FROM PAX CERTIFICATE IN SPIRITUAL FORMATION GRADUATE, DOROTHY HARTLEY

Standing where I’m standing, I had to laugh when I looked back at my first blog post from the Spiritual Formation Certificate class. When asked to define spiritual formation, I wrote:

I imagine the image of God given at creation like an old, broken-down house. The roof leaks, the floors are in danger of caving in, there are raccoons living in the chimney, but the bones are still there. Spiritual formation is the process of cleaning out the cobwebs of this house, setting to work on the repairs, and moving back in - living in the unfinished building while the extensive reconstruction takes place. If we are the laborers, the Holy Spirit (who lives in the house alongside us) is the architect and the general contractor all in one, only showing us step by step what we should do next to repair the house, only sharing pieces of the design, knowing and providing what we need to set out on the next journey. Our communities of faith are whole neighborhoods of such houses, and the Spirit lives and breathes in each one.

Spiritual formation is the process of living back into the image of God that has been broken, responding to the design of the Holy Spirit who knows better than we do what our houses should look like when they are complete. Spiritual formation is learning to see that the house, as well as our neighbor's house, is very good.

Are you a Transformational Listening 1 graduate or spiritual director looking to go deeper into spiritual formation? Or perhaps, like Dorothy, you have a dream you want to explore further? Our Journey of Grace: Certificate in Spiritual Formation cohort starts anew this fall! Registration closes on July 31st.