Liz Ellmann recently visited Dan Robinson near Ocala, Florida, USA, to learn about his involvement in Sholom Park and the Center for Spirituality and Health program at the University of Florida in Gainesville. Dan designed the labyrinth and offers retreats in spirituality, health, and group spiritual direction in Sholom Park.

 

 

If you thought the churches in Europe were in decline, think again.

 

 

 

 

After decades of secularization, religion in Europe has slowed its slide toward what had seemed inevitable oblivion. There are even nascent signs of a modest comeback. Most church pews are still empty. But belief in heaven, hell and concepts such as the soul has risen in parts of Europe, especially among the young, according to surveys. Religion, once a dead issue, now figures prominently in public discourse.

To read the surprising reason for this turnaround, click here.

Sherman YL Kuek, a Malaysian lecturer in systematic and contextual theology, blogs about pursuing a vocation in ministry. His perspective is Christian, but his thoughts could be applied to any institutional religion.

 

 

In seeking direction for one’s ministerial vocation, one’s preoccupation should not be fixated upon the ecclesiastical hierarchy itself. If being a part of the ecclesiastical hierarchy is necessary for one’s ministerial effectiveness, one should be willing to embrace this “call”. But if not, one’s primary consideration should rest on how one may most effectively contribute to the betterment of the wider church in the longer run, even if this is bound to take place to the detriment of one’s own “career development”.

Read more here.

Life coaches Brandi and Orrand Dawson-King have posted an alphabetical list of spiritual practices. They recommend three ways to use the list:

 

 

1. Recite it to remind yourself.
   
2. Write the alphabet on stones and keep them in a bowl. Choose one and practice it for a week.
3. Read the alphabet slowly until one practice "calls" you.

Here are the "alpha and the omega" of the pactices.

Attention
(Mindfulness, Medictation, Concentration Exercises,Walking Meditation)....

Zeal
(Intention, Wholeheartedness, Vows, Passionate Commitments, Zest for Life)

To see all of the practices, click here.

Sarah Hart, a spiritual director and the daughter of a Presbyterian pastor, sells "chocolate you can believe in." Through her store in Portland, Oregon, USA, and her Web site, she offers handcrafted candies in the images of Buddha in various poses, the Virgin of Guadalupe, Quan Yin, hamsa hands, the Sacred Heart, and Celtic crosses. She says the edible icons illustrate a central tenet of Buddhism: Nothing lasts forever. For more information, see almachocolate.com.

[via CNNMoney]

Sociologist and executive director of New College Berkeley, Susan S. Phillips, PhD, recently spoke on spiritual direction at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Kian-Seng Yap, an MDiv student at Regent, wrote about the presentation.

Phillips begins by stating her wariness of calling oneself a 'spiritual director' for God is the ultimate spiritual director. In her work, she experience firsthand that people find it easier to talk about their sexual lives, working lives etc than their spiritual lives. Her work then is to help people to find their spiritual bearings in order to determine how to walk their spiritual journey.

Read all of his report here.

Israeli bookstore owners have a spiritual conundrum.

 

 

 

The international launch of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the latest in the series about the adventures of the world's most famous teenage wizard, falls at 2:01 a.m. local time this Saturday, on the Jewish Sabbath, when the law in Israel requires most businesses to close.

Click here to read what Steimatzky, Israel's biggest bookstore chain, and many other bookstore owners are planning to do.

[via DallasNews Religion]

A self-described "frustrated member of Western form of Biblical faith" writes about the need for spiritual discipline. His orientation is Christian, but his questions could be applied to any spiritual practice.

 

 

 

Could it be possible that there is more to our understanding of the spiritual life than what we now possess? Could it be that we need the help of a more objective, caring fellow-disciple to see through our smokescreens and help us begin to get REAL before God? Could it be that there's actually something to these "disciplines" that the old-time spiritual freaks used to get all wound up about? Could it be that we're desperately in need of spiritual direction? Could it be?

Read the entire post here.

 

 

 

Perhaps you think that spiritual direction is complete when you have found a teacher, a religion, a discipline using it to instruct, guide and re-enforce your inner commitment. As essential as these may be to you, Life's questions and opportunities to grow in Wisdom are embedded in your daily living, and for you to feel truly involved with your spiritual development you must draw upon your particular life circumstance for clarity and depth. The introspective method of keeping a journal can place you in your living world where all of the questions about the meaning and mystery of Life reside. A life explored on paper will mirror and solidify internal processes.

Read more here.

Wellspring, a spirituality blog for Unitarian Universalists, describes writing as a spiritual practice.

 

 

When I write to save my soul, it’s not pretty our polished. The pen scrawls across the page as I search for the words that are going to crack my heart open, just a bit, so I can see inside. Some days, the writing is fruitful and I learn the mysteries of god. Other days, it’s more like drinking a strong cup of coffee; I become alert and attend to the trouble in my life with clarity. And some days, I think my writing is the prayer in my soul that needs air and its appearance on the page surprises me more than anything.

To read more and for a list of writing resources, click here.

[via Looking for Faith]

Christine Valters Paintner posted this reflection on time on her Abbey of the Arts blog:

 

 

 

I bristle against externally imposed schedules, part of why I so enjoy working from home and waking without an alarm on most days (as Michael Meade says, why would we want to alarm ourselves first thing in the morning). This rhythm helps to feed an organic approach to prayer which is so life-giving for me, learning to listen deeply to the rhythms of my body and spirit and responding out of those. And yet, there are certainly times when I perhaps need to hear the sound of the church bells or the voice calling me to prayer from the minaret. Times when I am still asleep. Walking by all of those decorative clocks in Ireland reminded me of my dream, how I was trying to save the clock tower, and connected me to a longing for that sacred sense of time and a deeper embrace of the hinge moments in my own day.

Read her entire reflection here.

Anglican solitary and author Maggie Ross writes:

 

 

In so-called spiritual direction, for example, there is often the temptation to move someone into the light when they are in fact in darkness. However well-intentioned, this is a move into false light; the move itself is a lie, and if not properly discerned can become demonic. If we measure ourselves or others against any false horizon, or use a false horizon for discernment, we are in illusion. Transformation takes place out of our sight by grace and can be measured only by the coordinates of grace.

Read more of her thoughts here.

Spiritual Directors International member Douglas Gregg wrote the following reflection for a bi-monthly newsletter he sends out for Christian Formation & Direction Ministries:

In this article about the "call" to spiritual direction, I want to address a tension inherent spiritual formation, the tension between growth and decay. We would all agree, I think, that growth is basic to all life. But then, what kind of growth are we talking about, and to what effect? Cancer is growth out of control that weakens and kills. And growth often seems to end in decay, so we are tempted to live out the popular adage, reinforced mightily by our culture: “Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die.” But the push to grow spiritually is there; it is inherent in human nature. St. Augustine puts it succinctly: “Our hearts are restless until they find their rest in Thee.” Our potential for spiritual development, for growth in our inner person, is immense; we are made to be “Grand Canyons” inside. So grow we will, but what kind of growth will we have? Will we have growth that is haphazard and out of control or growth that constitutes genuine “formation” of our souls? (More)

A recent USA Today article notes a growing trend for young adults to become more religious than their parents.

 

Though Gallup polls dating to the '50s say young adults are less likely to attend services or say religion is very important in their lives, clergy of all stripes say they are seeing a small wave of young adults who are more pious than their parents.

What's your experience? Are you noticiing an increase in younger directees?

The official Kabbalah Blog of the Bnei Baruch World Center for Kabbalah Studies has posted a three minute video that describes the role of a spiritual teacher in Kabbalah. Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, discusses the role of a Kabbalist teacher and spiritual attainment with European MTV host Eden Harel.