Ukraine Diary

A previously unpublished work of Nouwen’s that is like a time capsule, a message from the past with special meaning for today.

In 1993 and ’94, Henri Nouwen made two trips to Ukraine that were deeply significant to him. With extraordinary prescience, Henri identified in Ukraine certain spiritual and moral qualities struggling to assert themselves—exactly the qualities, almost thirty years later, that the Ukrainian people have mobilized in their struggle for freedom and independence. He found a people hungry for hope and healing, in need of the life-giving message he most wanted to share: that we are all “beloved of God,” and that God’s love meets us where we are most hurt, weak, and vulnerable.

“Henri is deeply in touch with the Slavic soul, its long suffering, and the national identify of the Ukrainian people. He still speaks prophetically about Russian imperialism, the gospel call to peacemaking, and prayerful resistance in a troubled and fearful land.”—Michael J. Christensen

More About this Book

“As we reflected on our experience in Ukraine, I felt a deep desire to stay faithful to the Ukrainian people and to keep choosing not just for the individual poor, who need support, but also for the country that is so clearly marginalized in the family of nations.” – Henri Nouwen, Ukraine Diary

In an introduction by Borys Gudziak, Archbishop-Metropolitan for the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia, he notes: “This modest, seemingly simple book about a visit to a distant land is in fact a subtle tale of how encounter genuinely and radically changes the lives of people.” In his moving afterword, Nouwen’s brother Laurent Nouwen describes how for twenty-five years after Henri’s death he continued an outreach of solidarity and service to the people of Ukraine through the Henri Nouwen Foundation.

Translation available in Ukrainian

Posthumous Work from the Unpublished Writings of Henri Nouwen authorized by the Henri Nouwen Legacy Trust, copyright held by the Henri Nouwen Legacy Trust

Reviews for the Book

“Henri is deeply in touch with the Slavic soul, its long suffering, and the national identify of the Ukrainian people. He still speaks prophetically about Russian imperialism, the gospel call to peacemaking, and prayerful resistance in a troubled and fearful land.”—Michael J. Christensen, PhD, co-editor of the Nouwen Trilogy, Spiritual Direction, Spiritual Formation, and Discernment

Praise for “Ukraine Diary”

"He still speaks prophetically about Russian imperialism, the gospel call to peacemaking, and prayerful resistance in a troubled and fearful land."

"Henri is deeply in touch with the Slavic soul, its long suffering, and the national identify of the Ukrainian people.”