In the Name of Jesus

More About this Book

Nouwen classic for Christian leaders.

This is a very short, and deeply personal articulation of the spiritual challenges and temptations facing Christian leaders. Nouwen connects the practices of leadership with the spiritual disciplines of contemplative prayer, confession and theological reflection. The book began as a talk for the fifteenth anniversary of the Center for Human Development in Washington, D.C.  As a starting point Nouwen uses two stories from the Gospels: the story of Jesus’ temptation in the desert (Matthew 4:1-11) and the story of Peter’s call to be a shepherd (John 21:15-19).  He uses these stories to propose three movements for the modern minister to take: from relevance to prayer, from popularity to ministry, and from leading to being led. This is a tiny text of a mere 81 pages, but many people re-read it every year.

Themes: Christian Leadership, Contemplation, Ministry, Prayer, Spiritual Life, Low Self-esteem, Secularization, God’s Heart, God’s First Love, Contemplative Prayer, Individualism, Mutuality, Forgiveness, Confession, Living in the Body, Carnality, Power, Powerlessness, Maturity, Downward Mobility, the Church of the Future, Theological Education, L’Arche, Bill van Buren

Crossroad, 1989