The Presence: An International Journal of Spiritual Direction third annual poetry contest will be judged by a three-person panel. One of the panel members is John Mizelle.

John writes fiction, poetry, and music that arises from the well of silence. He has practiced psychotherapy, taught psychology and conflict resolution, and facilitated spiritual groups for twenty years. All his work is oriented to inviting people to discover the essential, unconditioned Self. He lives in the mountains of Santa Cruz, California, USA, with his wife and a family of animals.

If you would like to submit a poem, click here for the contest guidelines.

For information about the judges, click here.

According to an old Turkish Sufi saying, "You can bandage a cut for yourself, but you cannot take out your own appendix." That is, we can learn and grow through our own efforts, but for profound spiritual transformation we need a guide.

Read more about Islamic spiritual direction here.

Workplace analysts report that a growing number of American companies are hiring chaplains to minister to their employees, offering counseling services and helping with family crises. Listen to this report by Joyce Russell on a pork-processing plant in Iowa that uses chaplains.

Presence: An International Journal of Spiritual Direction welcomes three new members to the editorial review panel:

• Gordon Self from Alberta, Canada
  
• Gloria Tiede from Vancouver, Canada
  
• Doug Gregg from St. George, Utah, USA

For a full list of current panel members, click here.

The Presence: An International Journal of Spiritual Direction third annual poetry contest will be judged by a three-person panel. One of the panel members is Hannah Thomassen. 

Hannah takes her inspiration as a writer from the Pacific Northwest, USA, landscape, where she lives with her husband, two sheep, three donkeys, twelve chickens and a dog on four creekside acres in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains. Her professional background includes education and hospital administration, from which she is now retired. She completed a course of study in spiritual direction in 2004 and sees directees in her home.

If you would like to submit a poem, click here for the contest guidelines. 

Stay tuned for info about the other judges.

Be sure your expanded listing is in the print version of Seek and Find: A Worldwide Resource Guide of Available Spiritual Directors. All current members of Spiritual Directors International who are available for spiritual direction will be listed in the print version of the Seek and Find Guide. However, if you want an expanded listing, you need to act soon. The deadline is May 1 for making it into the print version. (The print version will mail in August 2007.) Click here for more information on upgrading your listing.

Most companies strive to be family-friendly. Some brag that they are gay-friendly. But how many are faith-friendly?

Not enough, says David Miller, a minister, author and former business executive. Ford, American Express and Tyson Foods are among the better-known faith-friendly firms.

Read about the movement among business people who want to integrate their religious beliefs and their work here.

From car parts makers to fast food chains to financial service companies, corporations across the country are bringing chaplains into the workplace. At most companies, the chaplaincy resembles the military model, which calls for chaplains to serve the religiously diverse community before them, not to evangelize.

Read more about the growth of workplace chaplaincy in this New York Times article. 

If you have a Web site, and you would like to let folks know you are a member of Spiritual Directors International, here is a handy link you can post. The instructions for posting the link are here. Every hit the Spiritual Directors International gets raises the Google ranking and spreads the word in the world about the ministry of spiritual direction.

On a sunny spring afternoon, Angela arrived at my office for her first spiritual- direction session. She was a bit nervous, not knowing what to expect, and was frankly a little embarrassed about her prayer life. An oncology nurse for many years, with three adult children and five grandchildren, Angela never felt she had enough time for prayer. At a retreat, she heard others talk about seeing a spiritual director, and it kindled a longing in her for that kind of support. Our initial session went well, and Angela decided to come again. After we had met monthly for more than a year, she reflected: “Spiritual direction is, for me, a place of safety and grace. I feel like it has helped me find fuller life, faith, hope, and love.”  

Like Angela, you may wonder if you need a spiritual director. To help you decide, let us look at the meaning of spiritual direction, and then consider some guidelines for finding a director. 

Read more of this article from Kathleen Fischer.

Liz Ellmann, executive director of Spiritual Directors International, reports an inspiring start to the United Kingdom Catholic Network for Retreats and Spirituality conference in Swanwick, England, titled, “Dancing on the Edges: Rediscovering our Spiritual Roots."

Keynoter and Spiritual Directors International member, Valerie Lesniak, PhD, (shown at far left with Tess Rynn, SND) introduced the theme of spiritual director as “dancing, rooted and living on the edge.”

 

Hosts, Tom, Magdelene, Paddy Lane, and Margaret (right) are facilitating the annual general meeting, which included a Celtic prayer about winter: 

We gather our hearts at the hearth fire of Winter.

Warmth of welcome on our lips,

Warmth of rest upon our hands,

Warmth of nurture upon our spirits,

May all be wrapped in the warmth of

Peace, this winter’s day, till Winter’s night.

• How did you get involved in spiritual direction?
• What do you find compelling about it?
• How has it changed your life?

Your story can help seekers find out about the wonderful benefits of spiritual direction. Please take a few minutes to share. Click here, and tell your story. With this small act of generosity, you may help someone seeking a deeper peace notice the possibility of spiritual direction for their lives. Thank you!

On the way to the spiritual direction conference in Swanwick, Spiritual Directors International executive director Liz Ellmann stopped to celebrate the tenth day of Christmas with Sr. Anne Attard, RSCJ and Sr. Christine Head, RSCJ at Blythe Road Hospitality House in London, England.

 

The deep ebony crèche figures at the base of the tree come from Zaire where Sr. Anne ministered for years.  (Click on the photo for a larger view.)

Click on the comments button below to say more.

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What was your favorite article in the December 2006 issue of Presence?
	Twenty-Five Years of Siloam
	A Healing Place
	Precious
	The Contribution of Evelyn Underhill
	Visio Divina: Creating Sacred Space with Generation X
	Gardener of the Soul
	Congregational Spiritual Companions
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Hospitality: The Heart of Spiritual Direction
by Leslie A. Hay

In this latest addition to the Spiritual Directors International Series, professional spiritual directors and those in formation programs learn to extend traditional forms of hospitality by living out its deeper meaning as they explore ways in which the spirit of hospitality enriches the spiritual direction experience.