Intimacy: A Classic Guide to Spiritual Formation, Prayer, and a More Fulfilling Relationship with God

First book by Henri was the Prodigal Son offering. AMAZING BOOK. Henri is a loving searching soul that wrote a series of very very good books. The title caught me. If any one could catch INTIMACY, from a male perspective, Henri can. I came out of a Catholic upbringing all bad jokes aside, there are some very holy people associated with the Catholic church. And a few not so.. I will leave that to God and just say that all of Henri Nouwen's books I have read are very well written. Certainly NOT shallow. And can be reread again and again.

Saying the book is a classic and by Henri Nouwen is redundant. It is a book that opened my heart and my mind and brought me closer to God and also those around me. His writing is amazingly clear and brings the reader to a place where few Christ followers ever get, a place where we can appreciate and feel God.

Those of us that attend "conservative/traditional" churches may often look with envy at those crazy folks having so much fun in the Pentacostal movement. Our services drone on with the excitement of a DMV line, while the church down the street rocks louder that Yosemite Falls. Are we missing something? Isn't our relationship with God supposed to BE a relationship, full of emotional ranges of joy to tears and back again, instead of sitting in pews wondering if we will be home in time for the "big game"? We READ about the miracles Jesus performed but have never seen one. On Sunday morning, the congregation is busy taking notes on the sermon topic "Does God still heal"? Have we ever healed someone? Can we? Why are the early disciples so different than us? They act and talk in a way that shouts "We know our God!" Where is the closeness, the passion, the intimacy that a relationship should have? Yet what if I don't speak in tongues? What if I have never had a word of knowledge? Am I really a Christian? Do I have to raise my hands when I sing? Henry Nouwen dives in this pool of wondering and may offend both the stoic Baptist and the barking in the Spirit Pentacostal. .He has a balanced view of how we can have intimacy with God and intimacy with others. The deadness of traditional Christianity can be replaced with guilt and depression, two of the most common ailments of the Pentacostal movement. Privacy gets tossed out in the Pentacostal churches, Henry argues, as people are forced to reveal deep hurts and pain as "cleansing" or to "release the demons".. Henry concluded with a goal for intimacy within the Christian community: "a climate to allow searching without fear and questioning without shame..growth can only take place when belief and unbelief, doubt and faith, hope and despair can exist together."

Nouwen's observations are those of a very spiritual psychologist or a very psychologically astute theologian, or both. Very deep and wonderful.

Most of us avoid intimacy, as it makes us vulnerable to reveal our inner being. Yet, one of the things we need and seek in life, is precisely that. Henri Nouwen is a religious thinker and writer. If you are seeking more 'spirituality' in your life, you will want to add this book to your reading.

Very intellectual journey into the depth of our deepest desire.

Although this book is written to male, Catholic seminarians or Priests, there are many aspects of it that are applicable to anyone who follows God and desires intimacy in their relationships with God and others. Nouwen writes beautifully and reminds us that the importance in loving is being able to do so with our whole selves without consideration on how much love we'd be getting back. Several of the sections are particularized to a Catholic seminary lifestyle, but the lessons and insights Nouwen explains can also be generalized to protestant seminary life, life in college fellowships, and just fellowship groups within churches. The later parts of the book are less involved directly with issues of intimacy though. They are more about environments which are conducive to creating healthy intimacy and those which aren't, so it's less directly concerned with personal cultivation of fulfilling intimacy. But there are definitely some good tidbits about intimacy in this book, and if that's an issue you want to have a deeper understanding of, this book is well worth your time.

There are two separate matters to review. First, the edition. This edition of the book is terrible. It is clearly a photocopy of some previous edition.. The fonts are badly pixelated on some pages, and there is a faint line along the bottom of every page that appears to be an artifact from the original edition. The text is also off-center, so it is difficult to read the right-hand pages without bending the binding. And finally, the book ends mid-sentence. There appear to be several pages missing from the end of the book, because the Table of Contents lists a Conclusion starting on page 149, but the book's last page is 142. Harper Collins ought to be embarrassed. I would give the edition one star. I'm bringing the average up to two stars for the content of the book, however. It's just okay. There are some good nuggets here and there, but overall the content is a bit dated (angst over the Vietnam War and the rise of Pentecostalism, for instance) and seems disjointed. Overall, I don't see how the book gives much insight on intimacy with God or others.

As always, Henri Nouwen provides perceptive insights into his subject. This book is primarily about exposing one' s inner self to others or to another. It is helpful and relevant to a variety of intimate situations and I would recommend it.

Book arrived, but it's not the same as the picture on amazon. Looks a lot cheaper. But, it's Nouwen so I know the content will be good

worth every penny