Henri Nouwen, Now + Then: Father to the Fatherless

By Karen Whistler

One of my favorite authors is Henri Nouwen. The legacy of Henri carries on through the Henri Nouwen Society, which produces a podcast called Henri Nouwen, Now & Then. For this initial post, I will share the connection with Spirit of Life that inspired me to start contributing to the Spirit of Life blog.

Pastor Marietta’s time at the Mission Creek Correctional Center for Women near Belfair has been such an encouragement to me. She has shared prayer requests and updates from the women that I hold dear. Knowing Pastor’s heart for the incarcerated, two recent Now and Then podcast episodes piqued my interest. 

Director of the Henri Nouwen Society, Karen Pascal, interviews two individuals involved in ministering to the incarcerated around the globe about how they utilize Henri’s book, Return of the Prodigal Son 

Karen speaks to Denis Jacobs, founder of John Israel Ministries who ministers to prisoners in South Africa about his Father to the Fatherless  initiative developing curriculum around Return of the Prodigal Son: Now & Then Podcast  "Prison Ministry & The Prodigal Son".

Karen then speaks to the CEO of Prison Fellowship Canada, Stacey Campbell. They discuss building on Denis Jacobs’ work building Father to the Fatherless curriculum and implementing in Canada, where they both reside: Now & Then Podcast  "Father to the Fatherless” .

I highly recommend both episodes. Let us all to continue to pray for prisoners worldwide and specifically the women of the Mission Creek Correctional Center for Women. I also encourage spending time on the facility website. In a deep dive of curiosity, I learned a lot about the facility and got a small sense of what life is like for the women who live there. This helped me feel more connected to them as I prayed for the specific needs that were shared. 

Pray for Pastor Marietta’s presence preaching Love to those who attend her worship services. 

In Peace and Gratitude, 
Karen