Called To Be A Spiritual Director

The Lord God has given me a well-trained tongue, that I might speak
a word that will rouse them.
~ Isaiah 50:4

If you are called to guide others on their spiritual journeys, and wanting to nurture and deepen your own relationship with God, we invite you to explore Dominican Center’s Spiritual Director Practicum. The practicum is a three-year education and formation intensive designed to attune your ear and deepen your contemplative practices for tending your own inner journey and companioning spiritually with others. The Spiritual Director Practicum is a formation process that focuses on prayer, study, companioning, and practice. You will be paired with a mentor who is a seasoned Spiritual Director who will journey alongside you; be part of a spiritual formation community participating in this shared study experience; and build and collect resources that reflect the works of holy people who have gone before you.

The experienced instructors were encouraging and a well-spring of knowledge and wisdom. I highly recommend the journey both for personal and communal growth in Christ.
~ Richard Bates, Spiritual Director

Explore Becoming a Spiritual Director

Spiritual Directors guide others by listening to a person’s life story with an ear for the movement of the Holy Spirit and offering prayerful response. An important component of listening is discernment of patterns and relationships that lead toward God or away from God. A Spiritual Director is a co-listener, or co-discerner, who sits before the Word as it stirs in the heart of the person seeking direction.

Spiritual direction is like panning for gold. A directee comes, and together we dip into the stream of their life … hoping to find a fleck or a nugget of pure gold.
~ Janet Ruffing, RSM

Spiritual Director Practicum Admission Process

  • Successful completion of the Foundations in Spirituality course.
  • Complete Application forms. Your completed application and required personal recommendations will be reviewed by Dominican Center's Spiritual Formation Team. You can drop off completed documents at Dominican Center Marywood. Or submit your applications by mail (see postal address below) or email as attachments to programs@dominicancenter.com.
  • Please submit the $25 application fee by credit card online by clicking the link below or the Register button on this page. Payments by check can be dropped off or mailed to: Dominican Center Marywood at Aquinas College, 1700 Fulton Street East, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49506-1799. Make check out to Dominican Center Marywood.
  • An interview with the Spiritual Formation Team to discern readiness to participate in the Spiritual Director Practicum.
  • An acceptance offer to the applicant.

Submit fee to begin the application process.

Pay Application Fee

Review & Download Application forms.

Forms

 

Spiritual Director Practicum Commitment & Expectations

  • Dedicated to a two-year formation course of study and practice.
  • Three modules each year that are framed around spiritual direction, Christian discernment, and adult development.
  • Active participation within a cohort made up of others participating in the course of study.
  • Complete required readings and a written integration paper for each module.
  • Practice spiritual direction with directees - practicum participants are recommended to offer spiritual direction to 6 to 8 directees each year.
  • Participate in individual sessions with a paired mentor who is a seasoned Spiritual Director for a total of nine meetings each year.
  • Continued development of a life of prayer and contemplation, and on-going review of a personal rule of life.
  • Extensive study of the Spiritual Exercises and Guidelines for Discernment of St. Ignatius of Loyola.
  • Attendance at annual four- or six-day directed retreat.

Spiritual Director Practicum Tuition

  • Tuition is $2,500 for each year
  • Application fee of $25 is required
  • Tuition includes instruction and facilitation by the Dominican Center Formation Team, individual mentoring sessions with a seasoned Spiritual Director, and materials provided before each session
  • Fees do not cover cost of required textbooks

Credit Hours

Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, gives credit hours to participants completing the Spiritual Director Program at Dominican Center at Marywood. The Graduate Theological Foundation in South Bend, Indiana, also accepts credits from Dominican Center’s Spiritual Director Program.

Questions and Information

If you have questions or need more information on how to become a Spiritual Director, please contact: programs@dominicancenter.com     616.514.3325

Foundations in Spirituality
Spiritual Director Practicum
Spiritual Director Offerings
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