Next discussion scheduled for Advent

Many thanks to Henry Freeman, Jaree Weeks and all who participated in our discussion on Henri Nouwen’s The Spirituality of Fund-Raising. No doubt this discussion will bear fruit for all of us and we hope you will come back to this blog in the weeks and months to come to share how Henri’s vision of fund-raising as ministry has influenced your thoughts and approach to fund-raising.

In the meantime, we wish you a Blessed Advent and Christmas. We are beginning a series of free, weekly Advent reflections by eLetter, starting November 29th. If you are not a subscriber, click here.

With gratitude and many blessings,
Maureen Wright
Resource Coordinator
Henri Nouwen Society

Henri Nouwen has long been known for his poignant, insightful books that are short, easy-to-read yet full of content. I would describe Henri Nouwen as a person who has a gift for sharing brief yet powerful “nuggets” of information and words of wisdom that, for many people, last a lifetime.

One obvious example of Henri Nouwen’s concise use of language is the fact that this very short book (totaling less than 40 pages!) ends with a one paragraph chapter! Here, however, on page 37 we find one sentence that summarizes much of the wisdom shared in the preceding pages: “In ministering to each other, each from the riches that he or she possesses, we work together for the full coming of God’s Kingdom.”

What concluding words would you like to share with the group? Is there a particular “piece of wisdom” you find in this book that strikes you as being particularly relevant to the task of fundraising as ministry? If someone were to ask you “What have you learned from Henri Nouwen, what would you say?”

Many of you have shared your thoughts over the past seven weeks while others have observed and listened. I look forward to all of your closing thoughts during this final week.
-Henry

Jaree Weeks has agreed to serve as moderator for this week’s discussion regarding prayer and gratitude.
To start us off, Jaree offered the following reflection regarding Chapter 6.–Henry

In the previous chapter, Henri may have reached the “core” of his teachings by making the connection between “spirituality” and “community” but in this chapter he explains to us that it is prayer and gratitude that is the foundation of every action in the fundraising cycle.

“Prayer is the radical starting point of fund-raising because in prayer we slowly experience a reorientation of all our thoughts and feeling about ourselves and others.” It is through prayer that we feel the connection to the source or essence of who we are individually and collectively when we take time for prayer and express our gratitude we remove the stumbling blocks discussed in previous chapters concerning attitudes towards fundraising. We should have a sense of gratitude that God has provided us with a life of abundance.

Henri says “From beginning to end, fundraising as a ministry is grounded in prayer and undertaken in gratitude.” It is through prayer that we overcome all of the previous questions raised in the booklet.

What are some of your thoughts on this important chapter?–Jaree

Perhaps no other chapter in this little book is “closer to the core” of where the author connects with his readers. Whenever you hear a reference to Henri Nouwen, two words almost invariably come to mind: “spirituality” and “community”. Indeed, Henri’s understanding of God’s Calling as a theologian and author cannot easily be understood by the rest of us without these two words.

In Bread for the Journey Henri states “Community is first of all a quality of the heart. It grows from the spiritual knowledge that we are alive not for ourselves but for one another.” In this context it is easy to understand why The Spirituality of Fund-Raising devotes an entire chapter to fundraising as far more about “the building of community” and far less about asking for money.

Chapter 5 opens with the statement “People have such a need for friendship and for community that fund-raising has to be community-building”. To open our conversation, please offer your reflections on this one sentence in light of the following three questions:

1. How does this statement resonate with your experience of fund-raising?
2. Do “fund-raising” and “community-building” go hand-in-hand from your experience?
3. What words of wisdom might you have to share regarding community-building and Henri’s statement that “Community is first of all a quality of the heart”?

Please also feel free to return to previous postings both to learn from what others have shared and offer your own reflections. If new to the blog, please take a few moments to share a little about yourself in the “Getting Starting—About You” section below.
- Henry

As we enter the second half of our six-week discussion of Henri Nouwen’s The Spirituality of Fund-Raising, I took a few minutes to review the long, extensive, and “rich” list of comments so many of you provided in the “Getting Started—About You” section several weeks ago. What impressed me is that many of you—from your reading of The Spirituality of Fund-Raising and other works by Henri Nouwen—have a lot to share about how Henri’s work has already impacted on your experience with fundraising … so much so that several of you have already bought multiple copies of the book to share with colleagues!
While I hope you will continue to respond to our regular “each Thursday” assignment of a specific reading, I want to ask each of you to take a few moments simply to share:

a) why you have found this particular book (and any other work by Henri) to be helpful to your understanding of fundraising and/or

b) why you would (or perhaps would not) recommend The Spirituality of Fund-Raising to others.

Based on what I read in the words of wisdom you shared when you joined the blog, this should be a rich and rewarding discussion!
- Henry

It is difficult to read Chapter 4 without asking the question: “Why (for most people) is asking for money so hard?” Or, for some people, the question might be “Why is asking, ‘easy for me’ but so hard for others?”
Given the range of experiences we all bring to the table, this should be an interesting discussion—so jump in! I would be particularly interested in hearing from those of you who have overcome “ask anxiety”. How did you do it? What words of wisdom do you have to share?
- Henry

The Bible is filled with passages about God’s concern for the poor. Henri, however, takes us in what appears to be the opposite direction. He confronts us with the challenge of opening our hearts to those who are rich!
While this chapter includes many jewels of wisdom, one of the most striking is on page 21 when, speaking of a “rich person”, Henri asks: “Can we discover the poor in this person? That is so important because it is precisely in this person’s poverty that we discover his or her blessing.”
What a profound (and perplexing) statement! What do you think Henri is trying to say? What does your own experience tell you about “finding the poverty in the person who is rich”?
I will start off the conversation by referring to a short 6-minute YouTube video that reflects my own experience as a consultant dealing with the challenge Henri presents to us. Click here to watch my video, “Making Space for Wealthy (and Well-Known) People at Your Table”. I look forward to your comments and reflections on this very challenging topic!

If joining the discussion for the first time, welcome! Please also go to the “Getting Started—About You” section (below) and provide a brief bit of information about yourself—where you are from, what you feel called to do, etc.
- Henry

In the first chapter Henri introduced us to the concept of fund-raising as a spiritual act—a process that nurtures the souls and lives of people. It is, in Henri’s eyes, an act that brings us together as a community undertaking the joyful task of serving as a vessel for enabling us to do God’s work. In chapter 2 he then leads us into a discussion of the power of the mustard seed—and the joy that comes from seeing “small things” and “small acts” grow!

In chapter 3, Henri takes us in a different direction. He leads us into a place many people don’t like to go. It is significant that this very important chapter starts out with a very powerful statement: “Those of us who ask for money need to look carefully at ourselves. The question is not how to get money. Rather, the question is about our relationship with money. We will never be able to ask for money if we do not know how we ourselves relate to money.”

So let’s spend the next few days on the following questions:
1) “What is our relationship with money?”
2) “How does our own personal relationship with money impact on our ability to fully live out the concept of ‘Fund-Raising as Ministry’?”

If joining the discussion for the first time, welcome! Please also go to the “Getting Started—About You” section (below) and provide a brief bit of information about yourself—where you are from, what you feel called to do, etc. In this same section you will have an opportunity to learn about the rest of us “at the table”. With many states—and at least six different countries—represented, we are a very diverse group . . . of very interesting people!
- Henry

In Chapter 1 Henri offered many jewels of wisdom regarding his understanding of fund-raising as ministry and the act of asking as an “invitation” to join others on a journey toward fulfilling a mission, building the Kingdom and/or “doing good” in a world with great need.
I hope everyone will continue the conversation on “Fund-Raising as Ministry” (Chapter 1) for the rest of the week. Given, however, that the second chapter, “Helping the Kingdom Come About” occupies a grand total of one page I suggest that we also put this one page chapter “on the plate” for this week’s discussion. While very short, this is the chapter where Henri presents fund-raising in the context of a mustard seed “which, at the time of its sowing, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth”.
As a person who has spent most of the past 35 years bearing the title of “fund-raiser”, one of the great joys of this work is the opportunity and privilege of being part of “planting a seed” and seeing it grow. Take a moment to share a story that illustrates this “jewel” as reflected in your work and experience. And, if you would like, share any insights that this experience of “seed planting” provides for those who struggle with the question of how to “do fund-raising” for the work or ministry to which they have been called.
And a reminder: If joining the discussion for the first time, welcome! Please also go to the section “Getting Started—About You” section (below) and provide a brief bit of information about yourself—where you are from, what you feel called to do, etc.
Again, welcome to all this first week of the conversation!
- Henry

First of all, welcome to what I am sure will be a living and spirited conversation! Second, if you haven’t already done so, please take a moment to introduce yourself on the “Getting Started” post below where you will find very insightful words of introduction provided by the other blog participants. And finally, take a few minutes to read chapter 1 (“Fund-raising as Ministry”) and provide your thoughts and reflections on this introductory chapter to Henri’s wonderful little book!
While this first chapter lifts up many “jewels” and words of wisdom, what catches my eye is the first sentence of the second paragraph (page 3): “Fund-raising is proclaiming what we believe in such a way that we offer other people an opportunity to participate with us in our vision and mission.”
I would like to start with two simple questions:
1) How does this—Henri’s “definition” of fund-raising–resonate with your own experience?
2) Given that many people have a very different “definition” of fundraising (as begging, “taking”, etc.) what definition “works best for you” given who you are, the challenges you face in raising money, and the cause you have been led to serve?
Whenever possible, please try to “ground” your comments in this week’s assignment (chapter 1). Do, however, feel free to venture forth with whatever thoughts on the whole topic of Fund-raising as Ministry that you would like to share!
- Henry