Book Review: The Way of the Heart: Connecting with God through Prayer, Wisdom, and Silence, by Henri Nouwen

Overview—Give a brief overview of the book, including its theme, perspective and approach.

In the tradition of Thomas Merton and other contemplatives, Nouwen presents a way to bring monastic disciplines into our "everyday world". Nouwen, who is no stranger to communal monastic life, organizes his thoughts under the three headings of Solitude, Silence, and Prayer. He then explores what each discipline entails, and importantly, what each does not entail. His writings have a warm devotional tone, without descending into the maudlin sentimentalism of many devotional writings. He invites the reader, rather than instructs, to connect with God in a deeper way through these practices.

Critique—Offer a brief critique of the book, including elements of strength and weakness.

I have always enjoyed Nouwen's works. I found his book "The Prodigal Son" to be transformational. "The Way of the Heart" offers less biographical narrative, and more contemplative reflections. I enjoyed the stories and lessons drawn from the Desert Fathers, which Nouwen casts as considerably more approachable than, say, Athanasius in his "Life of Anthony" (where the anchorite monks just seem cranky!). And Nouwen also warns that solitude, silence, and prayer aren't simply places to go for a refreshing spiritual retreat (a kind of contemplative cappuccino break). No, they are places to do battle with the Devil as he exposes the darkness of our own hearts.

Application—Offer some specific application to your own ministry— demonstrating the value and relevance of the material in this book.

Because we live in an age when ministry means "doing" rather than "being", Nouwen is a voice that brings us back to personal soul-care. As I seek, not merely to "do" the right things, but to "be" the right person, I feel I will be able to better connect with people in their struggles to grow in Christ. I particularly enjoyed his section on "nurtured by short prayers". "The Way of the Heart" is more of an enticement than a guide book, but a welcome enticement nonetheless.

Best Quote—Be sure to include the page number where the quote can be found.

p. 25: " In solitude we realize that nothing human is alien to us, that the roots of all conflict, war, injustice, cruelty, hatred, jealousy, and envy are deeply anchored in our own heart. In solitude our heart of stone can be turned into a heart of flesh, a rebellious heart into a contrite heart, and a closed heart into a heart that can open itself to all suffering people in a gesture of solidarity."

"If you would ask the Desert Fathers why solitude gives birth to compassion, they would say, 'Because it makes us die to our neighbour.' At first this answer seems quite disturbing to a modern mind. But when we give it a closer look we can see that in order to be of service to others we have to die to then; that is, we have to give up measuring our meaning and value the yardstick of others. To die to our neighbours means to stop judging them, to stop evaluating them, and them to become free to be compassionate. Compassion can never coexist with judgment because judgment creates the distance, the distinction, which prevents us from really being with the other…"