logo

English
                 

Living in a World of Strangers - Henri Nouwen


    The first characteristic of the spiritual life is
    the continuing movement from loneliness to solitude.

    Its second equally important characteristic is
    the movement by which our hostilities can be
    converted into hospitality.

    It is there that our changing relationship to ourself
    can be brought to fruition in an ever-changing
    relationship to our fellow human beings.

    It is there that our reaching out to our innermost being
    can lead to a reaching out to the many strangers
    whom we meet on our way through life.
    In our world full of strangers,
    estranged from their own past, culture and country,
    from their neighbors, friends and family,
    from their deepest self and their God,
    we witness a painful search for a hospitable place
    where life can be lived without fear and
    where community can be found.

    Although many strangers in this world become easily
    the victim of a fearful hostility,
    it is possible for men and women and
    obligatory for Christians to offer an open and
    hospitable space where strangers can cast off
    their strangeness and become our fellow human beings.

    The movement from hostility to hospitality
    is hard and full of difficulties.
    Our society seems to be increasingly full of
    fearful, defensive, aggressive people
    anxiously clinging to their property and
    inclined to look at their surrounding world
    with suspcion, always expecting an enemy
    to suddenly appear, intrude and do harm.

    But still --- that is our vocation:
    to convert hostility to hospitality,
    the enemy into a guest and
    to create the free and fearless space where
    brotherhood and sisterhood  can be
    formed and fully experienced.

---- from the book, "Reaching Out" by Henri Nouwen
No. Subject Date Author Last Update Views
Notice How to write your comments onto a webpage [2] 2016.07.06 운영자 2016.11.20 18194
Notice How to Upload Pictures in webpages 2016.07.06 운영자 2018.10.19 32377
Notice How to use Rich Text Editor [3] 2016.06.28 운영자 2018.10.19 5929
Notice How to Write a Webpage 2016.06.28 운영자 2020.12.23 43843
234 Jack Nicklaus Supports Trump. Shame on you! [6] 2020.10.31 이한중*65 2020.11.01 195
233 The Psychology behind a Dog's Happiness [1] 2020.11.02 이한중*65 2020.11.02 206
232 Concerning Beethoven [1] 2020.11.02 이한중*65 2020.11.03 58
231 The Polling Crisis [2] 2020.11.04 이한중*65 2020.11.05 83
230 Biden의 말,말,말 [2] 2020.11.05 이한중*65 2020.11.06 88
229 A Good Read for Californians [1] 2020.11.06 이한중*65 2020.11.06 99
228 Bravo, Greta Thunberg! [3] 2020.11.05 이한중*65 2020.11.06 646
227 Joe Biden Economic Plan [1] 2020.11.07 이한중*65 2020.11.07 59
226 Biden's Story/중앙일보 2020.11.07 이한중*65 2020.11.07 56
225 Joe Biden's Victory Speech [6] 2020.11.08 이한중*65 2020.11.08 92
224 맞춤법에 대한 오해 [2] 2020.11.07 온기철*71 2020.11.08 58
223 Pfizer's Vaccine More Than 90% Effective [2] 2020.11.09 이한중*65 2020.11.09 48
222 New Era of Biotechnology [1] 2020.11.11 이한중*65 2020.11.11 83
221 Why 70 Million Voted for Trump? [5] 2020.11.10 이한중*65 2020.11.11 79
220 A Country of Sissies, Brazil [2] 2020.11.12 이한중*65 2020.11.12 3076
219 Georgia Race for Senate Control [2] 2020.11.12 이한중*65 2020.11.13 62
218 A Thought on Aphorisms, Twitter, etc. [1] 2020.11.15 이한중*65 2020.11.15 48
217 Let's Root For 임성재 at Masters [11] 2020.11.14 이한중*65 2020.11.16 4026
216 Bill Gates' Predictions [1] 2020.11.18 이한중*65 2020.11.18 122
215 The Origin of Thanksgiving Day [2] 2020.11.19 이한중*65 2020.11.20 107