Pass it On

May Membership Drive begins TODAY!

Pass it on.

If SDI were a radio station, you would hear, “This program is being interrupted for the May Membership Drive. Call in now.”

If SDI were an elementary school, you would find a note pinned to your child’s jacket: “Please make cookies for the bake sale.”

If SDI were a symphony, we would throw a gala event where you could meet the French horn and tuba players.

Like our friends in radio, education, and the arts, we too need to pause from our regular programming to ask you to help balance the budget and plan for the future. Spiritual Directors International depends on membership dues to make programming and publications happen. Without you, there would be no e-newsletters, no Presence journal, no website, no conference with contemplative retreats. We need your help to invite new members to share in the global legacy of spiritual direction.

In May, we point to YOU as the source for the future. Each of us values our rich human heritage of spiritual guidance. Now it’s time to pay it forward. You can become a member by visiting our website or by calling 1-425-455-1565. Thank you for growing the future of spiritual companionship!

Photograph credit: Theresa O'Bryan

Bring Them On

Blank stares, numinous

Who are these ghostly creatures?

Black, grey, shaded lines

From the depths below

Who are these ghostly creatures?

Here before I yield

Rising I step forth

Who are these ghostly creatures?

Here, there, everywhere

I am not afraid

Who are you, ghostly creatures?

My soul welcomes you

Shadows, bright and dark

You are my ghostly creatures.

Circling ‘round my heart

Lead me, guide me then

You, O ghostly creature friends

Come, let us move on

March 2012

Passover: Season of

Liberation and Renewal

Photograph credit: Jana Rickerson

Passover is the celebration and retelling of the Israelites’ liberation from slavery in Egypt. The Passover ritual and meal is called seder, which is Hebrew for “order.” Unlike some of the other major Jewish holidays, the Passover seder is not part of a synagogue-based worship service, but instead takes place in the home or in a communal location. The seder is a rich and lively celebration with special foods, songs, prayers and stories. 

Because there are Jewish communities all over the world, there are wonderful, unique practices, foods and songs depending on the culture or country of origin. There are secular Jews whose Passover celebration is more cultural than religious, and there are more observant Jews who find spiritual nourishment in the fullness of the Passover holiday. 

As the Israelites were fleeing the Egyptians, there was no time for the bread to rise, so they ate unleavened bread, which is why matzah is one of the symbolic foods on the seder table. In preparation for Passover, the house is cleared of any chametz, or leavened products which are sold or donated. There is wonderful metaphor and meaning in this process, as we clear out anything that makes us “puffed up” in order to prepare ourselves for freedom. During the eight days of Passover, Jews refrain from eating leavened products in general; these rituals and practices serve to deepen our experience of remembering our collective experience of liberation from slavery. 

The Passover narrative is woven throughout the fabric of Jewish spiritual practice throughout the entire year, and is even part of the weekly liturgy. One of my favorite pieces of sacred text with roots in the Passover story is the commandment to welcome the stranger with an open heart: 

Do not oppress the stranger, for you know the soul of the stranger, because you were strangers once in the land of Egypt. (Sh’mot 23:9)

The sages teach us that we should invite neighbors, strangers, friends, and family to celebrate Passover with us. This is a wonderful opportunity for interfaith sharing, learning, and storytelling. This year I will be leading a Passover seder at a friend’s church, and we will celebrate the synchronicity between the liberation of the Israelites from Egypt and the African American narrative of freedom from slavery. 

• What has been your own personal journey of liberation? How is your spiritual practice informed by this journey?  How might you celebrate it anew?
• What personal, cultural or spiritual stories might you share with someone? 
• Who might you invite to share a meal or ritual with you?

May you be blessed with the spirit of renewal and rebirth this season.

In spiritual direction, such a moment is liminal space, a threshold, a thin place. In these moments, something embraces our attention and returns to us in hindsight as significant. Thus, the actions of Jesus and his followers on Maundy Thursday do not hold the same weight without being followed by Good Friday’s crucifixion, Holy Saturday’s vigil, and Easter Sunday’s resurrection. Until it is remembered later through the lens of a cross and an empty tomb, Maundy Thursday is a day of familiarity, of bread and wine. In the midst of the routine, a threshold was crossed. Everyday things of that night are now sacred. Actions are now worth emulating, and a ritual thrives. Likewise, in spiritual direction we often cannot perceive when we are moving through a thin place where mystery touches the familiar, until after the fact. The gift of remembering allows us to perceive with growing clarity the traces of the Holy moving through our lives. In this manner, as with the bread and wine, remembering itself becomes a holy act, a sacred space. 

Catch the Breeze of the Spirit

Winds of change are blowing throughout the world guiding us toward peace. Spirit winds of compassion are pointing us toward right relationship with all creation. Can you feel the soft, inviting wind on your cheeks? Is the wind vane in your heart catching the breeze of the spirit and directing you toward wholeness?

For thousands of years, spiritual companions have helped people notice the winds of the spirit guiding us toward God, toward Ultimate Reality, toward compassion. Two traditional stories illustrate the transformational ah-ha power of wind.  

The first story is a Buddhist teaching about the sixth patriarch of the Zen tradition, Hui Neng:

While traveling, he came across two monks arguing as they observed a flag fluttering in the breeze. One monk said, “The flag is moving.” The other disagreed and said, “The wind is moving.” Hui Neng corrected them both by saying, “Neither the wind nor the flag are moving. It is your mind that moves.”

Ah-ha. By stilling the mind, we learn to be present. In spiritual direction, we learn contemplative practices that quiet noisy thoughts. Over time, we become courageously willing to go where the spirit carries us to serve with Presence.

The second teaching comes from the Christian Celtic tradition. The poet Taliesin, who lived around the sixth century in Wales, wrote “Poem for the Wind” that includes these verses:

Guess who it is.

Created before the Flood.

A creature strong,

without flesh, without bone,

without veins, without blood,

without head and without feet.

… He is mute, he is loud-voiced.

He is blustering.

Greatest his banner

on the face of the earth.

He is good, he is bad,

he is not bright,

he is not manifest,

for the sight does not see him.

He is bad, he is good.

He is yonder, he is here…

Ah-ha. By puzzling through the opposites in Taliesin’s poem, we catch a glimpse of the ineffable revealed. In spiritual direction, we learn to gaze at what seem to be dualities until our narrow perception expands. The poetic riddle helps us experience the eternal. We are part of a living, breezy Oneness, yonder and here.

For more than twenty years, SDI has been gathering spiritual companions locally and from yonder to learn, to teach, and to listen for the ah-has that occur during educational events. In April, we come together to share stories about the light breezes and gusty gales that cannot easily be seen and yet can be felt in community with the wind vane of our hearts.

This is no ordinary conference. SDI meets on the Boston North Shore to notice the spirit wind among us. We will share stories from our experiences and stories from our spiritual traditions. Together, we will discover the wind vanes in our hearts that continually guide us beyond division and divisiveness in the direction of wholeness and compassion. Please join us in person or in prayer. Catch the breeze of the Spirit. 

In the Spotlight: Spiritual Direction Featured in Liguorian Magazine

At Spiritual Directors International, we have the privilege of watching the global movement of spiritual direction grow and take shape. Within the many faith communities of our human family, individuals cultivate peace and compassion through the contemplative practice of spiritual direction.

The March issue of the Catholic periodical the Liguorian interviews executive director Liz Budd Ellmann, MDiv, for a glimpse of SDI’s ministry around the world and across traditions. In the article “Spiritual Directors International: Building a Community,” Ellmann explains, “In our world, individuals from all faith traditions are seeking ways to live a contemplative life. Spiritual directors assist in drawing closer to the sacred, serving as a guide and companion. SDI believes spiritual directors, seekers, and educators are one community… It is our mission to support this community.”

When asked about the history of spiritual direction within the Christian tradition, Ellmann replies, “Early Christians sought prayer support from the Desert Mothers and Fathers. In the 1500s, Saint Ignatius of Loyola compiled spiritual exercises to assist spiritual directors in their ministry.”  More recently, “On May 21, 2011, Pope Benedict XVI reiterated the importance of spiritual direction not only to those who wish to follow the Lord but for every Christian who wishes to live life in Christ responsibly.”

SDI is grateful to the Liguorian for the opportunity to share the story of spiritual direction. To read the entire interview, please visit http://bit.ly/SDILiguorianarticle. If you enjoy the article, please take a moment and thank the Liguorian for helping to educate people about spiritual direction by sending an e-mail to liguorianeditor [at] liguori.org.

Pace e Bene

Photo by Rose Slavkovsky

When I was growing up, a Catholic boy in the 1950s in suburban Connecticut, USA, a well-meaning relative enrolled me in a monthly book club for Catholic children. The first book I received was Francis and Clare, Saints of Assisi; it captivated me.

Thanks to the Internet, I was recently able to take a look at it for the first time since childhood. Here are some of the chapter titles: “The House with a Dungeon,” “The Dragon on a Ring,” “The Tavern of the Three Angels,” “The Sultan and His Golden Tent.” It’s not hard to see why I was hooked—Francis and Clare were the Harry Potter and Hermione Granger of the twelfth century! Their lives seemed like an endless adventure, especially compared to suburban life during the Eisenhower years in the United States. In ways I couldn’t articulate at the time, the lives of Francis and Clare showed me that a life dedicated to exploration of the mystery of the Holy was the most unimaginable adventure of all.

One Italian word known the world over is the all purpose greeting and farewell: ciao. Less well known is the fact that ciao is an abbreviation of the phrase vostro schiavo, “I am your slave.” In highly stratified cultures like Italy of the middle ages, it was important to know your place and not to risk an unknowing insult to a social superior. Francis taught his followers another greeting, pace e bene, “peace and all good.” He taught this greeting to people of every social class, as each encounter between people should result in an abundance of peace and good. How different would our lives be if we made pace e bene the goal of all our personal encounters?

How different would our lives be if we made pace e bene the goal of all our personal encounters?

Remarkably, Francis wanted pace e bene to characterize encounters between humans and all of creation.  In his famous “Canticle of the Creatures,” the earliest poetic composition in the Italian language, Francis ecstatically greets Brother Sun, Sister Moon, Brother Fire, Sister Water, our sister Mother Earth and even our Sister Death. With mystical intuition Francis touched the deep truth that scientists would discover centuries later—that all things share a common origin and a common destiny; that we are all kin to one another. How different would our lives be if we greeted a rain storm as a visit from a dear sister rather than a glitch in our plans? If we heeded the canticle of the trees outside our window alluring us with possibilities of relationship? If we took responsibility for the ways in which our unsustainable life-style is dealing death to our sister Mother Earth?

Francis has been a teacher and companion since childhood. As I anticipate the Spiritual Directors International pilgrimage in May, I imagine Francis and Clare awaiting me there. What new face of the Holy will I glimpse through their guidance? I greet them: “Pace e bene, Francesco e Chiara!” 

“Peace and all good,” they smile in return.

Editor's note: Rev. Terry Moran serves on the Coordinating Council of Spiritual Directors International. He has been a member of SDI for more than twelve years and is one of the pilgrim guides for the upcoming SDI Interfaith Pilgrimage to Italy. Space is filling-up for the pilgrimage, register today to insure your spot!

Awe and Wonder

Fr. Richard Rohr and Dr. Brian Swimme in Las Vegas.

On Saturday, February 25, 2012, the Stillpoint Center for Spiritual Development in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, hosted Dr. Brian Swimme and Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, to discuss "The Way of the Universe: Spirituality for the 21st Century." For me, the evening achieved the goal that Rohr articulated—a religious experience of awe and wonder.

The conversation between Swimme and Rohr focused on the unity of creation. Rohr described God as a verb—a process. As a visual artist and a spiritual director, the awareness of process over product has been growing within me. That evening, I saw myself in the context of 13.7 billion light years of a continuous process of death and transformation which gave me a sense of human magnificence, derived from cosmic magnificence. Being part of a self-creating, intelligent universe is both humbling and elevating. 

My swirling intuitions on the source and function of creativity ignited on Saturday in a way that echoed Swimme’s description of the arms, or density waves, of the Whirlpool Galaxy passing through the universe and igniting stars. In Swimme’s discussion of these ripples, I gained a vocabulary for what is taking shape for me. Simply put, I saw that, yes, creativity does come from God. It comes in subtle ripples that may be caught and amplified by unique consciousness—the scandal of the particular, as Rohr calls it. 

Dr. Brian Swimme

While a contemplative mind may catch ripples in the universe, creative people have been noted to possess comfort with ambiguity and peace with instability. I think of this as the ability to accept mystery. As we look at the universe there is no “ground.” Everything is always in motion. Rohr stated it this way: “Knowing balanced with not knowing is called faith.”

Rohr and Swimme called the audience from dualism and ego-centric ways of seeing and being to cosmic-centered ways of seeing and being. They invited us to recognize that earth and matter are not inferior to humanity; they are the womb of the human. Swimme expressed a hope that we can move from seeing earth as a resource to seeing earth as filled with our relatives because, like us, all things are made from stardust. 

Fr. Richard Rohr following the evening's discussion.

As a spiritual director at Stillpoint, I was pleased to hear Swimme express surprise that one of the finest nights of conversation in his life took place in “Sin City.” 

Photos by Kathleen L. Oettinger

Open Your Eyes to Eternity

On the drive home from work, my husband and I turned a corner and headed uphill due west. A wintery, navy blue sky was twinkling with stars, beyond the distant crest of the hill. After several days of clouds and rain the clear evening sky was a welcome sight.

A crescent moon sliver hung aligned with two very bright objects in the sky. It was so unusual that we pulled over to the side of the road and marveled at the beautiful alliance of bursting light. After guessing whether they were stars or planets, our wondering moved to silent awe. 

Charles de Foucauld wrote, “It is in silence that we love most ardently; noise and words often put out the inner fire.”

Do you see two bright bodies in the west after sunset? The two brightest planets—Jupiter and Venus—are spectacular to behold. They will be at their peak in mid-March, and all you have to do to see their radiant glory is step outside after sunset and look west. They are so bright that even if you live in a city with lots of lights, Venus and Jupiter will be visible.

Thomas Merton wrote, “As soon as a man or a woman is fully disposed to be alone with God, they are alone with God no matter where they may be. At that moment they see that though they seem to be in the middle of their journey, they have already arrived at the end. For the life of grace on earth is the beginning of the life of glory. Although they are travelers in time, they have opened their eyes for a moment, in eternity.”

May you stand alone with God and open your eyes to eternity.

A Festival for Meaning (part five)

Sunny weather always turns Seattleites into pilgrims in search of sun, and yet, more than two thousand people headed indoors to hear over forty speakers talk about subjects ranging from wisdom to the Wizard of Oz at Seattle University’s Search for Meaning Book Festival.

This year the festival surprised me with its depth and quality. The name says it all:  “Search for Meaning,” not “This is the Meaning” or “The Only Meaning” but searching, discovering, and actively seeking. David Whyte said it best in his morning session:  “Whatever story you’ve told yourself is not large enough for what you will encounter.”  His words set the tone for the day as I allowed myself to encounter the unknown, choosing session after session that was just beyond my comfort zone. As I passed those holding “Spiritual Direction???—Ask Me…” signs, I asked for blessings upon those who would also step into a space they may have never considered before.

At lunchtime, as I sat by the reflection pool (in search of sun) watching college students tossing Frisbees while a wedding party rejoiced in a young couple’s nuptials, I realized that  we are all pilgrims in search of meaning.  

It will take time to ponder all that I absorbed here, and I would recommend joining SearchforMeaning.us on Facebook to follow the authors met at the festival. Many thanks to all who made this festival possible, and may we continue to discover new ways to listen to, learn from, and love one another.