40 Facts About Henri Nouwen

Henri Jozef Machiel Nouwen was a Dutch Catholic priest, professor, writer and theologian.

Henri Nouwen's interests were rooted primarily in psychology, pastoral ministry, spirituality, social justice and community.

Henri Nouwen was born in Nijkerk, the Netherlands on January 24,1932.

Henri Nouwen's father was a tax lawyer and his mother worked as a bookkeeper for her family's business in Amersfoort.

Henri Nouwen's younger brother Paul Nouwen was a prominent Dutch businessman and his uncle Toon Ramselaar was a Roman Catholic priest in the Archdiocese of Utrecht and a co-founder of the Service International de Documentation Judeo-Chretienne.

Henri Nouwen studied at the Jesuit Aloysius College in The Hague before spending a year at the minor seminary in Apeldoorn.

Henri Nouwen was ordained a Catholic priest for the Archdiocese of Utrecht on July 21,1957, by Bernardus Alfrink at St Catherine's Cathedral in Utrecht.

Eager to learn more about himself and the people he counseled, Henri Nouwen requested permission from Alfrink to study psychology instead of theology.

Henri Nouwen's request was granted and from 1957 to 1964 he studied at the Catholic University of Nijmegen.

In studying the fundamentals of clinical psychology, Henri Nouwen struggled with the lack of interdisciplinary analysis.

Henri Nouwen sought to use psychology as a means of exploring the human side of faith which he felt was being overlooked, from a pastoral standpoint, in broader theological discussions.

Rather than revising the work to obtain a doctorate, Henri Nouwen completed his studies in 1964 by obtaining a doctorandus degree.

Henri Nouwen completed his clinical pastoral training at the Topeka State Hospital and graduated from the Menninger Foundation's training program in theology and psychiatric theory on June 19,1965.

Between 1971 and 1981 Henri Nouwen was a professor of pastoral theology at Yale Divinity School, where he began to establish a broad readership of his work as a contributor to various publications including the National Catholic Reporter and as the author of several books based on personal experience.

Henri Nouwen's first visit began on June 1,1974, and lasted seven months.

Henri Nouwen returned again in 1979, after the death of his mother, which led to the publication of A Cry For Mercy: Prayers from the Genesee.

Henri Nouwen taught at the school until his resignation in 1985.

Henri Nouwen's spirituality was greatly influenced by his friendship with Jean Vanier.

Vanier sensed how lost Henri Nouwen was feeling and invited him to visit Trosly-Breuil.

Henri Nouwen visited Vanier at the French community, the first in the L'Arche network, twice before returning in 1985 for a nine-month residency.

The stay helped Henri Nouwen find a purpose that had been missing.

Henri Nouwen provided spiritual guidance to the community and Raymond's family, ultimately helping to reconcile the community and the family, who partially blamed Daybreak for Raymond's injuries.

Henri Nouwen's intervention had such an impact that the Daybreak members asked him to serve as their pastor.

Henri Nouwen accepted and moved in the fall of 1986 to L'Arche Daybreak, where he would spend the last ten years of his life.

Henri Nouwen wrote about his relationship with Arnett in a book entitled Adam: God's Beloved.

Henri Nouwen died in the Netherlands on September 21,1996, from a sudden heart attack, while en route to Russia to participate in a Dutch documentary about his book The Return of the Prodigal Son.

Henri Nouwen was laid to rest in a pine coffin built in L'Arche Daybreak's The Woodery and colourfully painted by members of the community.

Henri Nouwen is buried in St John's Anglican Church Cemetery in Richmond Hill in keeping with his desire to be near the graves of other Daybreak community members.

The work involved organizing his material at L'Arche Daybreak, which included personal correspondence, original manuscripts, and audio visual material, and negotiating with the Yale Divinity School Library for the release of records Henri Nouwen had begun depositing there as a faculty member in 1975.

Henri Nouwen has an award named for him, the Henri Nouwen Leadership Award, given out by the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, Religion and Spirituality Division.

Henri Nouwen's books have sold over 7 million copies worldwide and have been published in more than 30 languages.

Henri Nouwen's books include The Wounded Healer, In the Name of Jesus, Clowning in Rome, The Life of the Beloved and The Way of the Heart, along with what is recognized as one of his most popular books, The Return of the Prodigal Son.

Henri Nouwen decided to see the painting personally and traveled to Saint Petersburg to visit the Hermitage Museum where it is kept.

Henri Nouwen was known to suffer from loneliness and a need for interpersonal connection, which he wrote about openly.

Henri Nouwen credited his approach to an interest in the daily life of people and his own journey with Christian life:.

Henri Nouwen explored this theme in Return of the Prodigal Son, describing love and forgiveness as unconditional.

Henri Nouwen used God's Love as a justification for the preservation of life, as well as for his opposition to both the ongoing Cold War and the intervention of the United States in Vietnam.

Henri Nouwen appealed to many audiences, including Anglicans and evangelicals because of his Jesus-centered spirituality.

Henri Nouwen appeared over three consecutive Sundays and preached on the topic of belovedness.

The documentary featured enlightening dialogue with Henri Nouwen, captured merely a year prior to his death.