Our program is formatted in a three-year cycle that focuses on the formation of the student in a group setting while building core competencies for the ministries of spiritual leadership and spiritual direction.
NOTE: Program format for Dallas, Oklahoma City and Online training may differ. Please refer to the Certificate Program Brochure for each location for details of how the program is implemented.
Year One
Three weeks of every month students will meet in a Christian meditation and prayer group practicing various styles of prayer together.
•Monthly individual spiritual direction hour with a HeartPaths leader
•Monthly Saturday seminar day (except for December)
•Reading and discussion of key books in the field of spiritual formation, spiritual disciplines and prayer
•Periodic reflection papers
•A closing project
Those enrolled in the Certificate in Spiritual Leadership program will graduate at this point. Those continuing in the HeartPaths program will take a break from group meetings for the summer. There will be at home exercises to complete and if desired a monthly meeting with your spiritual director can be arranged.
Year Two
Students will engage the Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius Retreat in Daily Life, a nine month prayer journey through the life of Christ. Themes of Ignatius that relate directly to the ministry of spiritual direction include spiritual freedom, finding God in everything, discernment of spirits, joining Christ’s mission in the world, and the spiritual states of consolation and desolation.
•Weekly group meetings
•Daily prayer exercises
•Monthly individual spiritual direction hour
•Quarterly Saturday seminar day
Year Three
Students’ learning focuses on their work with three to four directees, peer supervision, and practice and exploration of core competencies related to spiritual direction.
•Twelve monthly seminar days devoted to the supervision and practice of spiritual direction.
•Monthly individual spiritual direction hour
•Reading and discussion of key books related to the practice of spiritual direction as well as significant articles from Presence: An International Journal of Spiritual Direction
•Completion of a Practicum project
Students completing all three years of the HeartPaths program will receive their Certificate of Completion of the Spiritual Direction Training Program.