The resistance to praying is like the resistance of tightly clenched fists. This image shows a tension, a desire to cling tightly to yourself, a greediness which betrays fear.
Henri NouwenThe mystery of ministry is that we have been chosen to make our own limited and very conditional love the gateway for the unlimited and unconditional love of God.
Henri NouwenThe leaders of the future will be those who dare to claim their irrelevance in the contemporary world as a divine vocation.
Henri NouwenFear is the great enemy of intimacy. Fear makes us run away from each other or cling to each other but does not create true intimacy.
Henri NouwenI wrote to my bishop, the Archbishop of Utrecht, Holland, and explained that I wanted not just permission to stay longer, but a mission. He met me at the Trosly L'Arche community and we spent a few days together . . . I wanted him to get to know L'Arche, to understand what I was doing there. Afterward he said, "I understand now, Henri. You have found a home for your self."
Henri Nouwen