DAILY MEDITATION: "Remembering the Dead" for Saturday, 26 August 2017
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When we lose a dear friend, someone we have loved deeply, we are left with a grief that can paralyse us emotionally for a long time. People we love become part of us. Our thinking, feeling and acting are codetermined by them: Our fathers, our mothers, our husbands, our wives, our lovers, our children, our friends ... they are all living in our hearts. When they die a part of us has to die too. That is what grief is about: It is that slow and painful departure of someone who has become an intimate part of us. When Christmas, the new year, a birthday or anniversary comes, we feel deeply the absence of our beloved companion. We sometimes have to live at least a whole year before our hearts have fully said good-bye and the pain of our grief recedes. But as we let go of them they become part of our "members" and as we "re-member" them, they become our guides on our spiritual journey.
For further reflection...
I thank my God every time I remember you. [Philippians 1:3 (NIV)]
Your response...
How do you remember or commemorate loved ones who have died?
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Text excerpts taken from Bread for the Journey, by Henri J.M. Nouwen, ©1997 HarperSanFrancisco. All Scripture from The Jerusalem Bible ©1966, 1967, and 1968 Darton, Longman & Todd and Doubleday & Co. Inc. Scripture chosen by L. Yeskoo.
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The Henri Nouwen Society of Toronto, Ontario, Canada - Daily Meditation for Friday, 25 August 2017 : "Love and the Pain of Leaving"
DAILY MEDITATION: "Love and the Pain of Leaving" for Friday, 25 August 2017
Photo courtesy of K. Dobson
Every time we make the decision to love someone, we open ourselves to great suffering, because those we most love cause us not only great joy but also great pain. The greatest pain comes from leaving. When the child leaves home, when the husband or wife leaves for a long period of time or for good, when the beloved friend departs to another country or dies ... the pain of the leaving can tear us apart.Still, if we want to avoid the suffering of leaving, we will never experience the joy of loving. And love is stronger than fear, life stronger than death, hope stronger than despair. We have to trust that the risk of loving is always worth taking.
For further reflection...
There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us. [1 John 4: 18-19]
Your response...
When has separation caused you pain or suffering? Where was God?
Continue the Inspiration
Purchase your copy of Henri Nouwen's book "The Inner Voice of Love".
Visit our Bookstore:
Consider our monthly giving program to sustain the ability to extend Henri's legacy and make his work available to those who seek spiritual formation and nourishment. Click here to sign up today.
Text excerpts taken from Bread for the Journey, by Henri J.M. Nouwen, ©1997 HarperSanFrancisco. All Scripture from The Jerusalem Bible ©1966, 1967, and 1968 Darton, Longman & Todd and Doubleday & Co. Inc. Scripture chosen by L. Yeskoo.
STAY CONNECTED:
The Henri Nouwen Society
214 - 95 Saint Joseph Street
Toronto, Ontario M5S 2R9, Canada
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