Spiritual direction added to Consultation Center

By KATE BLAIN- | Comments: 0 | Leave a comment

People of all faiths who would like to develop a closer relationship with God have a new resource: the spiritual direction program of the Albany diocesan Consultation Center.

Until recently, the Consultation Center offered only workshops and psychological counseling for groups or individuals. But according to Sister Kitty Hanley, CSJ, the center's directors learned that many similar centers across the country are providing both therapy and spiritual direction.

Sister Kitty, one of nine spiritual directors offering their services through the new program, noted that there is a growing desire for spiritual direction among Catholics of the Diocese.

"A lot of it comes from things like Renew 2000," she said. "People are realizing that their spiritual journey is important, and they would like to talk to somebody about it."

Guide for soul

The concept of spiritual direction is not new to the Church. The Consultation Center describes a spiritual director as someone who "listens, encourages, guides, challenges, accompanies and prays with an individual to discern the movement of the Spirit in their life. The spiritual director helps to free a person to more deeply discover God and shares in their life journey."

Sister Kitty told The Evangelist that she has participated in spiritual direction for many years and finds it most helpful "when you're in a period of transition, a spiritual rut, a period of major decision-making."

Spiritual direction also reaches across religious lines. After pamphlets describing the new program were mailed out recently, one of the first inquiries about it came from a rabbi.

Open to all

Some Catholics may interpret spiritual direction as something intended for clergy or religious. But Sister Danielle Bonetti, CSJ, another of the program's directors, explained that that impression is incorrect. She actually joined the program to "give a public face" to the spiritual direction she already does.

"It is a professional ministry within the Church, open to all people -- not just priests and sisters," she said. "It can be of great assistance. A person, by honestly sharing what their experience of God is like and how they're finding God in everyday life, can mine those experiences and find how God is leading them."

Sister Danielle noted that getting involved in spiritual direction is like committing to exercise: "People say, `I really ought to develop a good exercise pattern. They go to the gym once a week, and then it's three weeks before they go again. Then they say, `I've got to, for my own sake, make a serious effort at this.' It helps us say to ourselves, `I am going to make myself accountable'" for developing a relationship with God.

(People interested in the program can call the Consultation Center for an "intake evaluation," and the name and address of a spiritual director who may be right for them. In addition to Sisters Kitty and Danielle, the list of directors presently includes Sister Maria DeMonte, OP; Sister Francis Anne Gilchrist, CSJ; Rev. Joseph McKay; Sister Constance Messitt, CSJ; Sister Christine Partisano, CSJ; Elizabeth Simcoe; and Marianne Zoltowski. To learn more, call the diocesan Consultation Center at 489-4431.)

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