APPRENTICE TRAINING PROGRAM FACT SHEET

Teresa Blythe, M.Div. DASD teresa@teresablythe.net

 

The Apprentice Training Program is designed to train select and spiritually mature persons through 30 hours of education and mentoring, which includes the apprentice completing 12 full spiritual direction sessions with a directee.

Only a limited number of apprentices can be accepted at any one time and the program takes between 6-9 months to complete, so a wait list or delayed start is likely.

The mission of the program is intensive training in the basics of spiritual guidance, with an emphasis on Practicum (the doing of actual sessions with a directee) and Supervision. For this 2nd half of the program, we will use at least 3 video recorded apprentice-led spiritual direction sessions for practicum discussion and at least 9 sessions with no recording but write-ups as supervision case studies for traditional Supervision with the trainer. (For transparency and confidentiality purposes, the apprentices’ directees must agree to having the session recorded or written up. A release form will indicate their session material will used only for teaching and will be destroyed upon completion of the program).

Part of the appeal of the Apprentice program is its flexibility. Apprentices may request additional subject matter be covered. If they want more hours, they may also suggest any self-study aspects of the curriculum.

Mandatory classroom texts include:

All handouts or additional reading material for sessions are provided electronically via access through the Thinkific teaching platform (once enrolled, the apprentice has access to this platform during the program and after.)

 

ABOUT US – The program was created in 2019 by Rev. Teresa Blythe, former director of the Hesychia School of Spiritual Direction. In 2021, the program expanded to include a second  mentor/trainer, the Rev. Canon Greg Foraker. In 2022, its expanded again to include a third trainer, the Rev. Dr. Kelly Murphy Mason. All are master teachers of spiritual formation. Bio information on Teresa, Greg, and Kelly is included with this fact sheet.

PHILOSOPHY – It is important to note that this program is specifically focused on the non-directive or evocative method of spiritual direction. We believe this method is the safest for both director and directee. Using the evocative method, directors meet clients exactly where they are on their spiritual path, listen deeply and hold no agenda or offer no “fixes” or advice to the directee. The method and tools taught come primarily from a contemplative Christian background, but because of its non-directive nature, this method works well with people from a variety of spiritual backgrounds.

We do not require that apprentices be from a particular religion or tradition, however we do look for people  who have a regular spiritual practice, appreciate the inner life, and have taken a number of classes about the spiritual life.

Apprentices must have been in spiritual direction for a significant amount of time in their life, and it is a requirement that they have a spiritual director for the duration of the program. If you are in between directors or want to take this first step, we recommend SDI Companions website (www.sdicompanions.org) for a list of spiritual directors all over the world!

 

REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTIFICATE – Minimum of 30 hours with a trainer in 20 Sessions (running 1.5 hours).

LOCATION – Meetings are online via Zoom. The apprentice and trainer determine the days, time and frequency of sessions.

PRICING – The program’s price is based on an $100 per hour rate. Total for individual sessions is $3000, which may be paid in total or you  may set up a payment plan with your trainer.

All payments go directly to the mentor/trainer you have chosen. We ask that as soon as you have been  accepted and decide you want to be part of the program that you pay that $300 deposit to your mentor/trainer which will count toward your first payment. Payments are made to your trainer via Venmo, Zelle or you may send a check in the mail.

Thank you for your interest in the Apprentice Training Program. Please pass this information along to a friend who might be interested, too.

 

 

PROCEDURE FOR GETTING ON THE LIST FOR NEXT AVAILABLE OPENING  (Use this as a checklist)

Step One:            If you have questions about the program that this Fact Sheet does not answer, email Teresa Blythe at teresa@teresablythe.net

Step Two:            If you want to apply, download the application and recommendation forms online at https://teresablythe.net/become-a-spiritual-director/  Please note that filing an application and recommendation does not automatically enroll you in the program. There are a few more steps.

Step Three:         You may choose which of the three mentors/trainers you want to work with (see bios). One may have more openings than another so if you want “first available,” let us know. Make a phone or Zoom appointment with Teresa, Greg or Kelly to talk about the program and see if it is a good fit for you and the mentor/trainer. They will let you know if you are accepted into the program.

Step Four:           Once accepted, if you want to commit to being an apprentice, you must pay a $300 deposit to the mentor/trainer you have chosen. That will be counted toward your first installment or the total (if you pay in one payment).  This deposit gets you on the list for the next available opening (or you may defer beyond that date.) Wait time at present is about 4 months.

Step Five:            About a month before your start date, you will be officially enrolled so you can get on our Thinkific learning platform and begin receiving our newsletter.

Step Six:               Begin on your appointed start date!

 

BIOS –

Rev. Teresa Blythe

Spiritual Director and Founder of Phoenix Center for Spiritual Direction, UCC minister 

teresa@teresablythe.net

VENMO @teresablythe 520-971-4724 cellphone    Pronouns: She/her/hers

Teresa is an ordained United Church of Christ minister, working in spiritual direction and discernment coaching with individuals, groups and organizations since 1997. She founded the Phoenix Center for Spiritual Direction at First UCC Phoenix in 2015 and began the Apprentice Training Program in November of 2019. Teresa has been offering and teaching spiritual direction for over 20 years since

graduating from San Francisco Theological Seminary with an M.Div. and Diploma in the Art of Spiritual Direction. As director of the Hesychia School of Spiritual Direction in Tucson (2005-2019), Teresa taught and mentored hundreds of people who came to the desert for training. Her work led her to write Spiritual Direction 101: The Basics of Spiritual Guidance (Apocryphile Press) and co-author a new book from Fortress Press, Incline Your Ear: Cultivating Spiritual Awareness in Congregations. Teresa lives in Phoenix, AZ and is connected to First UCC Phoenix.

 

The Rev. Canon Greg Foraker

Canon for Formation & Pastoral Care, The Episcopal Church in Colorado

greg.foraker@gmail.com

VENMO @Greg-Foraker

303-646-7225 cellphone Pronouns: He/Him/His

 

Greg Foraker, serves as Canon for Formation and Pastoral Care for the Episcopal Church in Colorado. A spiritual director, teacher, and pilgrim, Greg has taught a wide range of courses in the art of spiritual direction for nearly 20 years. He also serves as a supervisor for spiritual directors. Greg has a passion for spiritual pilgrimage and has led pilgrimages to Israel, Canterbury, Taizé, Chartres, Lindisfarne, Iona and six times on  the Caminos de Santiago. Since 2020, Greg’s team has created numerous innovative and popular hybrid spiritual formation offerings, gathering spiritual seekers online from their own homes during the time of pandemic, effectively building community through technology and welcoming participants from across Colorado, the US, and Europe.

 

 

Rev. Dr. Kelly Murphy Mason

Community Minister for Spiritual Direction, Arlington St. Church in

Boston, MA

kmmason@ascboston.org

VENMO @Kelly-Mason-15

347-497-3741 cellphone Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

Kelly has had varied and extensive ministries in community and congregational settings around New York and New England for more than 20 years. In addition to being a spiritual director, she is a licensed psychotherapist, certified pastoral counselor, ordained minister, educator and writer. In the past, she worked as a Director of Pastoral Care & Counseling Programs at Blanton-Peale Institute, Curriculum Co-Chair at the Association for Spirituality & Psychotherapy, Pastoral Counselor at Union Theological Seminary, the In Care/In Covenant Coordinator for the Unitarian Universalist Association in Metro New York, Managing Director of the Psychotherapy & Spirituality Institute, and Senior Minister of the UU Society of Wellesley Hills. In 2017, she won the Distinguished Contribution Award from the Eastern Region of the American Association for Pastoral Counselors for “innovative and visionary leadership” and “truly distinguished” service in the field of pastoral ministry.

Currently she serves as Community Minister for Spiritual Direction at Arlington St. Church in Boston and is the convener of the Spirituality & Flourishing Interest Group in the Flourishing Network at the Harvard Human Flourishing Program. She has taught in a number of graduate and post-graduate programs, including the Spirituality Mind-Body Institute at Columbia University and at the Fordham University Graduate School of Religion. Over the years, she has been a panelist and presenter at local, national, and international programs for colleges,

institutes, professional organizations, retreat centers, and hospitals.

She has published in both the popular and academic press; print and online publications have interviewed her on psychospiritual matters. She has been blogging for longer than a decade now at TheReverendDr.com on

the topic of ‘What heals us in our souls’.

Phoenix Center for Spiritual Direction Apprentice Training 
Syllabus 

 

  Session Descriptions    class duration 
  Session 1: Intro to Spiritual Direction – A basic introduction to the evocative method of spiritual direction.  1.5 
  Session 2: The Primary Practice of Listening – How to listen deeply using Contemplative Listening skills  1.5 
  Session 3: Listening Part 2 + Theology – More attending and responding skills as well as intro to theologies useful for spiritual direction  1.5 
  Session 4: Openings and Blocks in Spiritual Direction – What directors can do to follow openings in the sessions and how to avoid common director blocks  1.5 
  Session 5: Spiritual Practices Useful for SD – Many ways to pray and how to accompany a directee learning to pray in new ways  1.5 
  Session 6: Varieties of Spiritual Paths  1.5 
  Session 7: Working with Images in SD – Exploring many ways to work with an image in SD  1.5 
  Session 8: Discernment – Spiritual discernment principles drawn from Igantian and Quaker discernment concepts  1.5 
  Session 9: Grief and Trauma -Exploring how SDs can hold space for clients in grief or experiencing stress from trauma  1.5 
  Session 10: Special session on Supervision – THREE sessions discussed: one video, one short self supervision sheet write up and one complete write up to share with your trainer  1.5 
  Session 11: Psychology- What spiritual directors need to know – when to refer; how to notice transference; how to be patient with clients who have mental health challenges  1.5 
  Session 12: Group Spiritual Direction – the art of using the evocative method with groups  1.5 
  Session 13: Setting up a SD practice + Marketing – The nuts and bolts of the business of SD  1.5 
  Session 14: Gender, Sexuality and LGBTQ concerns – Accepting different aspects of gender and sexuality; understanding the spiritual aspect of gender and sexuality  1.5 
  Session 15: Justice concerns for the SD + Supervision of 2 video sessions  – Explore how the spiritual director does justice by promoting contemplation. And supervision.  1.5 
  Session 16: Self Care +Supervision of 2 write ups from 2 different sessions. Discussion around self care.  1.5 
  Session 17: Supervision of 2 write ups.  1.5 
  Session 18: Supervision of 2 write ups.  1.5 
  Session 19: Ethics for the Spiritual Director  1.5 

 
  Session 20: Supervision of 1 write up + review of 2 books chosen by student + GRADUATION  1.5