience of oneness. We realize that we are in the center, and that from there all that is and all that takes place can be seen and understood as part of the mystery of God's life with us. Our conflicts and p..
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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96e3352
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But this leaves us with a very difficult question. Is there a way to move from our worry-filled life to the life of the Spirit? Must we simply wait passively until the Spirit comes along and blows away our worries? Are there any ways by which we can prepare ourselves for the life of the Spirit and deepen that life once it has touched us?
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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e728a89
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A lot of giving and receiving has a violent quality, because the givers and receivers act more out of need than out of trust. What looks like generosity is actually manipulation, and what looks like love is really a cry for affection or support.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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365c67b
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Those you have deeply loved become part of you. The longer you live, there will always be more people to be loved by you and to become part of your inner community. The wider your inner community becomes, the more easily you will recognize your own brothers and sisters in the strangers around you.
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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090d55a
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Real loneliness comes when we have lost all sense of having things in common. When
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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b37a3fb
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Judas betrayed Jesus. Peter denied him. Both were lost children. Judas, no longer able to hold on to the truth that he remained God's child, hung himself. In terms of the prodigal son, he sold the sword of his sonship. Peter, in the midst of his despair, claimed it and returned with many tears. Judas chose death. Peter chose life. I realize that this choice is always before me. Constantly
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |
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b940122
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The immense joy in welcoming back the lost son hides the immense sorrow that has gone before. The
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Henri J.M. Nouwen |