I’m glad you’re here.
Sacred Pilgrim offers spiritual companionship for fellow pilgrims at any stage of the life journey. Here you will find a quiet, confidential, contemplative space to explore and encounter the Holy through the longstanding practice of spiritual direction.
What is spiritual direction?
There are many ways to define the practice of spiritual direction. Here are some I like to use. Consider which one might resonate with your deepest desire in this season of your life journey:
- Spiritual direction is the practice of being quietly present with another person, listening deeply to their sacred story, and reflecting back to them where the Holy may be present and active in their life.
- It provides the opportunity to experience an encounter with the Holy while in the loving, attentive presence of a companion on the spiritual journey.
- It gives us space to begin to recognize where we are experiencing the most life and freedom.
- It creates safe space to explore our joys, burdens, frustrations, questions, longings, and callings without judgment or expectation.
- It makes the lonely journey shareable, the difficult journey bearable, and the obscured journey visible.
- It allows us to discover and take the next step on our spiritual journey.
You may be wondering…
Is spiritual direction right for me? * How do I find the right “fit?”
How is Spiritual Direction different from Pastoral Care? From your description, they sound the same.
Hi Rob, that is a very good question.
Probably the most obvious difference would be that pastors who are also spiritual directors usually do not meet with their congregants for spiritual direction for ethical reasons. Beyond that, in pastoral care, a pastor might range from answering theological questions to offering advice and guidance to providing resources for further study. Pastors would also function out of their particular theological/denominational perspective and have the freedom to express their own opinions. Often, when pastors ask congregants a question about their spiritual lives, they already have a “correct” answer in mind.
On the other hand, spiritual directors (unless they are guiding the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises) are non-directive and evocative. They do not answer your questions, tell you what to do, or assert their opinions and perspectives. In spiritual direction, the presence of the Holy is considered to be the source of guidance, healing, revelation, etc. The role of the spiritual director is to be a loving, compassionate, and non-judgmental presence that creates space for you to recognize and experience the Holy on your spiritual journey. A spiritual director might ask an open-ended, non-agenda-driven question, reflect what they are hearing you say, make an observation about what they are noticing, or just sit in safe, contemplative silence with you. Most of all, they are listening deeply to your life and inviting you to notice the active movement of the Holy.
I welcome your further questions. You can also contact me privately using the form on the “Spiritual Direction” page.
I’m a spiritual director and your article is one of the best descriptions I’ve read on spiritual direction
Blessings on your work
Thanks so much, Rev. Judy! Very kind of you to say. Where is your practice located? Always happy to meet a fellow SD!
I’m wondering if you will be resuming your lectio Divina podcast in the future. I was a regular listener and appreciated it so much.