The Lettera Files: 25.06.2025

On the temptation to be powerful.

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My Olivetti Lettera 32

Dear reader,

Today’s Lettera File is from a book that I think everyone in Christian ministry/service should be reading annually. There are some traps in any form of religious leadership that are easy to fall into no matter how good our character. Almost every headlining fall of a religious leader somehow fits into one of these. In his book, In the Name of Jesus, Henri Nouwen gently recognises what the transcending temptations are, and the antidotes.

It’s not a practical ‘how-to’ on avoiding all temptations, but rather, a look at the spiritual disciplines and focuses that shape our character away from the deep seated temptations.

To give you a taste, the chapter list of this short yet profound 80 page book is as follows:

1. From Relevance to Prayer. (The temptation to be relevant)

2. From Popularity to Ministry. (The temptation to be spectacular)

3. From Leading to Being Led. (The temptation to be powerful)

Today’s quote comes from the third chapter.

If you’re new here, I publish a Lettera File every Wednesday. They are typed on my Olivetti Lettera 32 (pictured above). Excuse any typos and formatting issues since I am using a typewriter where I can’t easily correct things. In this one you can see where I got carried away with the rhythm of typing without watching the page (and therefore, clearly, don’t have my margins for these little pages set properly). There’s also one misspelling I’ve spotted.

This feature is always a short thought for contemplation whether you agree, disagree, or anything in between.

Here is today’s file, followed by a transcript of the text in the image (with mistakes corrected) for ease of reading…