In the Name of Jesus

For twenty years Henri Nouwen lectured on the Christian life and spirituality at Notre Dame and Harvard Divinity School. In 1986 he left academia to live among and care for adults with developmental disabilities. I may have disagreements with him theologically, but I have to admire a man who decides to stop merely talking about theology and spirituality (not to mention giving up the status and privilege of an Ivy League professorship) in order to serve “the least of these” in the name of Jesus.

If you’re familiar with Nouwen you’ll find this thin volume typical of his shoot-from-the-heart style. Reflecting on his transition from celebrated academic and author to live-in caregiver, he sketches out three core principles for Christian leadership, a servant-leadership offerd in a decidedly Christian manner (hence the title).

Using Jesus’ desert temptations as a framework, Nouwen sets Christian leadership apart from its secular doppelganger in that the Christian leader seeks to overcome, rather than embrace, these three temptations of the secular world: the desire to be important to others (to be relevant), the desire to be admired by others (to be "spectacular"), and the desire to have influence over others (to be powerful).

Nouwen is highly accessible in his writing, and his insights in this book are so plain and basic that seasoned Christian leaders may dismiss them as elementary. Such a dismissive response would prove a problem in the reader, however, not the thesis. Far from elementary, Nouwen’s principles are foundational. To ignore them would be to follow the path of secularization that leads away from Christ rather than toward him.

Henri Nouwen writes from a place deep in the heart, with a genuine love of people and an unwavering commitment to show Christ-likeness in his interactions with them. I am indebted to my friend Greg Goebel for passing the book on to me and highly recommend it to anyone interested in the formation of spiritual leadership.