Spiritual Imagery and Experiences for New Contemplatives
The following article appeared in Presence: An International Journal of Spiritual Direction (Vol. 21, No. 1, March 2015) and was written in collaboration with several young adult spiritual directors identified by Spiritual Directors International as New Contemplatives. They are Rachel Bruns, Becky Uffman Eldredge, Amy Zalk Larson, Terri Pahucki, and Christianne Squires.
by Rachel Twigg Boyce and Samuel Rahberg
Adults approaching forty occupy a unique space in the life cycle. Having moved beyond their teenage years, they have accumulated their own stories about lived challenges and opportunities. They have learned a great deal about their unique gifts, skills, and passions. At the same time, it is unlikely that they have begun to exercise their full personal capacity or experience the process of physical diminishment to the same degree as their elders.
When spiritual directors speak about lifespan spiritual formation, it is common to reference the idea that there are two halves in a person’s life. Richard Rohr has helped popularize this idea in Falling Upward: A Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life. Rohr indicates that each half of life has a specific task: “The first task is to build a strong ‘container’ or identity; the second is to find the contents that the container was meant to hold” (Jossey Bass, 2011, xiii). Assuming that the notion of two halves of life is true, then adults who are at mid-life (approximately) stand at a unique vantage point looking backward and forward with some measure of equilibrium, at least in terms of chronological time. For the purposes of the discussion here, we have elected to focus on one particular segment of people within the first half of life: those approaching forty. While there is nothing magical about that particular age (and people may transition into the second half of life well before or after that milestone), forty provides a helpful benchmark and offers a widely appreciated sense of threshold. As one approaches the season of mid-life, sacred questions about identity and relatedness, passions and callings naturally arise. A sufficient body of stories and lived experiences provide raw material for discernment. This discernment can be accompanied by a sense that there is yet time to actualize these choices, which can add a dimension of hope and possibility.
Recognizing the rich potential for spiritual directors and directees under forty, Spiritual Director’s International (SDI) launched the New Contemplatives Initiative (NCI) in 2012 at their educational events in Boston, Massachusetts. The following year we, the authors of this article, were privileged to participate in the second NCI cohort and travel to St. Paul, Minnesota to learn more about “cultivating compassion on the river,” the theme of the 2013 SDI event.
The image of a flowing river cultivated at the conference offers an interpretive lens for our experience as 2013 New Contemplatives in particular and, more broadly, the experiences of anyone approaching forty and seeking spiritual direction. Adults at this stage of life are poised to consider all that has flowed into their lives and how that is shaping who they are becoming. Equally compelling and connected to the same imagery, these adults are primed to reflect on what is currently flowing out of them and into the rest of the world. Even more, they are in a position to embrace the potential of the life that remains, and to practice accepting the invitations to align those waters with their deepest callings.
This article examines the role of spiritual imagery and experience for the 2013 SDI New Contemplatives themselves, as well as the closing ritual we designed and shared at the final session. Drawing on these themes and perspectives, the 2013 New Contemplatives offer some insights for working with directees, especially those approaching forty.