The
discipline of spiritual direction is defined by the classic work, The Spiritual Disciplines Handbook by
Adele Ahlberg Calhoun as follows: “to give caring attention to my relationship
with God, accompanied by the prayerful presence of someone who helps me listen
well to God” (Calhoun, 2015, p. 16).
Essentially the
practice of spiritual direction is one person receiving Christian guidance from
another person. This example is quite
common in the pages of the Bible. We see
John the Baptist teaching his disciples and helping the lost to prepare
themselves for the coming of Jesus Christ.
We see Paul calling himself the spiritual father of his young mentee
Timothy. We see it in the Old Testament relationships like those between Moses
and his father-in-law Jethro, where one seeks spiritual advice from the other. We see relationships like those between Elijah
and Elisha, Samuel and David, Jonathan and David, Ruth and Naomi, Moses and
Aaron, Abraham and Lot, and Paul and Philemon just to name a few. Of course the greatest example we see in the
Bible in the practice of spiritual direction, comes from Jesus himself who
actively mentors and advises his twelve disciples.
One powerful
example from the gospels is the example of Jesus as spiritual director to
Peter. Jesus tells Peter that when he
falls into the hands of sinners, and is betrayed and arrested, Peter will deny
him three times. But he encourages Peter, and tells him that he has prayed for
him, and reminds him to encourage the other brothers and sisters after this
happens (Luke 22:31-62 NIV). Jesus instructs Peter spiritually, by reminding
him that though he will deny his savior, he will “turn again” and then will
encourage the others. The conclusion of
this saga comes when Jesus is resurrected and talks with Peter, asking him
three times: “Peter, do you love me?” (John 21:15-25 NIV). Jesus gently guided
Peter back into right standing, encouraging his repentance through three
declarations of faith and love for his savior, cancelling out his three
denials. This is the epitome and
greatest expression of spiritual direction. If only we could all be so lucky as
to have Jesus himself as our personal teacher and spiritual director.
The timeless
classic, the Pilgrim’s Progress seems to picture the character “evangelist” as
a sort of spiritual director helping guide Christian toward the fullness of
God, along the pathway to the eternal city. Bunyan wrote in his classic, “Then
said Evangelist, pointing with his finger over a very wide field, Do you see
yonder Wicket Gate? The man said, No. Then said the other, Do you see yonder
Shining Light? He said, I think I do. Then said Evangelist, Keep that Light in
your eye, and go directly thereto, so shalt thou see the Gate; at which thou
knockest, it shall be told thee what thou shalt do.” Christian could not quite see beyond the
wicked gate, but evangelist pointed Christian toward the prize. He didn’t point
to himself, or take any sort of direct authority, but simply pointed and guided
Christian in the right direction. That
is the true task of the spiritual director, to guide the directee closer to the
honest fullness of God.
“A spiritual
director listens with one ear to God, and the other to the directee, always
encouraging the directee to recognize where God can be found throughout the
journey” (Calhoun, 2015, p. 133). The
idea is to help guide the individual seeking God even closer to God, and to be
one whom the Spirit of God speaks through to help guide the individual. This is
one of the reasons Christians are commanded to be engaged together in regular
fellowship. One person can and does help another to grow closer to God, through
various intentional practices. As the scriptures say, “As iron sharpens iron,
so one person sharpens another” (Proverb 27:17 NIV). It’s interesting that in
the pattern for church discipline described in Matthew chapter eighteen the first
step is to go to the person directly, one on one, and seek the repentance of
the individual in question. Of course
the spiritual director must be a mature Christian who is experienced in guiding
Christians closer to God. But it
shouldn’t be understood as something that only a priest or trained lay leader
is capable of doing. All Christians can
and should partake in spiritual direction.
Calhoun (2015) indicates the true and clear purpose of spiritual
direction; the goal is to longingly drink from the waters of the river of life
(Jesus Christ) and to partake in a deeper intimacy with the Trinity (p.
133). Spiritual direction as a spiritual
practice is quite popular in Catholic circles, though it has gained some
popularity in protestant circles as well (Calhoun, 2015, p. 133).
Historically the
practice of spiritual direction goes back to the middle ages. It was seen as
highly important and necessary to Christian faith and practice. “…not even the
greatest saints attempted the depths of the inward journey without the help of
a spiritual director” (Foster, 2018, p. 185).
Spiritual direction goes all the way back to the desert church fathers,
many of whom were sought by travelers in the wilderness, just to receive a few
words of truth or “words of salvation” as it known then (Foster, 2018, p.
185). The Apophthegmata Patrum is one printed discourse illustrating some of
the sayings of these monastic desert fathers (Foster, 2018, p. 185). The practice of spiritual direction was also
practiced by twelfth century English Cistercian laybrothers who were well known
for their ability to help read and guide souls (Foster, 2018, p. 185). The 17th century Benedictine
mystic Dom Augustine Baker wrote that the purpose of the spiritual director was
to be God’s usher, leading souls in ‘God’s ways’ (Foster, 2018, p. 185).
The practice of
spiritual direction can be as simple as meeting with someone weekly or monthly
and sitting down in prayer, discussion, and listening that helps foster a union
that draws both to deeper closeness with God.
It involves expanding one’s prayer and spiritual life to another person
for the purpose of receiving help from the director to discern the voice of God
and the will of God. When meeting the
two individuals involved should examine the life of the directee and help them
to see where God is at work in their life.
They should pray together and ask for God to reveal His will for the
directee. The director should not set the
direction of the discussion; both the director and the directee should seek to
allow the Spirit to direct and control the discussion. The director often will act as a voice that
helps the directee to correctly interpret the experiences he or she is having,
and how God is speaking through those experiences. This practice of spiritual
direction can help the directee pay greater attention to the experience of God
in their life, discerning the voice of God, mending any splits between the head
and the heart, growth in prayer, finding closeness with God in the dark times,
and in experiencing deep inner healing from past hurts and troubles (Calhoun,
2015, p. 132).
Today
the practice of spiritual direction might be seen in some limited expressions
within evangelical Protestantism. One could point to the practice of accountability
partners who hold each other accountable in areas of sin and holiness. Usually accountability partners will meet
together regularly, or attend groups together, working to hold one another
accountable before God. This is not
really a full expression of spiritual direction, but in a limited sense it does
represent spiritual direction in some areas, like sin and holiness. Another expression might be in the practice
of pastoral care and pastoral counseling one on one. Often times individuals in
the church will meet one on one with the pastor to discuss important spiritual
concerns. Often times we’ll see
mentoring relationships develop in a more organic way between younger and older
Christians who seek to help each other grow and develop in their faith. But the truest historical expression of
spiritual direction between a spiritual director and directee, prayerfully
meeting together, and helping the directee to carefully discern the direction
God is leading them in their life, and give words of prophecy/discernment, and
prayer for the directee as they grow in their faith walk, has little expression
in modern day Protestantism, though it does find some expressions in modern
Roman catholic monasticism. In these
times when it is often difficult to discern the will of God, and live holy and
free from sin, and find quiet time to draw closer to God, one can easily see
how a renewed emphasis on spiritual direction could be a great and mighty
blessing for present day protestant and catholic Christian communities.
References
Bunyan,
J. (1678). The Pilgrims Progress. Boston: Judson Press.
Calhoun,
A. A. (2015). Spiritual Disciplines Handbook. Downers Grove, IL: IVP
Books.
Evans, J. (2015). Experience and Convergence in
Spiritual Direction. Journal of Religion and Health, 54(1),
264-278. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/24485255
Foster,
R. J. (2018). Celebration of discipline: The path to spiritual growth.
San Francisco: HarperOne.
