You’ll often hear spiritual directors talk about how much they love their directees. And it’s true that when we hold stories of vulnerability and pain or strength and joy, we feel a sense of love. What kind of love are we talking about?
Love, not Romance
First, let me be clear ...
Read More
Articles posted by Teresa Blythe
The legend of Theodora of Alexandria is a 5th century tale of sex, gender fluidity and deception.
Theodora was a beautiful married woman, who in a moment of sexual passion cheated on her husband with another man. Her guilt over ...
Read More
The Desert Fathers and Mothers of the 4th century were the original spiritual directors, sought out by pilgrims coming to them to explore their spiritual life. In this series, I’m introducing a few of these amazing people. Some you have heard of. And, some I’m guessing you have not.
Meet ...
Read More
2023 is going to be a great year for spiritual guidance. More and more people are learning what spiritual direction/companioning/guidance is all about, which means more work for all of us--a very good thing!
But many spiritual directors struggle to build a practice. Directors need to get the word out ...
Read More
To get better at something we consider challenging, we have to practice. You know what's hard for me in spiritual direction? Exploring with a client ways to deepen in relationship with God when they are truly and unavoidably busy. Spiritual directors are not "fixers," yet I'm always tempted to ...
Read More
How do we have a relationship with God that is truly consensual? I’ve been thinking a lot about this in light of all the cases of religious teachers and leaders who preyed on parishioners, abusing them sexually without a single thought to the power dynamic at play. These abusive ...
Read More
Learning doesn’t just happen in classrooms. Apprenticing — the ancient practice of learning a trade or philosophy from one-on-one interaction with someone experienced in the subject — is on the rise.
People who are spiritual but not religious seek spiritual directors who can be attentive to them without attempting to put them in an institutional box.
In spiritual direction, we explore a person’s experience of God. What we discover is that God loves showing up in really diverse ways! Don’t ever let anyone tell you that an experience of the Spirit always or only happens in a way they find acceptable. Just look at all these ways we find people in the Bible encountering God.
The denomination I am ordained in, United Church of Christ (UCC), has a catchphrase: “God is still speaking.” That means God continues, throughout all of time, to reveal Godself to us, just as God did to the people of Israel in the ancient near-east and in the time of Jesus.
