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Bonus Quote of the Day: “The Spiritual Work of Gratitude”
@arahant‘s Quote of the Day took us in a rather earth[l]y direction. In honor of my natal anniversary (and to redress the imbalance) I offer the following reflection from Fr. Henri J. M. Nouwen [1932-1996]:
“To be grateful for the good things that happen in our lives is easy, but to be grateful for all of our lives—the good as well as the bad, the moments of joy as well as the moments of sorrow, the successes as well as the failures, the rewards as well as the rejections—that requires hard spiritual work. Still, we are only truly grateful people when we can say thank you to all that has brought us to the present moment. As long as we keep dividing our lives between events and people we would like to remember and those we would rather forget, we cannot claim the fullness of our beings as a gift of God to be grateful for. Let’s not be afraid to look at everything that has brought us to where we are now and trust that we will soon see in it the guiding hand of a loving God.” — Nouwen, Henri J. M.. Bread for the Journey: A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith (p. 13). HarperCollins. Kindle Edition. [1997, 2014]
For me, days such as this are meant for rollicking, rejoicing, and reflection. I’m reminded of the overarching fulfillment of a promise and restoration of a covenant-love relationship begun long ago. A restoration that invites me and those so led to enter into relationship with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Relationships have costs. This one involves my being willing to be a wounded healer (in Fr. Nouwen’s powerful phrase) in the service of the Crucified and Risen One: to recognize the strength in broken places. It helps me to recall that Christ’s risen, glorified Body bears the signs of His wounds, because they are real and true…and that the body of believers reflects both wounds and glory – “already” and “not yet” – day by day more and more. This starts tomorrow when year 62 commences.
Yep, that’s the hard part. But if you think back, some of the bad stuff led to good stuff and maybe the good stuff wouldn’t have happened otherwise. The Lord works in mysterious ways.
Thanks for a beautifully thoughtful post, and happy birthday. I’m a few years ahead of you in time but far behind in wisdom.
18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
1 Thessalonians 5:18
I’ve seen more discussion of this idea, both within Ricochet and elsewhere, during this month than I’ve experience over my lifetime.
Thanks for all you do on Ricochet, and Happy Birthday!.
This entry is part of our Quote of the Day series. We have many openings on the September Schedule for your wisdom. We’ve even include tips for finding great quotes. It’s the easiest way to start a Ricochet conversation, so why not sign up today?
Ah, beans to you… (I found much to chew on in the bean-talk, it was very uplifting… full of air or gas or what have you…)
Nanda, one thing that separates the Left from the Right is this matter of gratitude, in this case the secular kind.
The Right, rightly so, is thankful for America’s blesssings and the work of the Founding Fathers. The Left seems deficient in thankfulness for those blessings. In some cases, in fact, they seem to dislike those blessings.
Thanks for the post.
But really, Nanda, thank you for this lovely post.
Hey, now! I posted an interesting quote from a philosopher that had multiple interpretations historically. It was layered and nuanced. It was historically significant. Is it my fault that some people on Ricochet have low minds?
I have read several of Fr. Nouwen’s books. He was an amazing man and demonstrated how transparency and vulnerability can bring us closer to G-d. He was also a generous man in the work he did. Thank you for reminding us of him, Nanda, and the deep messages he shared.
And all my comments were all that too. Nuanced. Historical. It was Arahant who was hysterical.
I assure you that I have no uterus.
‘Hant, I never said I disapproved; only that equilibrium needed to be restored. A masterful work of rhetoric – of the persuasive sort – ’tis, indeed.
Appreciate the kind words and “votes of confidence”, everyone!
Amen Nanda.