Document 314696

 Diploma in the Art of Spiritual Direction (DASD) Program in Christian Spirituality San Francisco Theological Seminary Vanessa Hawkins, M.Div., M.A., Interim Director Supervision Manual 2014 for Course Number SP-­‐2470-­‐2471 Supervised Practice of Spiritual Direction Instructors: Professor Maria Tattu Bowen, PhD Professor Rebecca Bradburn Langer, MDiv, DMin Interim for January 2014: Katarina Stenstedt, DASD The contents of this manual are available online at: http://TogetherInTheMystery.org/DASD © San Francisco Theological Seminary, 2011-2014. Parts of this manual may be used or adapted
according to professional needs with appropriate citation and the consent of SFTS:
105 Seminary Road, San Anselmo 94960, 415-451-2838, [email protected]
Contents Letter to Supervisors ...................................................................................................... 3 DASD Supervision Staff Contact Information ................................................................. 5 The DASD Supervision Process ................................................................................. 6 Supervision Due Dates for 1st Year Students .................................................................. 7 Supervision Due Dates for 2nd Year Students ................................................................. 9 Supervision Due Date for 3rd Year Students ................................................................... 9 Complete Supervision Process ..................................................................................... 10 DASD Ethics .................................................................................................................. 14 Contemplative Reflection Forms (CRFs) ................................................................. 15 CRF Instructions ............................................................................................................ 16 CRF (Individuals) ........................................................................................................... 21 CRF (Groups, for 2nd/3rd Year Students) ....................................................................... 23 Dialogue Form to Include with CRF .............................................................................. 25 Other Forms ........................................................................................................... 26 Covenant of Ethical Responsibility & Liability .............................................................. 27 Supervision Contract and Learning Goals ..................................................................... 28 Student Director Release Form .................................................................................... 29 Supervision Release Form ............................................................................................ 30 Student Self-­‐Asessement & Goals for January ............................................................. 31 Supervisor’s Assessment of Student ............................................................................ 32 Student’s Assessment of Supervisor ............................................................................ 35 Resources for Group Spiritual Direction ................................................................. 36 Group Direction Assignment (for 2nd/3rd Year Students) .............................................. 37 Draft for Group Covenant ............................................................................................. 39 Possibility #1: Directing Group Lectio Divina ................................................................ 40 Possibility #2: Directing an Examen Group ................................................................... 42 Possibility #3: Directing a Contemplative Listening Group ........................................... 44 DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Letter to Supervisors
January 2014 Dear Spiritual Direction Supervisor, Thank you for serving as a field supervisor for one of the participants in the Diploma in the Art of Spiritual Direction (DASD) graduate program at SFTS. You are an integral part of the student’s development as a spiritual director, and we are grateful for your willingness to accompany the student in the supervisory process. We do not expect you to transform your own supervising style and process. Rather, we hope that within the framework of your own approach you will be able to accommodate the supervision needs of participants in the DASD program as they learn the art of spiritual direction and fulfill their course requirements. With this letter and the DASD Supervision Manual, we hope to orient you to the supervision process as it is understood and practiced in the DASD program. Assumptions of the program We make the following assumptions in the DASD program: • God is actively present in the lives of the director, directee, and supervisor. • Student directors will try to maintain a contemplative attitude to the movements of God’s Spirit in their directees. • All student directors follow the SDI Guidelines for Ethical Conduct1. • Supervision is mostly about the director, rather than the directee. • God is simultaneously present in all arenas of life—intrapersonal, interpersonal, structural, communal, and environmental. Further, a directee’s experience of God may appear within any dimension of human experience—thoughts, feelings, body, intuition, and mystery. Directors attend to these dimensions of awareness in themselves and in their directees. For more about seeing the movements of God’s Spirit in all the arenas and dimensions of life, see the Supervisor’s Assessment of Student form (page 32), which you will be asked to complete at the end of the year. We also recommend that you read "Supervision as Widening the Horizons," by Elizabeth Liebert2. This is required reading for DASD students, and we highly recommend it as a guide for supervisors. 1
Spiritual Directors International, Guidelines for Ethical Conduct, www.sdiworld.org/ethical_guidelines2.html. 2
Liebert, Elizabeth, "Supervision as Widening the Horizons." In Supervision of Spiritual Directors: Engaging in Holy Mystery, ed. Mary Rose Bumpus and Rebecca Bradburn Langer (Harrisburg, PA: Morehouse Publishing, 2005). DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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The supervisor's role The supervisor assists the student to grow as a spiritual director. This happens as the supervisor and student explore the student’s processes, approaches, and experiences (inner movements, feelings, images, physical sensations, convictions, openings, blocks) as these have occurred during the student’s meetings with directees. In the DASD program, the tool we use for this reflection process is the Contemplative Reflection Form (CRF), which includes a written dialogue, also known as a “verbatim.” The CRF process is described beginning on page 15, and you can assist your supervisee by familiarizing yourself with it. Requirements of the program Students in the DASD program begin a supervised practice of spiritual direction after their first on-­‐campus January term in the program. They are required to meet with a supervisor at least eighteen times during the three years of the program. For the timing of these supervision appointments, see the Typical Supervision Schedule on page 10. Together, the supervisor and student discuss the student’s learning goals, review CRFs, and do an end-­‐of-­‐year assessment. For details, please see the Complete Supervision Process, which is described beginning on page 10. Payment and appointment times and places will be worked out between you and the supervisee. No contract exists between you and San Francisco Theological Seminary. Conclusion It is our hope that you will employ your expertise to help our student directors notice where they have strayed from or missed the presence of God’s Spirit and where they have noticed, followed, or savored the presence of God’s Spirit. This program encourages directors to expand their perspectives from a too-­‐narrow focus on personal prayer times as a locus of God’s action to a broader focus inclusive of the interpersonal, structural, communal, and environmental arenas of life. We hope that in this small way a contribution is made by the student director toward a more just and peaceful society. Again, thank you for agreeing to be a supervisor for one of our students. If you find that you need to consult with someone familiar with the materials given to you by your supervisee, please do not hesitate to write or call us. Your student director will tell you which of us will direct his or her supervision. Sincerely, Professor Rebecca Bradburn Langer, MDiv, DMin Professor Maria Tattu Bowen, PhD DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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DASD Supervision Staff Contact Information
Each student in the DASD program is assigned a Director of Supervision to oversee his or her supervision work: Professor Rebecca Bradburn Langer, MDiv, DMin Co-­‐Director of Supervision Diploma in the Art of Spiritual Direction 5334 Florence Point Rd. Fernandina Beach, FL 32034 904.619.4332 [email protected] Professor Maria Tattu Bowen, PhD Co-­‐Director of Supervision Diploma in the Art of Spiritual Direction 85 Liberty Ship Way, #111 Sausalito, CA 94965 415.686.0094 [email protected] The contents of this manual are online at http://TogetherInTheMystery.org/DASD. For website help, contact Katarina Stenstedt at [email protected], or send email to [email protected]. For other DASD contact information, visit http://sfts.edu/academics/dasd_contact.asp. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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The DASD Supervision Process As a student director in the DASD program, you are supervised in your practice of spiritual direction between each January term, and for a few months following your third January term. You will receive a list of recommended field supervisors. Find one who agrees to work with you and with whom you are comfortable, and direct your new supervisor to the DASD Supervision website: • TogetherInTheMystery.org/DASD • The username is d asd • The password is s upervision The site includes all that is in this manual. If your supervisor does not have access to the Internet, contact the DASD office, and we’ll send your supervisor a printed manual. You and your supervisor decide together on payment and on appointment times and places. You need to meet six times after your first January term, nine times after your second January term, and three times after your third January term. Terminology as used in this manual: • supervision—The part of your DASD class requirements that you complete with your field supervisor: setting goals for your practicum and completing your Contemplative Reflection Forms (CRFs) and year-­‐end assessments. • field supervisor or supervisor—A trained and experienced supervisor who agrees to oversee your work as a student spiritual director. Ideally, this person lives near you and can meet with you in person. Your supervisor can be a DASD staff member, but does not have to be. In this manual, when we refer to your “supervisor,” we mean your field supervisor. • Director of Supervision—A DASD staff member who is assigned to oversee your field supervision while you are in the DASD program. (For contact information, see page 5.) The following pages explain the DASD supervision process in detail. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Supervision Due Dates for 1st Year Students
For contact information for your Director of Supervision, see page 5. You will need to complete at least six CRFs, which below are named CRF-­‐1, CRF-­‐2, and so on. Due Task During your 1st January term. Sign the Covenant of Ethical Responsibility & Liability (page 27) and return it to the DASD office. By March 31 Find and begin meeting with at least one directee and complete CRF-­‐1. Find a field supervisor and conduct your first appointment: • Sign the Student Director Release Form (page 29) and give a copy to your supervisor. Send the original to your Director of Supervision. • Complete the Supervision Contract and Learning Goals (page 28) and discuss it with your supervisor. Send one copy to your Director of Supervision, give one copy to your supervisor, and keep the original. • Receive supervision on CRF-­‐1. Ongoing Have each directee sign a Supervision Release Form (page 30). Keep the signed forms in a confidential file—do not send them in. By June 15 By now you should have received supervision from your supervisor on CRF-­‐2 and CRF-­‐3. Also, you should have completed enough spiritual direction sessions to complete CRF-­‐4, which you will leave unsupervised. By July 1 Send CRF-­‐1, CRF-­‐2, and CRF-­‐3 (all of these supervised), plus CRF-­‐4 (unsupervised), to your Director of Supervision. Your Director of Supervision will give you feedback about these four CRFs during your mid-­‐year review. Between July 15 and September 1 Your Director of Supervision will contact you to set up your mid-­‐year review. This review will include supervision on the unsupervised CRF that you mailed, plus feedback about your supervised CRFs. By September 15 Send one or two more supervised CRFs (CRF-­‐5 and CRF-­‐6) to your Director of Supervision. By November 1 Complete your Student’s Self-­‐Assessment & Goals for January (page 31). Conduct your year-­‐end assessment with your supervisor. At this appointment, discuss your progress as a spiritual director, and have your supervisor complete the Supervisor’s Assessment of Student (page 32). DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Due Task By November 15 Send your assessment folder to your Director of Supervision. Include the following: • Any outstanding CRFs. By now you should have turned in six CRFs in all, five of them supervised by your field supervisor, and one supervised by your Director of Supervision. • Student’s Self-­‐Assessment & Goals for January (page 31). • Supervisor’s Assessment of Student (page 32). • Student’s Assessment of Supervisor (page 35). DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Supervision Due Dates for 2nd Year Students
For contact information for your Director of Supervision, see page 5. You will need to complete at least nine CRFs, which below are named CRF-­‐1, CRF-­‐2, and so on. Due Task By March 1 Complete the Supervision Contract (page 28) and discuss it with your field supervisor. Send one copy to your Director of Supervision, give one copy to your supervisor, and keep the original. Receive supervision on CRF-­‐1. Ongoing Have each directee sign a Supervision Release Form (page 30). Keep the signed forms in a confidential file—do not send them in. By June 15 Receive field supervision on CRF-­‐2 and CRF-­‐3. Complete CRF-­‐4, but leave it unsupervised. By July 1 Send CRF-­‐1, CRF-­‐2, and CRF-­‐3 (supervised), plus CRF-­‐4 (unsupervised), to your Director of Supervision. Between July 15 and September 1 Your Director of Supervision will contact you to set up your mid-­‐year review. By September 15 Send at least three more supervised CRFs (CRF-­‐5, CRF-­‐6, and CRF-­‐7) to your Director of Supervision. By November 1 Complete your Student’s Self-­‐Assessment & Goals for January (page 31). Conduct your year-­‐end assessment with your supervisor and have your supervisor complete the Supervisor’s Assessment of Student (page 32). By November 15 Send your assessment folder to your Director of Supervision and include: •
•
•
•
The remainder of your supervised CRFs (CRF-­‐8 and CRF-­‐9). Student’s Self-­‐Assessment & Goals for January (page 31). Supervisor’s Assessment of Student (page 32). Student’s Assessment of Supervisor (page 35). Supervision Due Date for 3rd Year Students
By April 15 Send your the remainder of your 18 supervised CRFs to your Director of Supervision to complete the DASD program requirements. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Complete Supervision Process
The DASD program requires you to complete at least eighteen CRFs: • Sixteen of your CRFs will be supervised by your field supervisor. • Two of your CRFs will be supervised by your DASD Director of Supervision. Typical Supervision Schedule A typical schedule for completing the DASD supervision requirements will look like this: Six CRFs between your 1st and 2nd January terms. By November 15 after your first January term, complete the following assignments: • Meet with one or two individual directees to offer ongoing spiritual direction. • Complete six CRFs, based on your sessions with these directees. • Meet with your supervisor six times: five times to receive supervision on CRFs, and once to complete an assessment. • Mid-­‐year, receive supervision from your Director of Supervision on one CRF, and receive feedback on your work to date. • Send in required forms throughout the year, as described in Supervision Due Dates (page 6). Nine CRFs between your 2nd and 3rd January terms. By November 15 after your second January term, complete the following assignments: • Continue to meet with individual directees, and add group spiritual direction to your practice. You will need the following number of directees: 
Three individual directees and one group of four weeks’ duration, or 
Two individual directees and two groups, each of four weeks’ duration. • Complete nine CRFs based on your sessions with these directees and groups. Of the nine CRFs, at least two, but not more than five, must be on group spiritual direction. • Meet with your supervisor nine times: eight times to receive supervision on CRFs, and once to complete an assessment. • Mid-­‐year, receive supervision from your Director of Supervision on one CRF, and receive feedback on your work to date. • Send in required forms throughout the year, as described in Supervision Due Dates (page 6). Three CRFs after the 3rd January term. By May after your third January term, complete DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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the following assignments: • Meet with your supervisor three times to receive supervision on three CRFs. • Send your three completed CRFs to your Director of Supervision. • Complete any additional assignments that your Director of Supervision has given to you. Supervision Appointments This section describes the types of appointments that you will have with your field supervisor. The initial appointment with your supervisor To prepare for your initial appointment: • At least five days before your appointment, send your first completed CRF for the year (page 15) to your supervisor. • Gather the following materials to take to your first appointment: 
Your copy of your CRF, including the dialogue. 
A copy of the completed Student Director Release form (page 29). 
Supervision Contract and Learning Goals form (page 28). Spend time reflecting on this form, and be prepared to discuss your skills and goals with your supervisor. During the initial appointment: • Give the completed Student Director Release form to your supervisor. • Go over the supervision process and agree to meet multiple times over the year: at least six times if you are between your 1st and 2nd January terms, and at least nine times if you are between your 2nd and 3rd January terms. • Discuss the Supervision Contract with your supervisor. Your goals should be specific, modest, and few. • Reflect with your supervisor on your first CRF, and complete CRF question 8. After your initial appointment: • By March 31, send a copy of your Supervision Contract and the signed Student Director Release form to your Director of Supervision. • At your next supervision appointment, give your supervisor a copy of the Supervision Contract. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Regular appointments To prepare for a regular supervision appointment: • At least five days before your appointment, send your completed CRF to your supervisor. During regular supervision appointments: • Reflect with your supervisor on your CRF, and complete CRF question 8. • Mid-­‐year, review your goals and your progress towards them. Final appointment for the year To prepare for your final appointment for the year: • Review the Supervision Contract and Learning Goals that you completed at the start of the year. Which of your goals have you met? How have you grown as a spiritual director? In light of what you notice, complete the Student’s Self-­‐
Assessment & Goals for January form (page 31). Make one copy of the form for your supervisor, and put one copy in your assessment folder. • Reflect on the Supervisor’s Assessment of Student form (page 32), and remind your supervisor that you will complete the form together at your final appointment. If your supervisor does not already have a copy of the form, send one to him or her before your appointment. During your final appointment: • Discuss your Student’s Self-­‐Assessment & Goals for January. • Complete the Supervisor’s Assessment of Student. After your final appointment for the year: • Complete the Student’s Assessment of Supervisor form (page 35) and send it to your Director of Supervision, along with your assessment folder, your outstanding CRFs, your Student’s Self-­‐Assessment & Goals for January, and the Supervisor’s Assessment of Student that your supervisor completed. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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The Assessment Folder During your first on-­‐campus January term, you are given an assessment folder. Its purpose is to help you and the DASD staff track your growth as a spiritual director. During the year, you add the following forms to your assessment folder: • A copy of the Supervision Contract and Learning Goals (page 28) that you sent to your Director of Supervision. • A copy of the Student’s Self-­‐Assessment & Goals for January (page 31) that you sent to your Director of Supervision. Mail the assessment folder to your Director of Supervision by November 15th. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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DASD Ethics
These ethical guidelines apply to all DASD students: • Receiving payment It is DASD policy that students are not to accept payment or gifts for their work with directees while in this program. There are no exceptions to this policy. • SDI Guidelines All DASD students are provided with a copy of the SDI Guidelines for Ethical Conduct (www.sdiworld.org), and all student directors in the program are expected to follow the SDI Guidelines. • Receiving spiritual direction In accordance with the SDI Guidelines, those offering spiritual direction should themselves be in spiritual direction. All students are expected see their own trained and competent spiritual director at least once a month for spiritual direction during their years of study. If your current director is not well trained or well seasoned, please consider seeing a different director, as sessions with your director will provide you with an important model of how spiritual direction is done. For information about liability, see the Covenant of Ethical Responsibility and Liability (page 27). DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Contemplative Reflection Forms (CRFs) You are invited to enter into a reflective and prayerful process as you examine your relationships with directees and consider tedirection sessions. To help you with this process, we ask you to complete Contemplative Reflection Forms (CRFs). You will complete at least eighteen CRFs during the DASD program. A typical schedule will look like this: • Six CRFs between your first and second January terms. Five of the six will be supervised by your field supervisor, and one by your Director of Supervision. • Nine CRFs between your second and third January terms. Eight of the nine will be supervised by your field supervisor, and one by your Director of Supervision. • Three CRFs after your third January term, all supervised by your field supervisor. A CRF includes a set of questions and a written dialogue. Before each supervision session (except the end-­‐of-­‐year assessment), you fill out a CRF and send it to your field supervisor. In this section: • Instructions for completing a CRF for individual directees or small groups (next page). • Blank CRF to use when reflecting on individual direction sessions (page 21). • Blank CRF to use when reflecting on small group direction sessions (page 23). • Blank dialogue form (page 25). You can download a Microsoft Word version of the CRF forms from TogetherInTheMystery.org/DASD (username dasd and password supervision). Alternatively, you can ask the DASD Program Manager to email the CRF forms to you. For CRF due dates, see Supervision Due Dates (page 6). DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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CRF Instructions
To complete a CRF, answer the reflection questions on the CRF form itself and write dialogue in the dialogue form. Blank CRF forms for individual and group direction sessions are shown on pages 21 and 23, and a blank dialogue form is shown on page 25. You can download a Microsoft Word version of the CRF forms from TogetherInTheMystery.org/DASD (username dasd and password supervision), or you can ask the DASD Program Manager to email the CRF forms to you. The process • Doing an examen on your recent sessions, notice those experiences that either draw or repel you. • Discern which of these experiences is most likely lead to your growth as a spiritual director, should you reflect upon it further with your supervisor. Choose this one to take to supervision. • In light of your discernment, fill out your CRF. • Send the CRF, including the written dialogue, to your supervisor at least five days ahead of your scheduled session. Completing the CRF 1. Describe what you noticed about yourself. Notice your interior movements and settle on an experience to take to supervision. As you contemplate the experience, do any challenges, emotions, body reactions, intuitions, or mental confusions arise in you? What did you notice about yourself in the session that you find most striking? Or perhaps what most strikes you about your experience immediately before or after the session? 2. Articulate a focus drawn from what you described above. In light of what you’ve written above, what one aspect of your experience as a spiritual director would you like to explore in supervision? Write this down—it is your focus. If a section of your dialogue (question 6) is especially relevant to the focus, note it here, for example, “See SD1 through SD5.” 3. Name difficult relational dynamics. Supervision is mostly about you. However, there are times when you might feel caught in a relational dynamic that makes you uncomfortable. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Examples with an individual directee: • The directee is consistently late, and you go over the time limit to allow for an hour-­‐long session. • The directee brings particularly challenging material on a regular basis expecting you to provide expert advice, and you work hard to do so. Examples with a small group: • The group or one of its members is consistently late or noisy, and you go over the time limit to adjust for that. • The group or one of its members brings particularly challenging material on a regular basis expecting you to provide expert advice, and you work hard to do so. In each of these cases, you may feel as if it is the other person’s behavior causing you discomfort. Indeed, the directee is late, or one of your group members does interrupt others. But in each of these cases you make accommodations that cross professional boundaries or violate the contract with the group. Your crossing of boundaries might play a larger role in your discomfort than any behavior on the part of your directees. 4. Introduce the directee (or group) to your supervisor: For an individual directee: • Using single words and phrases, give a brief description of the life-­‐context and characteristics of the directee—those that contribute to an understanding of the experience upon which you are focusing. For example: married, male, pastor, mid-­‐40s, teen-­‐age children, recent surgery, outgoing, overly busy. • Describe anything particularly striking that you noticed about the directee in this session. For a group, introduce the group itself to your supervisor: • Where do you meet? • How many group members do you have? • Is your group under the auspices of a particular church or tradition? • What particularly strikes you about this group or its dynamics? For a group, introduce the relevant group members to your supervisor: • Using words and phrases, give a brief description of the life-­‐context and characteristics of the group members—those that contribute to an understanding of the experience upon which you are focusing. • Describe anything particularly striking that you noticed about an individual DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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member or members in this session. Be careful with confidentiality, and try not to make your directees’ identities obvious to your supervisor. To protect the anonymity of your directees: • Be vague. For example, instead of “third-­‐year MDiv student at SFTS,” say “seminary student.” Do not name your directee’s church or the church’s staff members. • Fictionalize. For example, if your directee is a lawyer, and her professional life is important to your focus, you can say that she is a doctor. • Leave out identifying details that are not important to your focus. 5. Notice the Holy Spirit. Of all the things you notice about this session, where did you see glimpses of the gifts, fruits, or movement of the Holy Spirit? For example signs of life, freedom, joy, compassion, solidarity in suffering, enhanced self-­‐identity before God, ability to stand in the truth, invitation, consolation, a “new word spoken.” 6. Write the dialogue. Write approximately three pages of dialogue in the six-­‐column format shown on page 25. (The DASD Program Manager will send to you a Microsoft Word file that you can use as a template.) For the dialogue, choose a part of the conversation directly related to the experience you are taking to supervision, if possible. If not, choose any part of the conversation that you believe illustrates something significant about the way in which you interact with your directee or your group, or about your skills as a director. For example, you might choose a portion of the dialogue in which you were having trouble exercising one of the skills you are learning. How to record the dialogue: • Assign a code name to your directee, or if this CRF is for a group, give a code name to each group member who speaks in this dialogue. • In the left-­‐hand column of the form, write the dialogue itself. Number the lines of dialogue, and include an initial for each speaker, for example, B1, S1, B2, S2. In the other five columns of the dialogue form, record the non-­‐spoken aspects of the conversation: • Thoughts—What thoughts arose in you during this portion of the conversation? Include ideas, convictions, beliefs, and self-­‐perceptions. • Feelings—What were you feeling as the conversation unfolded? Include all DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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emotions, but pay special attention to desires. • Director’s body—What bodily sensations did you experience in this part of the session? For example warmth, chills, pain, tingling. • Directee’s body—What body language did your directee demonstrate in this part of the session? For example arms crossed over chest, tears, slumping of shoulders. • Intuition—What intuitions did you experience in this part of the session? Include spontaneously arising images, knowings, sounds, colors, biblical references, and the like. Note the arenas of life discussed. (CRFs for individual direction.) Does your directee move from one arena of life to another, or focus only on one or two arenas of life? Are there certain arenas that the directee consistently fails to notice? If so, is it appropriate to invite this directee to further exploration? Arenas of life: • Intrapersonal—Relationship to self, for example prayer, inner healing, body awareness, self-­‐awareness. • Interpersonal—Relationship to another, for example a friend, spouse, or child. • Structural and communal—Relationship to structures and relationship in communities, for example in families, corporations, or churches. • Environmental—Ecological interdependence, relationships with and in nature, physical settings, place. Note the dimensions of human experience discussed. (CRFs for individual direction.) Does your directee move from one dimension of human experience to another, or focus only on one or two dimensions? Are there certain dimensions that the directee consistently fails to notice? If so, is it appropriate to invite this directee to further exploration? Dimensions of human experience: • Interpretive—Cognitive awareness, including concepts, theological reflection, descriptions, definitions, ideas, and abstract language. • Emotional—Feelings, desires, affective responses. • Bodily—Body language, tears, laughter, “sighs too deep for words.” • Intuitive—Spontaneous “knowing,” images, metaphors. • Mystery—Ineffable, the holy, union or communion with the Divine. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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7. Ask consultation questions. Consultation question deal with the practical aspects of spiritual direction. Examples related to individual direction: • My directee fills all the space with words, and I don’t have a chance to respond. What is a good strategy for me to pursue? • I sense that this directee needs to be referred for counseling. How might I do this? Might we role-­‐play a referral? Examples related to group direction: • One of the group members asks questions that disturb the group during what is supposed to be quiet time. What is a good strategy for me to pursue? • Some group members keep giving advice. How do I invite them away from that? 8. At the close of your appointment.... Fill out this part of the CRF at the end of your supervision appointment. Describe to your supervisor any new awarenesses that you have and what, if anything, you will do differently in your spiritual direction practice. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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CRF (Individuals)
Use this Contemplative Reflection Form to reflect on your work with individuals. Include a portion of written dialogue (question 6).
Directee’s Code Name: Date of Conversation: Directee Session #: Director: Supervision Visit #: Supervision Visit Date: 1. Notice your interior movements and settle on an experience to take to supervision. As you reflect, do any emotions, body reactions, intuitions, etc. arise in you? Describe what you notice about yourself: 2. Articulate a focus drawn from what you described above. What one aspect of your experience as a spiritual director would you like to explore in supervision? 3. Supervision is mostly about you, but occasionally you might feel caught in a relational dynamic that makes you uncomfortable. Name difficult relational dynamics, if any: 4. In a few words, introduce the directee to your supervisor. Be careful with confidentiality, and leave out details that are not important to your focus. 5. Where did you see glimpses of the gifts, fruits, or movement of the Holy Spirit during the session? For example signs of life, freedom, joy, compassion, solidarity in suffering, enhanced self-­‐identity before God, ability to stand in the truth, invitation, consolation, a “new word spoken.” 6. Choose a part of the conversation that is directly related to your focus, and write approximately three pages of dialogue on the dialogue form. Note the arenas of life discussed—intrapersonal, interpersonal, structural/ communal, environmental: Note the dimensions of human experience discussed—thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, intuitions: DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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7. Do you have any consultation questions? (These questions deal with the practical aspects of spiritual direction.) 8. At the close of your supervision appointment, share with your supervisor and note: a. New awarenesses, freedoms, or skills. b. What you might do differently in the future, if anything. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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CRF (Groups, for 2nd/3rd Year Students)
Use this Contemplative Reflection Form to reflect on your work with a group. Include a portion of written dialogue (question 6).
Group’s Code Name: Date of Group Meeting: Group Meeting #: Type of group: (lectio divina or examen) Director: Supervision Visit #: Supervision Visit Date: 1. Notice your interior movements and settle on an experience to take to supervision. As you reflect, do any emotions, body reactions, intuitions, etc. arise in you? Describe what you notice about yourself: 2. Articulate a focus drawn from what you described above. What one aspect of your experience as a spiritual director would you like to explore in supervision? 3. Supervision is mostly about you, but occasionally you might feel caught in a relational dynamic that makes you uncomfortable. Name difficult relational dynamics, if any: 4. Briefly introduce the group to your supervisor. Be careful with confidentiality, and leave out details that are not important to your focus. 5. Where did you see glimpses of the Holy Spirit during the session? For example signs of life, freedom, joy, compassion, solidarity in suffering, and so on. 6. Choose a part of the conversation that is directly related to your focus, and write approximately three pages of dialogue on the dialogue form. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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7. Do you have any consultation questions? (These questions deal with the practical aspects of spiritual direction.) 8. At the close of your supervision appointment, share with your supervisor and note: a. New awarenesses, freedoms, or skills. b. What you might do differently in the future, if anything. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Dialogue Form to Include with CRF
Directee’s Code Name: Date of Conversation: Directee Session #: Director: Supervision Visit #: Supervision Visit Date:
Dialogue Feelings of Director Thoughts of Director Body Responses in Director Body Responses in Directee Intuition of the Director To download a blank dialogue form in Microsoft Word format, visit TogetherInTheMystery.org/DASD (username dasd and password supervision). DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Other Forms This section includes all the forms, other than CRFs, that DASD students and their supervisors need to fill out. • For due dates and instructions for the forms in this section, see Supervision Due Dates for 1st Year Students (page 7) and Supervision Due Dates for 2nd and 3rd Year Students (page 9). • For information about CRFs, see page 15. • For details about when and how all the forms are used, see the DASD Supervision Process section that begins on page 6. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Covenant of Ethical Responsibility & Liability
Return this signed form to the DASD office by the end of the January term.
I have read the document from Spiritual Directors International, entitled Guidelines for Ethical Conduct. As a student in the DASD program I promise to abide by this code of ethics. If I encounter any situations in my work as a student of spiritual direction or with my own supervisor that violate this ethical code I will immediately notify my Director of Supervision or the Director of the DASD program. These individuals are available for immediate consultation if a problem arises. Signature___________________________________________Date_________________ E-­‐mail _____________________________________________Phone________________ Liability Coverage I understand that the DASD program does not carry liability insurance for students and is not liable for breaches of ethics on the part of students. Further, I understand that though it is uncommon for spiritual directors to be sued for misconduct, in these litigious times it is important to discern whether or not I would like liability coverage. Finally, I understand that SFTS M.Div. students are the exception to this rule and are covered by this institution. Signature___________________________________________Date_________________ Possible sources of liability coverage: 1. Your employer, if you work at a church or social service agency. 2. An individual policy that you can purchase. One possible source for this is American Professional Agency, 95 Broadway, Amityville, NY, 11701, (800) 421-­‐
6694 or (631) 691-­‐6400. (Ask for the social-­‐work student insurance department.) Note: a. This is by no means a recommendation for this particular agency or a guarantee that this coverage is adequate to your needs, but it is a place to start if you want to secure coverage. b. Students get a discount on this policy if they are members of Spiritual Directors International. 3. If you see people at home, you may want to check your renters’ or homeowners’ insurance to assess the adequacy of your coverage in the case of accidents. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Supervision Contract and Learning Goals
Return to your Director of Supervision by March 31 (1st-year students) or March 1 (2nd year students).
Student director Name________________________________________ Phone___________________ Address_______________________________________________________________ E-­‐mail___________________________________ Year in Program (circle one) 1 2 Field supervisor Name________________________________________ Phone___________________ Address____________________________________________________________ E-­‐mail_____________________________________________________________ Agreement To meet for (circle one) 6 9 3 supervisory sessions in 20_ _ . • Students between their 1st and 2nd January terms typically need six supervisory sessions: five for supervision and one for assessment. • Students between their 2nd and 3rd January terms typically need nine supervisory sessions: eight for supervision and one for assessment. • Students who have completed their 3rd January term typically need three supervisory sessions, all three for supervision. Learning goals In light of what you learned in January, list your learning goals for the coming year: Signed: (student director) (supervisor) Date: DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Student Director Release Form
Return to your Director of Supervision by March 31.
Date: ______________ Student director’s name ______________________________ Year in program (circle one) 1 2 3 Address____________________________________ Home phone________________ City/Zip____________________________________ Work phone ________________ E-­‐mail_________________________________________________________________ I agree to have__________________________________________, in the capacity of my (name of supervisor) spiritual direction supervisor, discuss (as needed) my progress as a spiritual-­‐director-­‐in-­‐
training with the Director of the DASD Program and the Directors of Supervision. Signature:__________________________________________Date: _____________________ Phone number of supervisor: ____________________________________________________ E-­‐mail of supervisor:_____________________________ Address of supervisor: _________________________________________________________ DASD Director of Supervision who is working with this student director: Name________________________________________ Phone__________________ E-­‐mail_________________________________________ DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Supervision Release Form To the directee or small-group member: after you sign this form,
the student director will keep it in a confidential file.
________________________________, as my spiritual director or small-­‐group leader, has my permission to occasionally use material from our direction sessions for his or her own professional supervision. I understand that my name will never be used, that the situation will be disguised, and that said supervision focuses on the director, not on me. I understand that after I sign this form, my spiritual director or small-­‐group leader will keep it in a confidential file. Name of directee: ________________________________ Signature of directee:________________________________ Date:___________ DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Student Self-Asessement & Goals for January
Return to your Director of Supervision by November 15.
Name: _____________________________ Date: ________________ Please give us an overview of your spiritual direction practice this year. How many directees have you met with this year, and how many sessions have you had? If you are a 2nd or 3rd year student, how many groups have you met with, and how many times? What is your sense of yourself as a director? Has this sense of yourself as director changed in any way over the course of this year in supervision? Which of your goals for the year have you met during this year of supervision? Has the supervision process helped you in doing so? Are there other ways in which you have grown as a director this year? If so, what are they? What are your challenges as you move into January, and what goals would you like to make in order to address them? DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Supervisor’s Assessment of Student
Return to your Director of Supervision by November 15.
Student director’s name Supervisor’s name Year supervised Student director and supervisor met on these dates: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. The Holy Spirit Noticing. Does your supervisee notice glimpses of the Holy Spirit in the direction conversation? For example, does your supervisee notice signs of life, freedom, joy, compassion, solidarity in suffering, enhanced self-­‐identity before God, ability to stand in the truth, invitation, consolation, a “new word spoken,” the aha! moment in the conversation? Or is your supervisee in some way blocked from recognizing such moments and movements? Please explain. Presence. Is your supervisee present to such moments in a way that fosters the expansion of the experience for the directee during the direction session? Does your supervisee listen and respond in a way that allows the directee’s awareness of self or God to deepen? Or are such moments noticed and then moved away from or abandoned? Arenas of life. Do you notice that your supervisee is able to invite directees to move from one arena of life (intrapersonal, interpersonal, structural/communal, environmental) to another, or does your supervisee tend to focus on only certain arenas of life? Please explain. Dimensions of human experience. Is your supervisee able to follow a directee’s movement from one dimension of human experience (interpretive, emotional, bodily, intuitive, mystery) to another? Are there dimensions that your supervisee avoids or fails to notice? Please explain. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Dialogue forms. On the dialogue pages, is your supervisee able to remember and articulate his or her interior senses, for example feelings, self-­‐perceptions, and desires? Does your supervisee choose dialogue that is relevant to the focus? Please explain. Supervision Process • Does your supervisee speak openly about places of struggle as a director? • Is your supervisee’s confidence level about his or her abilities accurate? Is your supervisee teachable? • Does your supervisee communicate clearly? • Is there evidence of God at work in your supervision sessions? If so, does your supervisee take it in and allow it to transform him or her as a director? Please explain. Gifts. What gifts does your supervisee have for direction? How might your supervisee continue to develop these gifts? DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Student director has made progress in: Student director needs further work on: We have discussed this written assessment together and agree to share it with the DASD staff. Signed: (student director) (supervisor) Date: DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Student’s Assessment of Supervisor
Return to your Director of Supervision by November 15.
Student director Name: ___________________________________ Year in program (circle one ): 1 2 3 Email: _______________________________ Phone: __________________________ Supervisor Name:_________________________________________________________________ Email: _______________________________ Phone: _________________________ Address:________________________________________________________________ Describe positive aspects of supervision: Describe any difficulties: What about supervision was the most helpful for your learning and growth as a spiritual director? What about supervision was the least helpful for your learning and growth as a spiritual director? For 1st-­‐ and 2nd-­‐year students: I will use the same supervisor next year: Yes ( ) No ( ) DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Resources for Group Spiritual Direction Beginning after your second January term, your practice includes group spiritual direction. • For information about the number of group-­‐direction CRFs that are required, see the Complete Supervision Process (page 10). • For due dates, see Supervision Due Dates (page 6). • For CRF instructions and blank forms, see page 15. The group direction assignment is described below. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Group Direction Assignment (for 2nd/3rd Year Students)
Preparation You will be leading “one for all” spiritual-­‐direction groups (for a lectio divina group or an examen group). 

You are the director, and other people in the group take turns as directees. Any group member not being directed is a prayerful observer. Benefits: Group gains from the skill of one trained person directing all others, and from the prayers of the rest of the group. 1. Choose one of the following types of one-­‐for-­‐all direction groups: • Lectio divina, as described on page 40. • The prayer of examen, as described on page 42. 2. Invite a group of five to eight open, contemplative, and teachable people to join you in a group direction experience. 3. Prepare for your first meeting: • In communication with your group members, schedule four sessions, one week apart. • Schedule a room in a quiet location. • Prepare a group covenant and make copies for group members to sign at your first meeting. An example is shown on page 39. • Make copies of the Supervision Release Form (page 30), one for each group member to sign at your first meeting. You will keep these signed forms in a confidential file. • If this will be a one-­‐for-­‐all direction group, decide how much time you will spend directing each person. • Make sure you have a watch or clock to take to the meeting. Directing the Group Before the group members arrive, create a contemplative atmosphere, perhaps with a candle, center piece, or flowers. To begin the meeting: • Open with a quiet meditation. • Check in with each group member. For a short check-­‐in, you could have each DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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person say one thing that s/he noticed in the silence. For a longer check-­‐in, you could have group members spend up to three minutes each, sharing whatever is on their minds. Be prepared to enforce time boundaries. First meeting only: • Explain the process that you will use in the group. • Discuss the covenant, and have each group member sign it. • Explain the Supervision Release Form, and have each group member sign it. During the meeting: • Follow the directions for the type of group you are leading (pages 40 and 42). • Monitor the group. If group members diverge from the covenant, slow the group down and invite the members to remember the covenant. At the end of the meeting: • Complete the meeting by leading a prayer or holding space for silence. • Honor what has just transpired, especially the stories of those being directed. • Reflect with the group on how the process went, and invite the group to reflect on changes they would like to make for next time in light of the covenant and the type of group you are directing. Between group meetings: • Store the signed Supervision Release Forms in a confidential file. • Receive supervision on your group direction practice. At least two, but no more than five, of the CRFs that you complete between your second and third January terms must be on group direction. For instructions, see page 16. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Draft for Group Covenant Adapt this covenant to fit your group—you will find a Microsoft Word version of it at TogetherInTheMystery.org/DASD (username
dasd and password supervision). Each group member should have a copy that is signed by all the group members.
Type of group Name of leader Leader’s email and phone number Location of meeting Meeting time Meeting dates Contact Information for Group Members Name Email / phone Signature Commitments to Group I commit to faithful, prompt attendance at the meetings. If I will be late or absent from a meeting, I will contact the group leader before the meeting begins. I commit to a covenant of confidentiality regarding the information shared in the group, meaning that I will not share anything I hear in this group with other people or even initiate a conversation with a group member outside the group about what s/he has shared in the group. I will pray daily for all members of the group and/or my prayer partner in the group. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Possibility #1: Directing Group Lectio Divina Preparation In addition to general preparations for group direction (page 37), you will need to decide on a focus for prayer. Here are some examples: • A piece of scripture, perhaps one of the lectionary readings for the upcoming Sunday, if you use the lectionary. • A photograph or artwork. Make sure it is large enough for everyone to see it, or bring copies so that each person has one. • A piece of poetry, for example a Mary Oliver poem, or some other piece to which you are drawn. • A short piece of music. • The body. Directing the Group In addition to the general guidelines for small group direction (page 37), here are the specific instructions for lectio divina groups. The steps of lectio divina Lectio (reading) • Invite group members to listen for an aspect of the prayer focus that strikes them (either positively or negatively); something that shimmers, beckons, stirs, addresses, unnerves, grabs, or touches them. • “Read” the text. 
For written text, read it aloud twice, once slowly and once more quickly. 
For music, play it twice, as time allows. 
For art, have them gaze at it for five minutes. 
For their bodies, have them scan their bodies from head to toe for five minutes. • Encourage group members to contemplate the aspect of the prayer focus that has grabbed them, noticing what comes up in them as they do. (Allow several minutes of silence for this.) • Invite group members to say, briefly, what they’ve noticed, leaving time between each person. You may need to slow the group down. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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
For written texts, have them repeat the word or phrase that strikes them. 
For music or art, have them describe their response in a sentence or a phrase. 
For their bodies, have them name the area of their body to which their attention was drawn. Meditatio (meditation) • Invite group members to listen or watch for the aspect of the prayer focus that struck them last time. Perhaps it has changed. How does it relate to them? What feelings, images, ideas, physical sensations, memories, or hopes does it stir? • “Read” the text again. • Allow several minutes of silence. • Invite group members to share, in a sentence or two, how the aspect of the prayer focus that they chose relates to them. Oratio (prayer) and contemplatio (contemplation) • “Read” the text again. • Invite the group to spend 15–20 minutes in silence. Tell group members that during the silence, they can 
Speak to God silently about the new word spoken through this process, and any desires it has stirred in them. 
Consider any action they are being called to at this time. 
Rest wordlessly in God. Spiritual direction • Invite group members to share with the group what they have discovered. As they share, do spiritual direction with each one, as you would in a one-­‐to-­‐one session. Closing • After the spiritual direction is complete, spend five minutes in silence. • Ask if anyone noticed any “threads” that developed over the course of the sharing. Was there a theme? Can anyone give a title to the process that just happened? • Close with prayer. You can decide if silent or spoken prayer best suits the group. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Possibility #2: Directing an Examen Group Preparation Other than the general preparations for group direction (page 37) no special preparation is needed for an examen group. Directing the Group In addition to the general guidelines for small group direction (page 37), here are the specific instructions for examen groups. Begin the group with silence. Invite group members to practice the examen on the last week, by leading the group through the following steps:3 • Slow down. Prepare yourself to pray by becoming aware of the love with which God looks on you. • Note the gifts that God has given you today. Give thanks to God for them. • Ask God for this prayer to be a time of special grace and revelation. • Review. With God, review the week. Look at the stirrings of your heart, your thoughts, and your choices as the days progressed. Which choices have been of God? Which not? What does God want to say to you about both? • Ask God for forgiveness for any failure or omission, and healing from their effects. • Look forward to the coming week, and plan concretely with God how to live it according to God’s desire for your life. One-­‐for-­‐all group direction • Begin by having a group member share the thing that most stands out from his or her examen. • Do spiritual direction with this person as the rest of the group members listen and pray. • Repeat until all group members have had an opportunity to be heard and directed by you. 3
This adaptation of the examen is found in The Way of Discernment: Spiritual Practices for Decision Making, by Elizabeth Liebert, Westminster John Knox, 2008: 157. See also Timothy Gallagher, The Examen Prayer, Crossroads, 2006, 25. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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• Close by reflecting with the group briefly about the experience, as needed. • End with silence or a closing prayer. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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Possibility #3: Directing a Contemplative Listening Group
(For 3rd-­‐year students.) Preparation In addition to general preparations for group direction (page 37), you will need to ask the group members to write a précis before your first meeting. Here are the instructions that you can pass along to them: • Choose an experience that draws your attention. Be sure it is appropriate to share with a group; for example, don’t choose the most traumatic experience you ever had. • Write one or two paragraphs describing the experience in detail, paying special attention to your own responses at the time of the experience. Note your feelings, thoughts, bodily sensations, and intuitions. • Bring the précis to the group meeting, and be ready to read it aloud and receive direction on it. At the group meeting, you will be able to introduce the précis with one or two sentences to put it in context, but no more. Directing the Group In addition to the general guidelines for small group direction (page 37), here are the specific instructions for contemplative listening groups: • After the opening meditation, invite one or two group members to share their précis at this meeting. How many people share each time will depend on how many are in your group. For example, if you have five members, you will need to invite two people to share their précis during one meeting, and one person during each of the remaining meetings. • After silence, ask the focus person to read his or her précis, introducing it with no more than two sentences to put the experience in context. • Allow for silence after the précis is read. • Invite group members to respond contemplatively with their noticings, leaving time in between each one. You may need to slow the group down or make other comments as the process unfolds. DASD Supervision Manual © 2014 San Francisco Theological Seminary
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