He is a 'wounded' minister and a 'healing' minister.

Ministers of this age are called to be “wounded healers” like Jesus.
They are 'wounded' ministers and 'healing' ministers like Jesus.
Just as Jesus himself became the path to new life by tearing his own body, we realize that the wounds we ourselves have suffered can become a source of life for others.
This book answers the question many ministers ask: “What does it mean to be a minister in modern society?”
It will also be an invaluable guide for all Christians on their journey of service.

More than 30 years have passed since this important work was first published in 1972.
Yet, the fact that it remains popular to this day is clear evidence that Henri Nouwen's argument that ministry is about meeting and becoming one with those who are waiting for the good news has gained traction.
While Nouwen's writing has a timeless quality, his publishers and those associated with the Henri Nouwen Legacy Trust felt the text needed to be refined for a modern audience.
I am deeply grateful to Sean Mulrooney and Kathryn Smith for their hard work on this.
They gave careful consideration to how Nouwen would refine this book, reinterpreting it for modern readers while retaining his insights and inspiration.
While the first edition was primarily of interest to ministers, this revised edition will be an invaluable guide for all those on their journey to becoming more fully human.
---From “Publishing the Revised Edition”

It's a very old story, but it feels like a recent story.
If the pastor had turned from the Bible and looked into the eyes of the young man, he would have known that he was the Messiah.
Likewise, we must look into the eyes of the young people of this generation who are fleeing our cruelty.
If we do so, we will not be able to hand them over to the enemy, but we will be able to take them out of their hiding places and lead them back to the people to whom they belong.
When that happens, we will be free from fear.
--- p.50

If today's generation is, as Riesman says, anonymous members of a lonely crowd, then tomorrow's generation will be the children of this lonely crowd.
We are faced with a generation that has parents but no father.
Among these people, those who claim authority because they are older, more mature, smarter, or stronger are not trusted from the start.
--- p.56

But this generation, which rejects its fathers, which claims authority, which rejects the legitimacy of institutions and is afraid of them, faces a new danger.
It is to become a prisoner of oneself.

--- p.59

We looked into the eyes of the young fugitive.
He discovered that he was introverted, mentally devoid of a father figure, and obsessive.
We didn't want to hand him over to the enemy to be killed.
Instead, I wanted to take him to the heart of our village and discover in that young man the One who would save this fearful world.
To do this, we must be able to explain our inner selves well, have compassion, and have a contemplative attitude.
--- p.80

Ultimately, a person of prayer is someone who can recognize the face of the Messiah in others, reveal what is hidden, and grasp the reality of what was previously unattainable.
--- p.81

As John studied the transcripts of his conversations with Mr. Harrison, he learned that the patient's greatest concern was death.
Mr. Harrison was somewhat aware that he was standing at a crossroads between life and death.
In his brief conversation with John, Mr. Harrison expressed his fear of death three times, but John seemed to continually avoid the subject or try to conceal the painful reality.
--- p.93

The statement, “I am not ready to die,” means that Mr. Harrison is not ready to faithfully submit to the Lord.
He was not ready to give his life in faith and hope.
The pain he was experiencing at the time was rather small compared to what he thought was on the other side of life's boundaries.
Mr. Harrison feared death in a very existential way.
--- p.96

“There is nothing, there is no one.
“Only hard work awaits me.” It is not difficult for a healthy young man to understand what it means to say that no one cares whether he lives or dies.
But it is a very difficult task.
Isolation is the worst of human suffering.
--- p.98

If there is an attitude that hurts the hearts of suffering human beings, it is indifference.
People in desperate need want to be listened to, encouraged, forgiven, embraced, held, held, smiled gently, or even told that they can no longer help. Yet, ministers often don't want to get too deeply involved in their plight.
This is precisely the tragedy of Christian ministry.
--- p.116

But now it seems we need to re-establish the basic principles.
To truly help someone, you have to intervene in their situation, and to help someone, you have to fully engage with their painful situation, and in the process, you have to take the risk of being hurt, damaged, or even destroyed.
--- p.117

The Christian way of life does not eliminate loneliness, but rather protects it and cherishes it as a precious gift.
--- p.132

If a minister lives with such false expectations and illusions, he will not be able to use his loneliness as a source of human understanding.
Also, we cannot truly serve many people who do not understand their own suffering.
--- p.134

There is no minister who can save people.
I can only be a guide to those who are trembling with fear.
But paradoxically, through this guidance, the target of our desires appears for the first time.
When we recognize that pain need not be avoided and can be harnessed in our shared pursuit of life, it transforms from an expression of despair into a sign of hope.
--- p.147

If loneliness is one of the greatest wounds of a minister, hospitality can transform that wound into a source of healing.
--- p.147

We have seen that the predicament facing modern man is one of historical discontinuity, fragmented ideology, and the quest for immortality.
We also looked at mystical and revolutionary methods of transcending one's limitations.
Finally, we see that these two approaches are not contradictory, but rather two aspects of the experiential transcendence that Jesus clearly demonstrated to Christians.
(Omitted) A vision of a new world, that is what we dream of and what guides our actions.
That is what allows us to move forward, even at great risk, with the conviction that one day humanity will be free, that we will love freely.

--- p.44~45