henri nouwen society

Saints, People Like Us

Through baptism we become part of a family much larger than our biological family. It is a family of people "set apart" by God to be light in the darkness. These set-apart people are called saints. Although we tend to think about saints as holy and pious, and picture them with halos above their heads and ecstatic gazes, true saints are much more accessible. They are men and women like us, who live ordinary lives and struggle with ordinary problems. What makes them saints is their clear and unwavering focus on God and God's people. Some of their lives may look quite different, but most of their lives are remarkably similar to our own.

The saints are our brothers and sisters, calling us to become like them.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Pen, this is beautiful, this blog. You will be an awesome writer someday. You have wonderful things to say.

Did I ever tell you that I knew the people who Henri Nouwen cared for? He stayed at the Daybreak in Toronto. Great place. Great man ... I love his writings. You and he have many things in common.

Had to post anonymous because I don't have time to register.

Carolyn. Love ya, sis.

~pen~ said...

as busy as you are, it means the world to me that you stopped in for a moment. you were the one who turned me on to henri nouwen ... if i had one ounce of his writing ability ...

love back atcha.
p