Spiritual Direction

Concentration Chair: Dr. J. Marianne Siegmund

The MAPS Concentration in Spiritual Direction is intended to give learners the skills they need to help people experience God and their Catholic faith in a more meaningful, dynamic, and integrative manner. Learners will develop the skills necessary to assist the faithful in discerning God’s will, growing in virtue, developing a more intimate relationship with God, and experiencing the Holy Spirit at work in the blessings and challenges of everyday life. This concentration is an excellent fit for:

  1. Those who are currently engaged in ministry work but who wish to be able to make a more effective use of the mystical and spiritual traditions of the Catholic faith to  facilitate spiritual growth and healing in the people they serve
  2. Persons interested in pursuing a career in diocesan and parish ministry, faith formation, spiritual care, and other lay ministry careers
  3. Licensed mental health professionals who wish to add spiritual direction services to their current practice.
  4. All graduates will also be qualified to practice as Christian Life Coaches and have advanced standing to become Board Certified Coaches through the Center for Credentialing and Education (whether or not they are licensed mental health providers).

Concentration Goals

To equip students with the skills needed to:

  1. To equip learners with the ability to apply insights from Catholic mystical theology to the challenges of everyday life.
  2. To equip learners with the skills needed to help the people of God cooperate more efficiently with the movement of grace in their lives.
  3. To equip learners with the knowledge and skills necessary to help the people of God engage in the clear discernment of spirits.
  4. To enable learners to facilitate spiritual growth and maturity in their own lives and the lives of the faith.

Concentration Outcomes

Students with a concentration in Spiritual Direction will be able to:

  1. Engage in the practice of Spiritual Direction in an ethical and effective manner.
  2. Assist the faithful in discerning God’s will for their lives.
  3. Employ the skills necessary to exercise the discernment of spirits.
  4. Facilitate the development of virtue and spiritual maturity in the lives of the faithful.

Co-requisites for All MAPS Areas of Concentration                                                          

  1. PAS 602 Fundamentals of Practical Theology (Every)                        
  2. DTH 645 Nature and Grace (Spring)                                           

Core Courses for the Spiritual Direction Concentration

  1. PAS 805 Trinity and the Incarnation (Fall, Summer)
  2. PAS 511 Mission and Evangelization (Spring, Summer)
  3. PAS 660 Thanatology (Fall, Summer)
  4. PAS 785 Pastoral Issues Concerning Human Sexuality (Fall, Spring)

Spiritual Direction Area Concentration  

  1. CHH 631 Mystical Theology and the Church Fathers (Spring)
  2. DTH 512 Spiritual Life in the Classics (Summer)
  3. DTH 890 Spiritual Theology (Spring)
  4. PAS 671 Spiritual Direction: Skills and Practice (Fall, Summer)

Spiritual Direction Electives

*Select any two courses from the following, or consult the MAPS Program Director to approve your alternate selection.

  1. MTH 851 Contemporary Moral Issues (Spring, Summer)
  2. PAS 605 Intercultural Competencies (Fall)
  3. PAS 621 Pastoral Care of Marriage and Family (Fall, Summer)
  4. PAS 700 Christian Life Together in the Presence of Human, Physical, and Intellectual Impairments (Fall)
  5. PAS 720 Nurturing the Domestic Church: Facilitating Authentic Marriage, Family Life and Spirituality (Fall, Summer)
  6. PAS 791 Morals and Psychology (Summer)   
