Nouwen Archive Opening Well Attended

September 21st, 2000
Submitted by: Sr.Conrad Lauber C.S.J.

The Spirit of Henri Nouwen was very much alive and his presence felt at a very moving and well attended opening of The Henri J.M. Nouwen Archives and Research Collection a the University of St. Michael's College, John M. Kelly Library, this September 21st, the fourth anniversary of the death of Henri Nouwen. Present and welcoming were the members of the L'Arche Daybreak Community and Sue Mosteller as the Literary Executrix of the papers and works of Henri and also welcoming were the proud and happy, "honored to be the recipients of his legacy", the members of the library staff of St. Michael's College.

Dr. Rick Alway, President of the University of St. Michael's College, as MC introduced the afternoon and expressed the appreciation and joy in receiving the gift of Nouwen's works and subsequently introduced the other speakers.
Sue, [Mosteller, Literary Executrix, Nouwen Estate] flanked by L'Arche members, spoke of their love for Henri and of the life and influence and impact of Henri on the L'Arche Community. Telling stories as Nouwen would do and as only Sue can do, she related the saga of the gathering of Henri's life work from Yale University, from the damp basement of L'Arche and from Holland, thanking the key people in numerous capacities and places for their generous spirit of cooperation and their dedicated competence and hard work, which has resulted in an excellent housing and display for Henri Nouwen's life works.

Other speakers included Laurent Nouwen, Henri's brother who spoke of Henri's humility and simplicity, and of "holiness"; the archivist/curator Gabrielle Earnshaw who is indexing all the works and who invited the audience to contribute to the collection of his works by telling of their experience of him, and St. Michael's chief librarian, Louise Girard, who assured the assembled friends/guests/scholars that the works of Henri Nouwen will be accessible to the world through St. Michael's College.

Geoffrey Whitney-Brown, who worked at L'Arche with Henri Nouwen, closed the ceremonies with his poem, a memorial to Henri, speaking to the grief at their loss, yet remembering all that he had taught them.

The gift of Henri Nouwen's life work to St. Michael's is a significant enhancement to that library and to the university as a whole. This celebration, in its simplicity and warmth amidst a moment of greatness, was one of the richest functions St. Michael's has hosted in years. The celebration reflects the philosophy of the new president of the University of Toronto, a graduate of St. Michael's, that the university should be a place of research, and that it should also reflect and be an outreach to the whole community, including the less fortunate. This diverse community was present in the assembled audience, a gathering that also reflected the far-reaching world of faith and spirituality of Henri Nouwen.

According to Sue, Henri Nouwen had said that the fruit of a lifetime is not known until one is dead. The fruit of the life of Henri Nouwen is beginning to be known through this gift.

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