What Might Be Cultivated through Spiritual Direction?

Many of us are praying to know how we can be channels of God’s grace in our war-torn and struggling world. As spiritual directors, we listen to people who are impacted by harsh realities and seek to discern God’s grace in the midst of life. Spiritual directors have distinct and needed contributions to make, and we will reflect on, explore, and also cherish some of those as we gather together.

The core of this ministry lies in the liminal realm, as we serve as under-directors to the Director who created us and holds our lives. As spiritual directors, we accompany people in the hermeneutical process of discerning God’s presence and communication, which is always mediated in some way (e.g., through Scripture, nature, relationships, interior movements, and more). Metaphors and images lie in that liminal space, aiding our discernment of the flow of grace. For example, while the world can assume the form of a three-ring, mesmerizing, distracting circus, we affirm that it is, as created, a garden which is cared for and life-giving. How do we help directees notice the “garden” nature of their lives in the loud, flashy environment of the “Big Top?” How do we as directors savor the replenishing fruit of God’s garden and tend that space for those to whom we listen? These are questions we will ponder together.

*** For spiritual directors only ***

About the Presenter:

A spiritual director and professor of sociology and Christian spirituality, Susan Phillips earned a Ph.D. in sociology at U.C. Berkeley. She served as the Executive Director of New College Berkeley, an affiliate of the Graduate Theological Union, from 1994 to 2022.  In addition to teaching at several institutions within the Graduate Theological Union and serving on its doctoral faculty, Susan has taught for many years at Fuller Theological Seminary, Regent College (Canada), and San Francisco Theological Seminary.  Her books, like her teaching, explore the intersection of Christian spirituality and social science, and include Crisis of Care: Affirming and Restoring Caring Practices in the Helping Professions (edited with Patricia Benner), Candlelight: Illuminating the Art of Spiritual Direction, and The Cultivated Life: From Ceaseless Striving to Receiving Joy.  Susan loves listening to people as they pray and seek the Holy in spiritual direction, retreats, and everyday life.