In contemporary American culture, it is rare to find a person who feels like they are truly listened to or heard by enough others in their life. We yearn to share ourselves in a deep and personal way. Spiritual Directors International defines spiritual direction as “a particular practice of deep listening that is informed by a contemplative way in the world”. In Holy Listening: The Art of Spiritual Direction, the Rev. Margaret Guenther writes, “In this covenanted relationship the director has agreed to put himself aside so that his total attention can be focused on the person sitting in the other chair.” People who seek out a spiritual director generally want someone to companion them as they seek balance and wholeness in their lives as well as help in noticing God’s movements and interactions.

Spiritual direction is offered as part of our work at The Abbey in the City.  All of the spiritual directors have completed an extensive training program, and they are active in supervision where experienced supervisors meet with them as directors regularly for accountability and honing of their companioning skills. Safe-guarding is also practiced in spiritual direction as well as all other activities at The Abbey.

Generally, people meet with a spiritual director once a month for about an hour. However, if a directee is in a crisis or in the midst of a crucial life decision, the direction time or frequency might increase temporarily. Spiritual direction is offered at The Abbey through several different individuals and is fee-based (scaled on ability-to-pay and agreed on between the directee and the individual spiritual director).

For more information on spiritual direction, you can read an article by Marcia Hotchkiss, The Abbeys program director, entitled “Holy Listening” or consult Spiritual Directors International website.