Although I have written a lot here about training programs for spiritual directors, it is important to note that not all spiritual directors have been through training.  You may find an excellent spiritual director who has been working as one for years but never went to Shalem, Mercy Center, Hesychia School or anywhere else. This may especially be true if you are outside the U.S. or Europe. If you find a spiritual director who hasn’t been doing it forever, it’s... Read more

Let’s say you are seriously considering the time and money commitment to a formation and training program that prepares you to become a spiritual director. What should you be looking for? While most spiritual direction training programs teach a method that is more evocative than directive, they do not all teach it in the same way. Here are some key elements to look for: A program that stresses the contemplative nature of spiritual direction. If it’s not rooted in the... Read more

Though the practice we call spiritual direction has its roots in the monastic desert movement of Christianity it has flowered prolifically in the last 60 years. When I first heard of spiritual direction in 1987, there were only a handful of spiritual directors in Tucson and most were Catholic priests, former priests or sisters. Thanks to Vatican II and its encouragement of ecumenical dialogue, Catholics and Protestants in the 70’s and 80’s were talking to one another—a lot—and were teaching... Read more

Since spiritual direction is a faith-oriented practice, there is no standard regulation or licensing available. So in a practical sense anyone can hang a shingle and start offering spiritual direction. But please don’t do that. It’s a really bad idea because if you don’t have some training—either by apprenticing or attending a formation and training program—you can do significant harm. I say that because having the word “direction” in our name implies to some that we actively move people along... Read more

For a paltry fee most any spiritually-oriented group can hire a spiritual director to lead, facilitate or organize gatherings for discernment and prayer. I recommend this even if there is a member of the group (say a pastor or church leader) with mad skills in leadership. Why? Every group has its own personality and every group is filled with individual personalities.  Sometimes those individual personalities can get in the way of what the group wants and needs to get done.... Read more

No matter what I’m invited to do at churches or spirituality gatherings, I’m covertly doing group spiritual direction. That’s because spiritual direction is not just something I do for a living, it’s more the way I see and interact with the world. So I believe every time I lead a group in a prayer practice or meditation, I am also using my skills as a spiritual director to help the group process what it experienced in that prayer or meditation.... Read more

Group spiritual direction is as varied as the groups and directors involved. There are two models, though, that are popular and helpful to know about.  I learned them with names that sound like a Three Musketeers’ motto, but you may hear them described differently.   One–for-All This is a well-known model for introducing spiritual direction to people who want to learn about it in community.  In this model, the “one” in the title is the spiritual director who spends a... Read more