The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing, not curing, not healing that is a friend who cares.
HENRI NOUWENThe friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing, not curing, not healing that is a friend who cares.
HENRI NOUWENCompassion can never coexist with judgement because judgement creates the distance, the distinction, which prevents us from really being with the other.
HENRI NOUWENWe are all healers who can reach out and offer health, and we are all patients in constant need of help.
HENRI NOUWENThe church is not an institution forcing us to follow rules but a community inviting us to still our hunger and thirst at its table.
HENRI NOUWENEvery time I take a step in the direction of generosity, I know I am moving from fear to love.
HENRI NOUWENKeep a space where God can let something totally new take place.
HENRI NOUWENOne of the tragedies of our life is that we keep forgetting who we are.
HENRI NOUWENThe main question is not, how can we hide our wounds but how can we put our woundedness in service to others.
HENRI NOUWENYou have to listen to the one who calls you beloved. That has to be affirmed over and over again. That is prayer – listening to the voice of the one who calls you “the beloved.”
HENRI NOUWENWithout solitude it is virtually impossible to live a spiritual life. We do not take the spiritual life seriously if we do not set aside some time to be with God and listen to him.
HENRI NOUWENIn our own woundedness, we can become sources of life for others.
HENRI NOUWENWe are called to be fruitful – not successful, not productive, not accomplished. Success comes from strength, stress, and human effort. Fruitfulness comes from vulnerability and the admission of our own weakness.
HENRI NOUWENThe spiritual life is a life beyond moods. It is a life in which we choose joy and do not allow ourselves to become victims of passing feelings of happiness or depression.
HENRI NOUWENI am the prodigal son every time I search for unconditional love where it cannot be found.
HENRI NOUWENOur life is a time in which sadness and joy kiss each other at every moment.
HENRI NOUWENWe cannot make it rain but we can see to it that the rain falls on prepared soil.
HENRI NOUWEN