On How to Follow and Profit from the Course
Dear Friend in Christ,
We are so excited to welcome you onto the Solid Foundations Course SF000!
We give thanks to God that you have chosen to embark on this special and sacred journey. The importance of this Course cannot be overstated: it provides the essential practical knowledge every Christian adult needs to grow in their spiritual life and deepen their personal relationship with the Lord.
This is a Course that can profoundly transform your spiritual life, if faithfully put into practice. To date, hundreds of people worldwide—from all walks of life, religious and lay alike—have been deeply impacted and empowered in their journey towards union with God. It is our prayer that you too will experience this grace and fruitfulness in your life.
1. The Spirit of the Solid Foundations Course
We would like to share with you how we, in the School of Mary, understand and perceive the spirit of the Solid Foundations Course 000.
2. The Presence of Our Lady
Our Lady is always present during the Course. We always have an icon of her illuminated by a candle throughout the duration of the Course. Why? She is the one who invites; she is the one entrusted with our spiritual life and formation; she discreetly and effectively helps us, supports us, and teaches us in silence.
3. A Combination of Retreat and Study
Another aspect essential to understanding the Course is that it is a carefully balanced combination of two dimensions, working together in tandem.
The first is the spirit of a retreat, that is, a grace-led time of receiving God’s grace. We begin the Course and we complete the Course. However, it is not set up as a concentrated week-long retreat; rather, it is spread across several weeks.
Note: It is important to pray for Guidance: As you go through the Course, ask the Holy Spirit to reveal what He would like to teach you and to open your heart to the graces He wishes to give.
The second dimension is that of a university hall, where students learn, engage intellectually, reflect, think, ponder, and take time to study and digest. This is not to understand the mystery itself, but to understand what God wishes them to grasp at this moment (each day we receive what Jesus wants to give us, rather than trying to grasp everything with our mind). Later, they can return to the same Course and learn more from it. Indeed, students re-watch the Course more than once, sometimes a second, third, or further time, and they always benefit, always discover new elements. Spiritual life follows the pattern of a spiral staircase, drawing us ever deeper by revisiting the same mysteries, living them and experiencing them anew or at a deeper level.
4. A Practical Path of Spiritual Life
The Course has a clear and definite practical purpose. Everything we learn (truly everything) is meant to be lived, experienced in faith, and put into practice. We learn the place of Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and Mary in our daily lives. We learn how to listen to Jesus each day through Lectio Divina, and we learn how to immerse ourselves—how to let Him immerse us—in His love through the Prayer of the Heart. These are essential forms of prayer that flow directly from the superabundance of the Bread (Jesus) received in the Mass: the Bread of His Word and the Bread of His Body and Blood.
5. Implementing Lectio Divina and Prayer of the Heart
The aim is to reach the point of implementing these powerful forms of prayer. One must do everything possible to put them into practice and stay vigilant about that. There is an important article on the implementation of Lectio Divina available on the website (see link). Lectio is, in fact, very challenging, and doing all we can to ensure that it “works” supernaturally is crucial. Jesus wishes to transform us, and we cannot miss that work. In this sense, the School commits fully to each student by offering every means necessary to support implementation. The student is free, treated as mature, and therefore must take the initiative to ask for help. Help will always be provided: personal tutoring, explanations, explanations repeated in different ways, follow-up on implementation, and spiritual direction.
6. Additional Materials and Supporting Courses
First and foremost, be sure to make full use of the Handouts—they are an essential companion to the Course. You may also find it helpful to purchase the Handbook for easier reference. There is a wealth of books, articles, and videos available online, and the School expects the student to act responsibly by engaging with them. Other courses also support the implementation of Lectio Divina, such as “Bible and Spiritual Life”, “Meditating the Passion”, “Sermon on the Mount”, “The Gospel of St Luke”, “Paul and Luke”, “The Gospel of St John”, and “Implementation of Lectio Divina” (see here).
7. Two Interwoven Dimensions
As we can see, two dimensions are interwoven in the Course: 1- receptivity to grace, as in a retreat, with focus and prayer—Jesus is present, the Holy Spirit is active, and Our Lady offers her care—and 2- an intellectual dimension, not excessive but necessary, so that the mind does not grow dull but supports a stable spiritual life by offering what is needed. God has given us a mind, and we must use it in our spiritual life. Spiritual life is not optional, nor is it a luxury.
8. Recommended Pace
The recommended pace is as follows. The pre-recorded Solid Foundations Course is divided into eight days (see the Syllabus). Each day is divided into two parts: the morning (usually around three hours) and the afternoon (around two to three hours). It is advisable to take half a day of teaching per week. One may do two half-days per week, but this can be overwhelming. The Course is highly concentrated and densely packed with material; the light can simply be too strong. One needs time to let the light enter and descend.
Note: The recording is yours for personal use, which means you may watch it, pause it, and return to it as often as you wish. This freedom is intentional, allowing you to absorb the teaching without pressure and to revisit any part of the material whenever you feel it would be beneficial.
9. Guidance for the Student
The more the student keeps to the pace, the better.
The more the student studies (without excess), the better.
The more the student begins to implement the teaching, or adjusts certain practices according to what the Course refines, the better.
Every time the student raises a question, within reason, the better.
The more the Student revisits the Course by watching it again, the better.
10. Further Formation and Responsibility
For the most committed and fervent students, additional courses not only help complete and support the initial formation, but in time they may be trained to become Formators and/or Spiritual Directors. For the most advanced, there is training to teach the Solid Foundations Course.
No examinations are required, but everything described above is, in itself, far more demanding than an exam. It is a life-changing Course requiring a life-changing effort. The more one commits, the more one benefits. This Course, compared with any other formation, takes priority.
11. Growth, Grace, and Perseverance
Note: It is natural that not everything will be implemented at once or with equal ease, even when one sincerely tries. Growth often unfolds gradually. Yet God assists us; when He sees our effort, He opens the way for us to put the teaching into practice. Throughout this journey, endurance and perseverance remain essential.
12. A Call, Not a Requirement
Not everyone is ready for such a Course. Fair enough. There is a time and a place and above all the Grace of God. There is no forcing. It is a call from God, from Jesus, from Our Lady.
13. The Treasures of the Church Offered to All
This Course is meant to offer the treasures of the “Noviciate Room” to all, because we in the School of Mary believe that deep spiritual life is neither a luxury nor an option; it is a right. The Church possesses an extraordinary richness, and all should benefit from it. The Church teaches that all are called to holiness, so when someone hears the call to a deeper spiritual life, he or she should be able to draw from the immense wealth of the Church’s spiritual tradition. This Course offers the minimum necessary—solid, uncluttered—to enable any Catholic to engage with his or her personal relationship with Jesus as an adult, that is, responsibly.
Patroness and Support
As with all School of Mary courses, the Patroness of this Course is Our Lady. May she accompany you as you journey towards union with God and the fullness of love.
Access and Assistance
If you have any questions as you progress, feel free to email us, and we will be happy to assist you.
Once again, thank you for enrolling in this Course. You are in our prayers!
Jean Khoury
and the School of Mary’s Team