Much-needed resource and aid to reflection.
Elizabeth Hoare is Tutor for Spiritual Formation at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, and has been giving and receiving spiritual direction for over 25 years. She is the author of Spirituality and Remembering (Grove Books 1996), What is Celtic Christianity? (Grove Books 2008), Nurturing the Spirit of a Child (Grove Books 2009) and the chapter on Anglican Spirituality in The Blackwell Companion to Anglicanism (Wiley-Blackwell 2013).
LIZ Hoare’s Using the Bible in Spiritual Direction (SPCK, £14.99)
set me on a steep learning curve, not because the book is in any
way difficult, but because the subject itself has, until fairly
recently, been more commonly associated with parts of Christian
tradition generally remote from Methodism, such as the Desert
Fathers (and Mothers!), Benedictine lectio divina, and prayer in
the tradition of Ignatius Loyola’s Spiritual Exercises. In later
times, the directeur de conscience was a recognised figure in
French Catholic history and literature (Louis XIV had one; their
interactions would be an interesting subject of research).
Tradition:
Dr Hoare herself (her doctorate is in Tudor history) stands within
a broadly evangelical Anglican tradition; she is tutor in spiritual
formation at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. Yet she writes with
understanding and app recitation of (among many others) high
Churchmen of the late 16th and 17th centuries and of leaders of the
19th-century Oxford Movement. In such a wide-ranging account, it is
not surprising that Methodism and the Wesleys receive only passing
mentions. Yet in fact several Methodist Districts, normally in
co-operation with or under the leadership of Anglicans, have
established courses in spiritual direction, while across the
Atlantic, "Hearts
on Fire" is the title of a Fellowship of United Met hodist
spiritual directors and retreat
leaders. Many readers, including the present reviewer, will welcome
a definition of what is
meant by spiritual direction, and what is not. Dr Hoare believes
that spiritual direction is not, among other things, a
self-improvement plan. Catholic writers have made a clear
distinction between spiritual direction and the sacrament of
penance. Others, including Dr Hoare herself, insist that it is not
psychotherapy or counselling,
still less financial planning ("Sell all you have, and give to the
poor"?). "It is not in the least about handing over responsibility
for our lives to another human being. "More positively:" Spiritual
direction is a relational ministry between two people whereby both
are seeking to listen to the Holy Spirit ... It is God the Holy
Spirit, in fact, who is the real director ..."
Quiet:
The author speaks with the quiet authority of one who has both
received and given spiritual direction for many
years. Although, like John Wesley, she is a person "of one book",
she draws on a rich fund of old and modern sources, to which
copious notes and bibliography bear witness. She does not question
the value of academic study of the Bible, but she encourages her
readers to place biblical texts themselves at the centre of their
pilgrimage. She sees spiritual significance in the abrupt ending of
Mark and in Luke’s setting Jesus’ great sermon on the plain rather
than on the mount. No review can do justice to the drawing power of
this remarkable book. Readers who have already experienced
spiritual direction will find their experience deepened. Those who
are taking their first steps on that journey will be encouraged to
go forward in confidence and hope.
*Methodist Recorder*
In this new book about spiritual direction Liz Hoare writes with an
insider’s understanding. She knows the work and feel of this
one-to-one ministry of accompanying people on their spiritual
journeys. She moves easily between the voice of the "director" and
the shoes of the "directee" as she explores the connections between
this work and its roots in the Bible.
As someone who has just completed a one-year introductory course to
becoming a spiritual director, I found this a very helpful and
interesting discussion of the many ways in which scripture lies at
the heart of this role. The Bible is full of stories of people who
are looking for God as they face real personal struggles, and God
is there too waiting to meet them.
In 138 pages she provides a map of the territory across which the
journeys of spiritual direction can travel. Her particular focus is
on how people draw on the Christian scriptures. She engages in a
gentle conversation with a wide spectrum of different readers:
those who might not see big links between direction and the Bible,
and those who are wary of reading the Bible in ways that use the
imagination and reflection on experience. Her own spiritual life
has been nourished by the scriptures and she suggests many ways in
which they can speak to us: images, metaphor, pictures, prayers and
story. She explores the use of questions (very common in the
Bible), the importance of listening in silence and the dangers of
inappropriate use of scripture.
She introduces us to a range of models commonly used in spiritual
direction and highlights the way that the Bible is used in these
approaches, drawing on the methods of the desert fathers, Ignatius,
Benedict, the puritans and the Oxford Movement.
Central to her case is the person of Jesus himself, the great model
of how to have spiritual conversations with people: his
attentiveness to God and the person in front of him; his use of
questions; his emotional empathy; his perceptive discernment; and
his own rootedness in scripture – "Did not our hearts burn within
us as he opened the scriptures to us?"
In an age where religion is out and spirituality is in, this field
of ministry is increasing in popularity and significance. Liz has
provided us with an important guide.
*The Door*
... finding new insights in familiar texts ... Her writing is
succinct and approachable, and offers a very readable introduction
to spiritual direction. The book will be useful both to those
involved in direction and those seeking direction.
*Church of Ireland Gazette*
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