Quotes from Henri Nouwen

The joy that compassion brings is one of the best-kept secrets of humanity. It is a secret known only to a very few people, a secret that has to be rediscovered over and over again.

In solitude we realize that nothing human is alien to us.

When we have sold our identity to the judges of this world, we are bound to become restless, because of a growing need for affirmation and praise.

Prayer is not what is done by us, but rather what is done by the Holy Spirit in us.

You have to listen to the one who calls you beloved. That has to be affirmed over and over again. That is prayer - listening to the voice of the one who calls you "the beloved."

Prayer and action...can never be seen as contradictory or mutually exclusive. Prayer without action grows into powerless pietism, and action without prayer degenerates into questionable manipulation.

Prayer is first of all listening to God. It's openness. God is always speaking; he's always doing something.

Prayer is not a pious decoration of life but the breath of human existence.

Somewhere we know that without silence, words lose their meaning.

Let's dare to enter into an intimate relationship with God without fear, trusting that we will receive love and always more love.

When we have nothing to cling to as our own and cease thinking of ourselves as people who must defend privileges, we can open ourselves freely to others with the faithful expectation that our strength will manifest itself in our shared weakness.

For many, religion has to do with what we are allowed to do and not allowed to do. In the end, that doesn't bear fruit.