This course is available to anyone. It will be taught with spiritual direction students specifically in mind and make up a part of the Spiritual Direction program. See the program description for more details.
It is conducted online through a combination of interactive online video conferenced meetings in the evening, reading assignments, and asynchronous online discussions and videos through the Schoology educational software platform.
This course will follow the Saint Vincent academic calendar.
Registration deadline: Aug 15, 2023.
Registration will be limited to 25 students per course.
IMSD601 – SD1: Art of Accompaniment – 2 credits
Taught by Father Boniface Hicks, OSB
Time: Thursday evenings 8:00-9:15pm ET (interactive video conference on Zoom) and one pre-recorded lecture each week.
The need for spiritual direction—or the accompaniment of a spiritual guide—is becoming more prominent in a world where so many are suffering from so many wounds. Through reading, lectures, and discussions, participants will learn the foundational dynamics of spiritual direction:
- The role of Spiritual Direction in the Church
- The need for Spiritual Direction in our time
- Our one-on-one relationship with God
- One-on-one human relationships
- The interior life
- The importance of vulnerability
- A listening that reveals and heals
- Communicating the Father’s Love
- Introduction to development in the life of prayer
- Basic psychological insights for spiritual direction
- The qualities of the spiritual director
- Introduction to supervision and self-awareness
