offerings

What IS spiritual direction?

A bit of a misnomer. Unlike other forms of counseling, spiritual directors do not provide diagnoses or treatment plans. Spiritual companionship might be a better name. From my experience of and training in spiritual formation, I will listen to and bear witness to your holy story—to your seeking, losing sight of, fighting with, rejecting, and falling in love with all that is sacred in your life’s walk. I will ask questions and offer resources not to achieve a specific end but to support the open-ended work of surfacing the wisdom that is part of each of us.

The spiritual director serves as companion and witness, someone who helps you (sometimes with questions, sometimes just by listening) to discern the divine where you might have missed it and to integrate that awareness into your daily life. - Rabbi Jacob Staub

Is it religious? Do I have to talk about God?

That is up to you. If you come to do spiritual direction with me within a specific religious tradition, as either a current practice or one that you are questioning or would like to reconstruct or rethink, I will follow your lead on that relationship. Likewise, if you come without a tradition, I will not try to convert you to one. This is spiritual direction, not religious training.

So what does spiritual direction DO?

We live in a time of a lot of talking and very little genuine listening. In spiritual direction you will receive the full and loving attention of my prayerful heart. You will gain me as a conversation partner for your questions of meaning and experiences of liminality. Over time, my witness becomes a living documentation of your wisdom work. And with the broader view my role provides, I am able to help you identify trends, connections, which doors might need closing and those that are wide open.

Learn more about me and my practice through a Soul Care podcast. Spiritual Directors International (SDI) also has excellent resources. As a member of SDI, I abide by these guidelines for ethical conduct. I earned my certificate through PrairieFire.

Spiritual direction is holy listening, presence and attentiveness...in this covenanted relationship the director has agreed to put (their self) aside so that total attention can be focused on the person sitting in the other chair.
What a gift to bring another, the gift of...loving attention! - Margaret Guenther

A word about homophobia and racism.

As a queer woman, I know that for some of us LGBTQIA+ people our sense of worth has been so degraded by religion and society, that this work may feel fraught. Knowing that I am an ordained Christian priest may be even more so. Please know that my training and spiritual life also include a certificate in spiritual direction from PrairieFire, which is non-denominational and "spiritual but not religious." Wherever you are on the big rainbow, I would be particularly honored to companion with you.

As a white person, I strive to be antiracist. I know that white supremacy is mine to reject and upend. I hope to be a trustworthy ally and accomplice to those whose perfection at birth is a source of rejection by our society.

Pricing and Booking.

Time commitment: One hour, bi-weekly or monthly
Cost: $50-$100 (please see this sliding scale)

I currently offer in person appointments at parks and coffee shops in the Mattoon/Charleston area of Illinois. I also work with clients over Zoom. To set up an appointment, please send me an e-mail and we will find a day, time, and location (coffee shop, Zoom, park) that works for us both. First appointments are always free.

Do you have something else in mind?