Item 1574 - Honesty in preaching

1 p. of textual records

This item is a half-page article by Henri Nouwen entitled: ‘Honesty in Preaching’, published in the National Catholic Reporter, October 25, 1974, p. 11. Nouwen identifies preaching as a common ministerial task which has, he suggests, come to have many negative connotations. Nouwen describes preaching in many ways in this article: removing rocks so good seed can find root; taking away leaves so the path is visible; ploughing ground so that the rain can soak it. He states, ‘Preaching in this sense means creating the space where the word can be received’. Nouwen describes preaching as’ a very hard and often painful task because it requires that the preacher be able to feel and speak to the “soul” of the community’. And in a pain-avoiding society, it takes courage to feel into experiences which hurt, to articulate emotions which prefer to remain hidden and to give names to behavior which wants to remain unmentioned’. Nouwen concludes the article by saying,’ …we must be aware that Christianity is not an ideology but the revelation of the living Christ, with whom a personal relationship is possible. The vocation of the preacher therefore, is …to set apart a moment and a place where the still voice can be heard..’.

Published in National Catholic Reporter, 25 October 1974, p. 11.
Reprinted from Monastic Studies, Mount Saviour Monastery, Pine City, NY.
There is a head shot photo of Nouwen, taken by Ron van den Bosch. See P6433 on Page 11 of Album 3 for a full-size version of the photo.
10/25 is written in pencil on the top right corner of the article.

Added by L Joson, 8 November 2017