Today would like to bring attention to Henri Nouwen, one of the more popular contemplative New Age mystics. He has been popularized by people such as Rick Warren in his book, The Purpose Driven Life and Francis Chan introducing his readers to Nouwen in, Crazy Love. (to site just 2 promoters, facilitators of Nouwen.)
In his book, In the Name of Jesus, Henri Nouwen said, “Through the discipline of contemplative prayer, Christian leaders have to listen to the voice of love…For Christian leadership to be truly fruitful in the future, a movement from the moral to the mystical is required.” (1989)
It’s obvious now that Christian leadership have taken Nouwen’s ‘exhortation’ and ran with it in the last few years. His intentions have been realized across Christiandom. In this year of 2011, Nouwen is just another accepted household name. It’s known now that anyone can get away with throwing in someone like a Henri Nouwen alongside C.H. Spurgeon, or any other Reformed voice and get away with it. It’s called being a facilitator for the ‘New Spirituality’, this global transformation that we are now in, the one world religion, which is coming together faster than I can type this article. Are you a Christian or Christ-Follower? (See article about the difference in, How to “Discipline” Yourself Right into the Global One World Church
With all the, “Oh, I’ve found a new author that I’m in love with”, that people go on and on about, who is Henri Nouwen and just why is he so popular not only with the new-neo- Calvinist crowd but all across the board? We can find Nouwen being quoted from Catholics, to New Agers to the big names in the Reformed camp, doesn’t matter who, all are in love with Nouwen. As said many times on this blog, know your mystics, know your monks and know why they are being pushed by everyone and their brother. (for instance why not familiarize yourself with any name that is quoted in any book that you read or a name from the pulpit that is dropped-who are they and what DO they want, where ARE they taking me?)
I find it interesting that Nouwen is introduced so often as a passing quote. This to me says that he is being used as a way of introduction into mysticism. I have yet to see someone that reads one of these books that promote Nouwen, that lo and behold -it’s a miracle!- all of a sudden , they list Nouwen, after reading these books, as now one of their favorite authors. Well now that works quite nicely, doesn’t it?
So, who was Henri Nouwen? What did he believe? You are just about to find out through the sources provided.
~Traveling with Henri Nouwen~
It was Nouwen’s intent to make mystical prayer a pervasive paradigm within all traditions of Christianity. He felt the evangelical church had many admirable qualities but lacked one vital one: mysticism. He sought to remedy this by imploring, “It is to this silence [contemplative prayer] that we all are called.”
For Nouwen it was very disturbing to him when he heard people say that Jesus was the only way. He said it was his mission to help people find his or her own way to God (see Sabbatical Journey). That’s also why he saw India as a source for many spiritual “treasures” for the Christian.
Nouwen and others such as Thomas Merton, use Jesus as a simply a model, because they see Him as a model for higher consciousness rather than the unique Son of God, Emmanuel (God with us) who came to die for us and be our Savior. And that’s what you find across the board in contemplative writings.
Henri Nouwen himself promoted Thomas Merton, Taoist Philosopher Chvang Tzu, the writings of the Desert Fathers, Teilhard de Chardin(Catholic priest who believed Jesus would not return in person but rather as a cosmic Christ), and Hindu Spiritual Writer Eknath Eswaran.
Source: http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/nouwen.htm
Ray Yungen writes:
“Nouwen’s endorsement of a book by Hindu spiritual teacher Eknath Easwaran, teaching mantra meditation, further illustrates his universalistic sympathies. On the back cover, Nouwen stated, “This book has helped me a great deal.”
Nouwen also wrote the foreword to a book that mixes Christianity with Hindu spirituality, in which he says:
“[T]he author shows a wonderful openness to the gifts of Buddhism, Hinduism and Moslem religion. He discovers their great wisdom for the spiritual life of the Christian … Ryan [the author] went to India to learn from spiritual traditions other than his own. He brought home many treasures and offers them to us in the book.”
Nouwen apparently took these approaches seriously himself. In his book, The Way of the Heart, he advised his readers:
“The quiet repetition of a single word can help us to descend with the mind into the heart … This way of simple prayer … opens us to God’s active presence.”
But what God’s “active presence” taught him, unfortunately, stood more in line with classic Hinduism than classic evangelical Christianity.
from “Henri Nouwen and Buddhism”
by Ray Yungen (Excerpt from A Time of Departing, 2nd ed.).
http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/nouwenbuddhism.htm
****Below have provided additional links for further research:
What Did Henri Nouwen Really Believe? (info that Nouwen believed that he was a homosexual)
THE INNER OURNEY TO APOSTASY WITH HENRI NOUWEN
HENRI NOUWEN HELPED BY “MEDITATION”
HENRI NOUWEN: GOD IN THE INNER SANCTUARY OF EACH HUMAN BEING
Donald Whitney, Mysticism and Spirituality without Boundaries
See Also:
Filed under: Henri Nouwen, New Age Contemplative Spirituality/Mysticism Tagged: | A Time of Departing, contemplative meditation, contemplative prayer, contemplative spirituality, contemporary evangelical movement, Dominionism/New Apostolic Reformation, ecumenicalism, Emergent/Purpose Driven, emerging church, Francis Chan, new age Christianity, new spirituality, one world religion, Ray Yungen, Rick Warren, spiritual disciplines, Spiritual Formation
I had to stop receiving RBC’s Our Daily Bread devotional because one of their contributors positively quoted Nouwen. When I contacted RBC with my concerns about Nouwen, their response was a lame ‘many respected theologians have quoted him so he must be ok’ answer.
Very sad…
Yes, as they say, “Our Daily Bread……crumbles” It is very sad about the answer received from these folks. We must stand guard and speak up, as you did!!, against this mysticism since it’s now in every nook and cranny in the visible church, publications, on blogs/websites and so on. Learn to recognize, keep our discernment ears and eyes opened at all times. Thanks for comments, Yvonne. Lord bless.
[...] Donald Whitney, Mysticism and Spirituality without Boundaries via thereformedtraveler.wordpress.com [...]
Nicely done. Mysticism is spreading like an Oklahoma wildfire.
That it is, raging and those deceptive flames are licking at many a heel. I’d say to those… to take those heels and run for their lives, now. Thanks Ken, appreciate the comments.
*****Ray, have you found a solid church since leaving that Baptist church, or are there just none to be found in your area? (Little survey, there
………………………………….
Jo
I’m aware of perhaps one church in my locality, a Westminster Presbyterian church , that I might find some sort of affinity with, but at the moment I think { and so does my wife} that i am still too cynical to be of any constructive part of a church. To be honest though, I have found the last couple of years to be a revelation, away from organised churchianity and the word of God being filtered through corrupt minds. Really , for the first time in my life , it has been God , His word and myself , with no distractions, what a blessing!.
To add to dawnmarie’s sentiments above, I too , have in the short time visiting this blog found much that identifies with my convictions, and for that I thank you kindly.
This is an excellent resource page Jo. Very handy.
There are so many christians being deceived by men like this and mysticism isn’t just creeping into the church through the back doors. It’s being invited in and welcomed with open arms as part of experiential ecumenical christianity. I wish I could say that this is just a trend, but it’s not. It’s going to get worse and worse. Jesus himself said…
Luke 18:8 “…Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?”
That’s right, the welcome mat is out. I agree, not a trend. Absolutely not. Ain’t seen nothin’ yet, and it’s bad enough now. Excellent scripture reference. Amen.
Thank you again, your ‘discerning’ comments! (Personal note is due: Want to say, Dawn, that I read every new post that you put up, but when I’m having a bad pulmonary hypertention day, which is most days now!!, not able to comment, so I just press the like button! 
I’m sure that you have noticed, lol…and I know sometimes I’ll read and even forget to ‘like’!!! Anyway, …and so it goes…..
Am in the process of moving my mystic research to top of left sidebar (it’s been waaay down, kind of out of site!) Will be focusing more on these topics in future on blog. Have let it slide, to my shame. On the comeback
I have a very small handful of blogs that I visit daily as well Jo…and this is one of them. I don’t always comment either and I tend to use the like botton also. Lot’s of times someone has already said what I am thinking or the post has it somewhere inside it.
So we will use our like buttons and if we feel the need to comment, then so be it. If not, no explanation needed, ya hear? i keep you in my prayers btw…just know you are appreciated.
Thanks for bringing this to light, Jo. I’ll have to look in some of my Spiritual Formation books from seminary as I think they mention Nouwen.
Your very welcome Paul.
I find myself asking how did the church ever get to this position , how does a people purporting to belong to God find themselves on the road to ruin when the truth is right beneath their noses. To be fair though , this is not the first generation of believers to be found wandering off, biblical history is sadly full of accounts of how Gods chosen people continually abandoned divine wisdom for that being offered by the other side, and so there is nothing new under the sun.
I left the previous church , a baptist church , for pretty much the same thing that is highlighted in this article. What amazes and saddens me is how many people, who were once solid doctrinal believers , have thrown all that out the window and embraced the new age gospel.
It would help if the big names would quit being Judas Goats, leading folks right into all of this mysticism. When it’s all said and done, the Lord will deliver His own, but in the meantime, (while so many are getting caught up in all of this), will continue to ‘pound out’ this message…”Flee for your lives!!”
It’s odd what’s going on…the people that you wouldn’t think, in a million years, that would involve themselves in this stuff – are…. and the one’s that you would think that they would fall for it, like forever, are getting out!!! or….Like you said, “who were once solid doctrinal believers , have thrown all that out the window and embraced the new age gospel.” Thanks so much for comments.
*****Ray, have you found a solid church since leaving that Baptist church, or are there just none to be found in your area? (Little survey, there
RT – there seems to be a rush to heresy in the church today. No longer does the church act as did the Bereans and check out things that are spoken — but beginning with Word of Faith preachers of the 1940′-1950′s, we move along this slippery slope to destruction listening to Benny and Kenny, continuing to Kim Clement, Todd Bentley….now Nouwen and Oprah.
II Chronicles 7:14 is faaaar from the hearts and minds of the church today. The prayer of Daniel goes unspoken and men no longer weep over their sins.
“The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.” Jeremiah 8:20