Our Second Birth by Henri J. M. Nouwen

Author:Henri J. M. Nouwen [Nouwen, Henri J. M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: REL000000 Religion / General
ISBN: 978-0-8245-2209-4
Publisher: The Crossroad Publishing Company
Published: 2016-02-24T00:00:00+00:00

At the cemetery the pallbearers carried Adam’s body to the burial site and placed it on the metal structure above the grave.

After a short prayer, I gave Michael the holy-water sprinkler, and, while I held him tightly, he bent over his brother’s casket and carefully blessed it, slowly walking from one side to the other. Then I prayed: “Dear God, into your hands we commend our son, brother, and friend Adam. Welcome Adam to paradise, and help us to comfort each other.”

Adam’s casket was lowered into the grave, and I was hit by the finality of his death. He was gone and would never be with us again. St. Paul says it with so much conviction: “What is sown is perishable, but what is raised is imperishable; what is sown is contemptible but what is raised is glorious; what is sown is weak, but what is raised is powerful; what is sown is a natural body, and what is raised is a spiritual body” (1 Cor 15:42–44). It was right in front of that big hole that I was confronted with the finality of death as well as with the hope in the resurrection. . . .

Peapack, Saturday, February 17

Jay took me to the Port Authority bus station, where I caught the 10:00 a.m. bus to Bernardsville. Peggy was there to take me home. . . .

Monday, February 19

Today’s Gospel is about the cure of a boy possessed by a demon who makes him dumb and throws him constantly into fire and water.

Two aspects of healing are clear here. First of all, we have to trust in the healer. Jesus says, “All things can be done for the one who believes” (Mk 9:24). Second, the healer must be a person of prayer. When the disciples ask Jesus, “Why could we not cast it out?” Jesus says, “This kind can come out only through prayer and fasting” (Mk 9:29).

I am touched by this mutuality between the healer and the person who needs healing. Healers must be in communion with the source of all life and healing so that they can be true mediators of the healing power, which is larger than themselves. People who seek healing must surrender themselves, trusting that the healer can indeed mediate that healing power to them. The humility of the healer and the faith of the sick person are both central to the work of healing.

Tuesday, February 20

Most of the day I spent writing about Adam’s death and funeral. Although my emotional and spiritual fatigue is still with me, I am able to write a bit, and to use my writing as a way of grieving.

Ash Wednesday, February 21

I am certainly not ready for Lent yet. Christmas seems just behind us, and Lent seems an unwelcome guest. I could have used a few more weeks to get ready for this season of repentance, prayer, and preparation for the death and resurrection of Jesus. But this morning quite a few gathered for the Eucharist. Peggy had brought some ashes, and I put on my alb and Guatemalan stole to mark the special quality of the day.

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