Customer Reviews

The Wounded Healer: Ministry in Contemporary Society

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This powerfully written, yet simple book changed my life! In "The Wounded Healer," Nouwen addresses one of the main challenges of the human condition- our weaknesses. These wounds, as Nouwen refers to them, are so often viewed as sources of shame and guilt for us. He reminds us all, however, that these wounds, can be transformed into strengths, if we will allow them to be.

By accepting that we are human and addressing our human weaknesses, we can then turn them into helpful resources to extend the gift of emotional healing to others. Because, in order to reach people, we need a point of connection. We can all relate to experiences of emotional woundedness, and within appropriate relational boundaries, they can become instruments of healing.

Nouwen shares several stories, and conversations that he had with persons going through various experiences of emotional woundedness. One of the most poignant of these was a visit he made to a man who was about to go in for surgery to have a leg amputated. By offering himself as a compassionate listener, he was able to help the man find peace in the midst of a devastating loss.

A point of clarification that Nouwen makes well is that becoming a wounded healer does not mean that we dump all of our problems on people, or seek to wear them like badges. Instead, by being aware of our woundedness, and facing it, we can become more sensitized to the needs of the people around us- after all we are all subject to human imperfection.

If you are ready to find hope and a renewed perspective on helping others- read this book! I would highly recommend "The Wounded Healer" to all persons in caring professions, as well as anyone who just want to find peace in the midst of human challenges.

Nouwen, in this classic work, explains how in one's weakness, one can still participate in the healing of others. A major theme of most of his books, Nouwen stresses that only in one's brokenness before God and humankind can people really transform community. Admittedly, the philosophy of the wounded healer offered at the beginning and end of the book gets a little thick, but both portions offer excellent insights that make it a great read. The great benefit of the book is the clear examples offered in the middle of the text. Examples of people dealing with terminal patients and the like really clarifie the condition that Nouwen addresses. A must-read for people in the helping professions and anyone else looking to impact people!

As a young person seeking meaning in a difficult world, I have found Nouwen's work (every book I've read of his, actually) to clearly confront the ills of society, incorporating them into authentic Christian discipleship.
Every priest, minister, layperson or questioning individual should pick up this brief - yet poignant - account of what it is to relate to others in the modern world. Nouwen consistently cultivates the meaning of authentic relationships one must have between him/herself, God, and those met in life.
This is a must-read.

Henri Nouwen has been blessed with true vision of the human condition. Mr. Nouwen has also been gifted with the answers to solve the condition of "Nuclear Man" and isolation. Anyone who is a minister or healer of any kind should read this book. It is a "must read". I appreciated Mr. Nouwen's synopsis' at the end of each chapter. This truly helped me to "drive the point home". I thank Mr. Nouwen for writing this book. I am presently reading his "Return of the Prodigal Son" book. Another "must read" book if one is interested in reaching the center of man.

Gratefully, Teri Lynn Schons

This is the first time I ventured outside the evangelical / protestant circles, and I was amazed at the simplicity with which this author was able to present some pretty deep material.

The part that spoke to me the most was 'if we can live our lives as authentically as Jesus lived his, then there are many ways to live like Christ'. This was a revelation, I no longer have to stand a street corners, etc. to live like Christ.

The good author is gone now, but his many books are available for us all. A very good alternative the usual a,b,c ... 1,2,3 stuff I was used to.

I found myself not agreeing with all of Henri's cultural analysis, but I don't have to. His work is still inspiring while at the same time not entertaining any moral high ground arrogance. Nouwen is down to earth and spiritually minded at the same time, he cares about people and you can't go wrong with that. Open and honesty, loving and kind, the book will encourage you to treat people the way they want to be treated---as human beings. Buy it, read it, and live it.

What does it mean to be a minister (a healer, if you will) in the world of today, to a rootless generation, to people who suffer loneliness and alienation? Henri Nouwen proposed that the wounds of the "wounded healer" can be a source of healing for others. Although this is a short book, it is very profound, and I'm not sure I totally grasped everything Nouwen was trying to say. He moves from the very practical third chapter (a case study of a one-on-one encounter between a clinical pastoral trainee and a lonely dying patient) to the rather esoteric fourth chapter (focusing on the wounded healer) which could have used more practical illustrations. This is a book that probably needs to be read several times, but it can be extremely valuable for the minister, and for everyone else.

Nouwen offers a deep challenge to those who would minister the Love of Christ in this world. Using his characteristically insightful prose Nouwen articulates the post-modern dilema (he calls post-modernity the dilema of "nuclear man"). From there he proceeds to challenge traditional models of ministry, preaching and healing. Nouwen, I would argue through his own expierence, teaches those who would minister to lead others towards the healing love of Christ. He creatively suggests that ministers should change hats, leading people to freedom by articulating empathetically their own woundedness. In essence he is both challenging and inviting the Church to be a fellow wounded traveler in and through the darkness of our wounded world. It is a brilliant work that rewards re-reading.

The ability to heal even though a person has been wounded is an extraordinary message. Hence the appropriate title for this book. The author proposes that the spiritual counselor relate to their directee from their own personal experiences. He suggests that it is through reaching within oneself that those in this kind of service can truly be of help. Nouwen validates the experiences of many in this or allied professions; that we uncover our own pain and weaknesses as we attempt to guide others.This affirmation is valuable. In healing others, the counselor is healed. In being able to recognize and share our own pain, we can better serve.

Nouwen offers a cultural backdrop to explain why this approach works. The time is the late 60's. Forty years later, some of his conclusions have not been borne out. A notable one in my opinion, is the story of Peter. Nouwen builds the case for "nuclear man" as a premise for his theories. I suggest that perhaps Peter was an enlightened man. Read the book and see if you come to the same or other conclusions. In any case, it will make you think.

Having read some of Nouwen's work before, I have come to appreciate him. And because I had heard so much about "The Wounded Healer," I was expecting a classic. I was sorely disappointed.

On one level, I was frustrated because the four chapters seemed to function in isolation from one another, rather than forming the parts of a cohesive whole. Having read his assessment of "nuclear man" in Chapter 1, that idea never really reappeared, and the rest of the book seemed to go in several completely different directions.

I was also disappointed by Nouwen's flowery and poetic language. Though this writing style no doubt connects with some folks, I was often left thinking something like, "That sounded nice, but I have no idea what he was saying!!" It's not a matter of the complexity of his ideas, but I just find his writing to be undecipherable.

Ultimately, Nouwen has some good stuff to say. The story of a young minister meeting with a sick man just before he died is poignant and provides us with a helpful and practical situation upon which to reflect. But I found his conclusions to be confusing or even evasive and do not feel particularly more informed to help others who are hurting.