4 MAT Review - Nouwen
Liberty University

Author: Henri J. M. Nouwen Publisher: Image Summary In his book, Reaching Out: The Three Movements of the Spiritual Life, Nouwen (1975) challenges the reader to move from spiritual dryness to spiritual vitality. He first discusses the movement from loneliness to solitude. Our fear of loneliness drives us to an unending quest of activities, education, and entertainment. Our quest generally does not lead us out of our loneliness, but rather distracts us so as to pretend that loneliness does not have any impact on us. Nouwen encourages us to stop running from our loneliness and actually embrace it. In so doing, the reader can expect to find a solitude that can only achieved through a still, quiet appreciation of ourselves. The second attribute of the spiritual life presented is the movement from hostility to hospitality. A common theme discussed in this movement is the need to realize the host’s lack of ownership of the stranger or guest. The call to servitude is instead embodies the concept of hospitality. According to Nouwen, hospitality also requires the host to create a safe, receptive environment that promotes growth of the individual within the context of safe boundaries, not as a form or restriction, but one of guidance. We are reminded of the interdependence of solidarity and hospitality as Nouwen indicates “as long as we are lonely, we cannot be hospitable because as lonely people we cannot create free space” (p. 101). Finally, Nouwen transitions to the third movement of the spiritual life: from illusion to prayer. This characteristic of the spiritual life is the one that carries with it the aura of aloofness. Nouwen describes it well as he explains, “what is closest to our person is most difficult to express and explain” (p. 115). It is only when we embrace our own mortality that we can truly start