Henri Nouwen was a Dutch priest and prolific writer who died in 1996.  His humble writing style has been inviting and inspiring spiritual journeyers for decades. 

What is a Christian’s role in the daily turmoil and chaos?

Nouwen leads us to the answer: a fruitful prayer life, one that fully embraces the needs of our world.  First,he asks if we pray with “clenched fists.” He explains that God welcomes our “hate, bitterness and disappointment,”if that is what we are honestly feeling. This authenticity leads to the indwelling peace of God where we accept who we are—with all our past hurts and future goals—freely able to surrender“with open hands.” 

No longer are we motivated to “defend” our lives, but to receive ourselves as “gifts.”  Though the outside world remains a mire of challenges, God, “in the center of our lives,”provides a new perspective of hope. 

Henry Nouwen, like the Old Testament prophets, reminds us to pray to our loving Father, “the source of all life.”  In prayer, we plead for direction, not stumble in the “shame of our weakness.”  Through prayer, God’s presence unfolds in the “turmoil of the world, in the distress and joy of our neighbors, and in the loneliness of our own hearts.” 

Book Review by Joanne Bennardo