EVERY SEARCHER NEEDS A GUIDE

JuLY 1, 2007

God brought each of us into being out of the superabundance of his love, and we are each called to a union with him that completely transforms us.

The journey toward that union always leads in some way through a process of dying and rising to new life in God. This is evident from Jesus' own passion, death, and resurrection.

To enter on such a transforming journey through death to new life, and to continue faithfully on it, requires great courage, resolve and commitment. But it also requires great wisdom and discernment, because it is possible to be quite mistaken in our ideas of what God is asking of us, how God is speaking to us, and how God is leading us.

We know that God speaks to us through Scripture, the teaching authority of the Church, the sacraments, other people, and the events of our lives. But all of this still isn't enough. For those who are serious about achieving communion with God in this life, there is need for what is traditionally called spiritual direction.

How should we allow ourselves to be spiritually guided? The first and most important place in which spiritual direction normally takes place is in the local Christian community. This community ideally is like a family, where everyone has deep, personal, long-standing relationships with each other, where they know each other by name, share their joys and sorrows and even their possessions, trust the secrets of their souls to each other, pray and work together, and grow together in knowledge and love of God. In such a setting, spiritual direction is quite natural, and although it may seem difficult to build such communities, it is really much more difficult for Christians to try to live without them.

It's also more dangerous, because each of us, left to ourselves, can easily become our worst enemy. If no one heals our wounds, they cripple us. If no one helps us overcome our faults, we are likely to remain blind to them. If no one is there to believe in us, we can easily give in to sadness and despair. If no one helps guide us to God, we can lose our way.

There is another, more specialized form of spiritual direction, however, which is also most valuable in helping us on our journey toward God. It began in the early Church when individual devout Christians renounced the attractions of the world and entered the desert to keep a prayerful silence and devote themselves entirely to living in deep communion with God. These hermits soon realized how dangerous it was to try to live the Christian life when cut off from the local Christian community, and so they would seek each other out on an individual basis for spiritual direction.

In time, many of these obscure figures were sought out by other people living in nearby cities who wanted to meet a truly holy man or woman and gain help for themselves in spiritual development. This was the birth of the art of spiritual direction as it has come down to us through the centuries. An ancient wisdom and strength is waiting for those people today who open themselves to allowing the Holy Spirit to speak to them through a mature spiritual guide.

Spiritual direction need not be a weekly or monthly event. It may be for some people a need they feel only once in a great while in their lives, when they are facing a particularly important decision, for example, or struggling with an especially difficult problem or crisis. But spiritual direction in some form is a vital need for all who wish to deepen their knowledge and love of God and grow in holiness.

Many people today seek out a counselor or psychologist when they feel their lives are disjointed or need help. But of all the possible ways of assisting a person cope with life and mature, the most difficult and also the most neglected is undoubtedly spiritual direction.

It is a sign of our times that more people than ever are seeking spiritual guidance. There's a certain sense that our society has lost its way, and that one must now stand apart from the flow of things and seek God more directly, and more earnestly. In response to this real, human need, God always blesses his people with spiritual guides. In the final analysis, spiritual direction is not a science, and it is not exactly an art. It is a mystery and a gift.

It is not just for helping a person cope with life, make tough decisions, or solve problems. It is to help a person find and know God, discern his will, and live in ever deeper communion with him. It is always dedicated to helping a person pass through death to new life, and thus fulfill Christ's counsel: "The one who loses his life for my sake will find it" (Mt 10:39).

+Bishop Raymundo J. Peña

last updated 05-Jun-2008 9:48 sitemap