Video: Spiritual Direction vs. Spiritual Formation
This article is significant, but it also presents certain challenges. To fully grasp its intricacies, a solid foundation in Spiritual Theology is essential.
I- Something Important is Missing
Although there is a clear difference between “Spiritual Formation” and “Spiritual Direction” many fail to necessarily grasp it. The weakness of Spiritual Theology, along with its lack of practical application and its failure to create a pedagogy for spiritual formation, leaves this distinction rather unclear. This significantly weakens the Church.
Moreover, the tendency to view Christian life in a static, ‘binary’ manner—either being in a state of grace or in a state of sin—prevents us from recognising the evolutionary process of spiritual growth. Consequently, the sole objective and standard of “spiritual life” becomes to remain in a state of grace, with the hope of dying in that same state and merely, so to speak, having to spend some time in purgatory. With this viewpoint there is a notable lack of support for the true meaning or place in our Christian life of “spiritual formation” and “spiritual direction”.
The situation is further complicated if it is not appreciated that it is with the second conversion that our true spiritual life begins.
Second Conversion
The profound importance of the second conversion is emphasised in the works of two of the greatest Doctors of the Church: St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross. Indeed, the former finds it important to map out the spiritual life in which she focuses on growth in particular. This she presents in a dynamic way, conceiving spiritual growth as a journey from where whichever state the sinner is in to the point where he can be united with Christ and serve Him with total dedication. St. Teresa represents this journey as a movement from the outside of a castle to the innermost room of the edifice. The castle here represents the human soul with the innermost room being Jesus’ room at the centre of our being. The journey itself she divides into seven steps with each step having lateral steps. These steps St. Teresa calls “mansions” since they are an integral part of the structure of the castle. At each step or stage of growth she describes the state of the human being and reflects on what God would like this person to achieve in order to move to the following mansion. She then describes the change that God realises, as a result of our collaboration with the work of the grace of God. These seven stages of growth are divided into two main parts: from one to three and from four to seven. Thus, if entering the castle constitutes a major step, where prayer starts and changes such as refraining from mortal sin, etc, occur, the crossing from the Third Mansions to the Fourth is another major step. This can be called the “second conversion” and it corresponds also to her own second conversion. To underscore this, when St. Teresa starts describing the Fourth Mansions she says: “This is now about things supernatural” (Interior Castle, 4 Mansions 1,3).
This new page in our Christian life -after second conversion- is marked by the direct and personal intervention of the Holy Spirit, i.e. the love of God in Person. It is marked also and simultaneously by a personal relationship with Jesus. In fact, they are intimately linked for it is the Holy Spirit who allows us to have this personal relationship with the Lord. He allows us to “see” Him, to “listen” to Him and to “follow” Him. While the Third Mansions are marked by a commitment to the Christian life, avoiding sin and abiding with catholic moral life, it still tends to be all placed under the control of our reason, of what we think is right to do. As yet divine love -this direct intervention of the Holy Spirit in our life- has not touched us and has not inflamed us to go beyond a Christian life led by reason. St. Teresa will say so in no uncertain terms: love has not brought us out of reason (“sacar de razón”) – “You need never fear that they will kill themselves: they are eminently reasonable folk! Their love is not yet ardent enough to overwhelm their reason.” (3Mansions 2,7) (“No hayáis miedo que se maten, porque su razón está muy en sí; no está aún el amor para sacar de razón; mas querría yo que la tuviésemos para no nos contentar con esta manera de servir a Dios, siempre a un paso paso que nunca acabaremos de andar este camino.”)
St. John of the Cross signals the beginning of the new journey of growth, i.e. the second conversion, by singing: “where have you gone? You wounded me, and you left me and fled. I went out then searching for you.” (Spiritual Canticle, stanza one[1]) These heartfelt words, in fact, depict the new degree of effort and commitment needed from now on, namely, not simply trying to abide by a set of rules or commandments, but putting all our energy and desire into searching for the Groom, for the love of the Groom, for union with Him. The intensity of this second conversion is exemplified when one day, at Mass in his parish, St. Antony the Great hears the Lord’s call and leaving everything ventures into the desert, searching for God, for Jesus – for union with Jesus in solitude[2].
As a person embarks on this new stage of life, following Jesus and being inwardly guided by the Holy Spirit, spiritual formation becomes essential. It tells us “what to do” to grow spiritually and helps us to achieve the ultimate goal: union with Christ, the true object of our desire. Once we implement what spiritual formation teaches us, we start to interact with the Jesus through the Holy Spirit in a new way. Once the floodgates of grace have been opened, however, spiritual direction becomes a real necessity in order to discover on a personal level whether we are making optimum use of these graces and what to do in order to stay in tune with the action of the Holy Spirit. In fact, from this moment onward, the Holy Spirit becomes our real spiritual director as St. John of the Cross states it.
The importance of spiritual formation cannot be underestimated because it helps a person manage his or her spiritual life, their very relationship with Jesus. This formation also follows and adapts itself to the different stages of spiritual growth. Indeed, each stage needs its particular brand of “food”. Implementing this spiritual formation will trigger growth and of necessity walks hand in hand with spiritual direction to ensure a very real steady and safe growth in the individual.
As we can now see two types of mentors are indispensable here to help us in this journey of spiritual growth: the Master of spiritual life (i.e. the Spiritual Formator), and the Spiritual Director. The first offers spiritual formation using adapted practical techniques and the second helps ensure steady growth by checking the spiritual life, spiritual growth and the implementation of the received formation.
1) Spiritual Formation
Spiritual Formation is the way in the Church of transmitting the Spiritual Doctrine of the Church in an adapted way to the recipient. Spiritual Doctrine is meant to guide the seeker to Union with God and the Fullness of love. However, this Spiritual Doctrine, although it is to a degree theoretical, is entirely directed toward the practical level: practising and seeing results. In fact, it tells us what to do in order to make us step forward and grow spiritually. Putting into practice this teaching, helps us prepare ourselves to receive God’s transformative and sanctifying grace and grow spiritually. It offers knowledge of the essence of spiritual growth: the goals of spiritual life, the stages of growth, the means of growth, the discernment to ensure spiritual growth.
At each stage of spiritual life it is, then, imperative to have access to this adapted teaching in order to understand what is happening (what God is doing within us), and one’s role must be in order to correspond to his grace as well as to understand what the grace will be bringing about in us, and how to discern it.
Interior Forum vs. Exterior Forum
There are two sides or aspects to our Christian life: the “Interior Forum” and the “External Forum”. The interior forum is about our inner life, our conscience, our intimate thoughts, the movements of our heart and of course our spiritual life, i.e. our relationship with God. It has its sacredness and right to secrecy or privacy. On the other hand, the external forum constitutes all that is visible in our external behaviour, and with it our accountability to the Church, community, and society at large. For instance, Canon Law manages the external forum for it safeguards and protects the internal forum and all its rights. In consequence, the internal forum can -if we choose and when we choose- be exposed during spiritual direction and sins, being part of it, can be mentioned during confession. The confessor and the spiritual director are bound to keep confidential what they hear. The respect of the human conscience (the internal forum) is sacred.
Spiritual Formation, in sum, touches on the interior forum essentially. Therefore, normally it is not visible to the outer world, and it belongs to the secret recesses of the interior forum where only confessor, spiritual director and exceptionally the bishop can “enter”.
It is noteworthy, too, that although Spiritual Formation touches upon what occurs in the interior forum, it never transgresses the interior forum of a specific person, but only addresses individual cases in order to study and understand. It offers indications but never invades the privacy of the interior life of a person.
2) Spiritual Formation’s Requirements
Spiritual Formation needs : a Spiritual Formator, a Science (Spiritual Theology and practical Spiritual Theology), a Discernment (experience from the Formator) and a Pedagogy to transmit formation.
By “pedagogy” we mean the art of adapting and implementing Spiritual Theology to the reality of a person at a specific stage of his growth.
II- What Does Monastic Tradition Tells us
In order to better understand the specificity of Spiritual Formation and of Spiritual Direction, what is common between them and what differentiates them, let us examine how the Monastic tradition deals with them.
In monastic life various people and the functions they perform contribute to the formation and spiritual growth of the monks. Trying to understand them will help clarify the difference between spiritual formation and spiritual direction. Our focus should begin with the first phase of formation in the consecrated life, i.e. the noviciate. It is in this phase where the clarity of the functions shines out best and can help us more fully, as well as what differentiates them. We will consider first the Master of Novices and then the Spiritual Director.
1) The Noviciate: the Master of Novices
The Master of Novices is considered as a spiritual master, the person who is in charge of the formation of the novice monk. Formation is twofold: formation in religious life and formation in spiritual life. Usually, the place of formation is the noviciate room. A room where the novices can gather as often as needed (in some monastic communities it can be every day). This gives the master the possibility of transmitting the wisdom of monastic life and spiritual life to the young monk. Here he explains the form of life (style of life) of his religious/monastic Order to the novices. In fact, the noviciate embodies the first steps in religious life. The format used for this teaching and transmission can be varied: talks, informal lectures, questions and answers.
Examination of these dual types of formation will benefit us greatly here.
a) Formation in Religious Life
This touches on the External Forum. It transmits the tradition of the Order, the Rule, the Constitutions, the Customs and Practices, the form of life, the Vows and their theology, the History of the order, Liturgy,….
b) Formation in Spiritual Life
This touches the Internal Forum. It teaches prayer, spiritual life and it is adapted to the level of the novices, often beginners in spiritual life – but significantly – all called by the Lord, so technically very often they have already undergone the Second Conversion. It teaches the foundations of spiritual life. The Master explains how to implement the “manducation” process (prayer seen as “manducation”). It teaches about the stages of purification and their meaning, purification being the premier work of the grace of God. It teaches how to manage one’s Spiritual Life: prayer time and prayer life, that is, staying united to God during the day – how to live the day spiritually.
As a consequence, it is essential we understand the existence and importance of what can be called the “living tradition of Formation”. Receiving it properly and transmitting it faithfully is of vital necessity. By not paying attention to this aspect, religious life, consecrated life loses its essence, it becomes an empty shell.
This living tradition of spiritual formation makes prayer a real manducation (act of eating), a real purification (purification), and a real sanctificatio (a process of sanctification), and avoids illusions, deviations, emptiness, or going in circles or being ensconced in a state of life finding a numbing security in it, instead of staying alive and maintaining the main drive in it: seeking Union with God and growing spiritually.
When we speak here about Spiritual Formation, however, we are alluding solely to this aspect of the task of the Master of Novices: offering formation in Spiritual Life. Sometimes, too, this earns the Master of Novices the title of “Spiritual Master”.
Note: Sometimes people use the expression “private spiritual life” or “private prayer”. The word “private” can mistakenly lead us to think that prayer is mine alone and that it is disconnected from the life of the Church understood as the Mystical Body of Jesus. In a certain sense, “private” spiritual life does not really exist but is rather an illusion or a deviation. Even if prayer is an intimate and personal exercise, even if it is essentially concerned with the “interior forum”, this does not mean that it is separated from the mystery of the Church. Any true prayer, even if practised in solitude, places us in Christ and therefore places us in the living heart of the Church. Prayer is not an escape from the Whole Jesus, Head and Body. It is important then to understand that “personal” spiritual life or prayer by no stretch of the imagination means “private” spiritual life.
2) The Spiritual Director
The role of the spiritual director touches upon this interior forum. The Parlour, or small room dedicated to private conversation, is where spiritual direction is conducted. The length of time usually devoted to it is roughly one hour, once every one or two weeks for religious, although it can be extended to every four weeks for lay people or those with very active lives.
Spiritual direction, however, must be understood, as being the sacred space which allows the spiritual director to enter the “interior forum”, in order to deal in more detail with the personal prayer of the directee, all the while following the work of the grace of God and in alignment with His grace. It is also not uncommon for it to deal with daily life and its accompanying complexities.
One of the main tasks of Spiritual Direction is to check on the implementation of Spiritual Formation. This process significantly depends upon the formation and teaching given prior to it, the latter triggering in turn spiritual practices and graces to be received. Spiritual Direction intrinsically helps adjust the individual’s spiritual way of proceeding during the day. It is of use, also, in addressing any personal difficulty or question that might arise. Advice can be given here even on subjects other than those appertaining to the spiritual life.
Note: From the seventies onward many preferred to use the expression “spiritual accompaniment” instead of “spiritual direction”. In fact the characteristic way of thinking changed as did thinking on obedience. This came about as one of the consequences of Vatican II, which invited religious and monks in particular to practise responsible obedience, by understanding what was at stake in order to correspond to God’s will more fully as expressed through the Superior. This was a sign of true progress. Exemplary evidence of this is found in the act of obedience of Our Lady to God’s words at the Annunciation. Thus Mary’s initial response is not to say, “amen”, but rather to seek its true meaning so she can understand God’s will, the parts both she and He are to play and so obey more fully. For this reason some preferred to diminish the impression of authority and power conveyed by the word “direction”, to avoid an abuse in its use in “spiritual direction”. Some suggested, therefore, the use of the expression “spiritual accompaniment” to show that the director accompanies instead of directs. However, the disadvantage of this new understanding was that another extreme can emerge where the spiritual companion really fails to make any suggestions and just allows things to develop randomly. This in all fairness is of no real help. As we can see, a renewed understanding of Spiritual Direction was a real necessity, but foregoing its substantial content was not a good alternative to choose. Indeed, full respect for the freedom of the directee, is not opposed to shedding light when needed. In fact, spiritual direction is an art where the director has to align himself with God’s way of thinking and acting in order to follow the rhythm of growth and to encourage it – absolutely never in a “controlling” way but by always maintaining the role of true guide. In addition, classic spiritual tradition talks about the grace of “paternity” or “maternity” in this relationship, necessitating the handling of it with discernment to avoid psychological projection.
Conclusion
Monastic life is a state of life, but also it is a state of life which normally is meant to help the monk to attain union with God and the fullness of love. Therein a particular Rule and Constitutions, combined with a Proven Spiritual Doctrine (the living spiritual tradition of formation), are transmitted to the candidates to help them reach the fullness of love.
Since it is a state of life and it implies obedience (to the Constitutions and to the Superior), attention can be diverted from the essential reason why someone becomes a monk: to pursue the quest for Union with Jesus and the fullness of love. As a result, other aspects of daily life can overwhelm the life of the monk instead of its being a space of freedom to know God and love Him.
What becomes obvious, then, is that we need to clearly understand the difference between religious formation and spiritual formation (see above), even if they are intertwined and are supposed to be of mutual help.
What interests us here is to learn something important from monastic life, that is: the existence and necessity of Spiritual Formation, of a Living Spiritual Tradition which needs to be transmitted, while at the same time recognising the difference between this and Spiritual Direction which is meant to support it.
III- The Call to Holiness
Sometimes the obvious or evident do not appear as such to people. Vatican II reminded us that all are called to holiness (see here). We need to acknowledge on the pastoral level that it is impossible to respond to the call to holiness without Spiritual Formation. The Church has to provide it on the parochial level (see what Pope John Paul II says about it). Otherwise, if we continue to offer “Spiritual Formation” in an amateur way, the conclusion will be to “produce” holiness randomly and to continue with a totally absurd situation: wanting to go to the moon (Holiness) and not being able to fly the rocket (having proper spiritual formation). To date only the very generous, courageous, and perseverant might, I repeat “might”, succeed. Indeed, many people in the Church are convinced that they are offering Spiritual Formation. With deep regret I beg to disagree.
When the Church reminded us in Vatican II that all are called to Holiness, the perspective of holiness was at the reach of each and every one. to all. But at the same time it is imperative we make available to everyone the richness of proven doctrine to attain holiness. We need to open up the wisdom of the Monastery so to speak, we need to figuratively open the “noviciate room”, with all its richness, to all the people of God in a radically new way. Today’s means cannot achieve such a high goal as Holiness. Not only this but we ought to bear in mind that many religious orders have lost the living tradition of formation.
Despite this, however, if we focus on the parishes, we are still far from being able to implement the vision of Pope John Paul II: “to place pastoral planning under the heading of holiness” (NMI 31). We fail to assess the consequences of such a choice. It is indeed “a choice filled with consequences” (Ibid.) For a start we lack spiritual formators in the Parishes. Neither do we have an office directly accountable to the Bishop, an office in charge of Spiritual Formation, as we have for Evangelisation or Pastoral Care in the Parishes. Nor have priests been in any way prepared for such pastoral work. Even more to the point is the fact that the state of Theology today cannot conceivably be adapted to such an endeavour. Theology is still considered to be the “intelligence of our faith” and is not yet envisaged as the “guide who leads us to Union”. Granted, Pope Benedict hinted at the “Monastic Theology” (see Integral Theology here), but much needs to be done to transform Theology. Then, too, in Parishes there is a need to supplement Adult Formation (OCIA), which is based on the Catechism of the Catholic Church, with Spiritual Formation.
Most important of all, in the final analysis, is knowledge of the unassailable fact that while it is one thing to know Jesus’ Call, it is another is to be ready to hear it, and yet another is to be enabled to answer it and follow it.
IV- Differences Between the Spiritual Master and the Spiritual Director
1) The Spiritual Master
The Spiritual Master explains the “theory” of Spiritual Life, its theology. He does not participate in the interior forum, but by contrast explains how to practise spiritual life. Pedagogy is his forte, his function being to teach by giving lectures, lessons, and courses.
He can provide personal sessions to make sure the teaching on prayer is implemented properly, but by no stretch of the imagination is this spiritual direction. Without having details of the life of the person, one on one sessions are very limited, as there is no need to know any personal details of the individual’s life.
However, what is worthy of note is that what the spiritual master offers is not pure academia (otherwise it becomes lessons/courses in Spiritual Theology), but rather talks and explanations of the spiritual life on a practical level.
In addition, it is of course very important for him not only to be very knowledgeable in the science of Spiritual Theology, but also to be pedagogically very agile in the sharing of the spiritual life and spiritual formation with fellow believers.
2) Spiritual Director
What, then, is the function of the Spiritual Director (see here)? He or she listens and follows God’s grace manifest in the directee. He checks if the person is doing all that is possible to follow the workings of God’s grace. He knows the line of growth and can follow it, discern it – guide it, being very experienced in Discernment. He totally takes for granted that the person has received (and is receiving) spiritual formation. Being extremely adept at reading what is happening in the directee’s soul he can evaluate how God is acting, “reading” it as he would do in Lectio Divina.
The Spiritual Director, taken as a whole, enters the interior forum of the person and is bound to the secret it reveals. His main area of operation is the session.
The main task in such sessions is to read the action of the grace of God, during which the Spiritual Director will invite the person to do certain things that are lacking. He will shed light on unclear issues in the Spiritual Life of the person when it is the time and the place to do so. In sum he checks the “practice” of the “theory”. He Confirms. He follows the growth and guides it.
Necessary Qualities
He needs to know Spiritual Theology thoroughly, it goes without saying, and this is a heavy undertaking. Of course, first and foremost he needs to practise what he preaches. It would be advantageous to be close to a community or to people who are more advanced than he, in order to grow in understanding through concrete witness of how to encourage “holiness”. This implies that he has received the tradition of discernment through having received Spiritual Direction from more than one experienced Spiritual Director.
VI- Conclusion
Both the Spiritual Formator and the Spiritual Director are greatly needed in the Church. As we have seen, their tasks are very different from one another. They have much in common, but their angle of approach is very different. One demonstrates the theory and the other checks its implementation. In fact, without spiritual formation, Spiritual Direction is a very shallow and vague exercise. To have a spiritual master must needs come first.
Note: Religious life from 1965 to 2015 has been declining as statistics definitely confirm, and the main reason is shallow Spiritual Formation.
Indeed, regarding priestly formation for priesthood, all that is provided covers the stages before the second conversion. The true and vital import of this is that if we want future priests to be capable of handling Spiritual Formation and Spiritual Direction, Theology itself needs to be radically changed (see here), from “understanding our faith” to being the “guide toward union with God”.
[1] “Where have you hidden, Beloved, and left me moaning? You fled like the stag after wounding me; I went out calling you, and you were gone.” (Spiritual Canticle, Stanza 1)
[2] Chapter 2 of the Life of St. Antony: “He entered the church and it so happened that the Gospel was being read, and he heard the Lord saying to the rich young man, ‘If you would be perfect, go, sell all you have and give to the poor, and come follow me and you will have treasure in heaven’ (Matthew 19:21). Antony, as though God had put him in mind of the saints and the passage had been read on his account, went out immediately from the church, and gave the possessions of his forefathers to the villagers—they were three hundred acres, productive and very fair—that they should be no more a clog upon himself and his sister.”
Read also
– What is Spiritual Direction?
– The Spiritual Journey and the School’s Formation (this article can help understand Spiritual Formation)
– Training Spiritual Formators (and the articles at the bottom)
– Program for the Formation of Spiritual Directors
– The Epiphany of the Church of the Desert
– The Transfiguration of the Parish