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Spiritual Direction Seminars

“The Spiritual Direction Seminar was exactly what I didn’t know I needed, and I am so grateful that I signed up for this course! It helped me begin my spiritual direction practice in very practical ways, grounded in solid theological and psychological theory. It helped me feel confident that I was a qualified and competent spiritual director. I would not have been able to start my spiritual direction practice without it.â€
—Wanda Roth Amstutz (MDiv 1996) of Kitchener, Ontario, serves as a spiritual director and is also Pastor of Waterloo-Kitchener United Mennonite Church in Waterloo, Ontario. She took the Spiritual Direction Practicum for credit in 2022–23.

AMBS offers three courses — Spiritual Direction Seminars — for those who want to become spiritual directors or to make spiritual guidance a part of their ministry. Whether you’re just beginning your work as a spiritual director or honing your skills after years of ministry, our supervised courses will help you pay attention to your inner assumptions, issues and biases that could damage the relationship between you and your directees. 

In each of these three Spiritual Direction Seminars, you’ll join a community of learners to cultivate and nurture your skills and explore practices that shape your understanding of spiritual companionship.



Spiritual Direction: Foundations

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Spiritual Direction: Foundations is the first level of our supervised Spiritual Direction Seminars program for those who want to become spiritual directors or to make spiritual direction a part of their ministry. It’s offered each year.

Spiritual Direction: Mystery

Green plant rolled within itself

Spiritual Direction: Mystery is one of the next levels of our supervised Spiritual Direction Seminars program for those who want to become spiritual directors or to make spiritual guidance a part of their ministry. Spiritual Direction: Mystery and Spiritual Direction: Wisdom are offered in alternating years. You can take one or both parts in any order.

Spiritual Direction: Wisdom

Close up of purple petals on a flower

Spiritual Direction: Wisdom is one of the next levels of our supervised program for those who want to become spiritual directors or to make spiritual guidance a part of their ministry. Spiritual Direction: Mystery and Spiritual Direction: Wisdom are offered in alternating years. You can take one or both parts in any order.


What do past students have to say about our seminars?

“In the Spiritual Direction: Foundations seminar, we became more attuned to listening deeply and watching for God at work, both in directees’ lives and in our own. We spread fledgling ‘spiritual director’ wings, receiving helpful (and humbling!) feedback within a supportive peer/instructor group while experiencing the holy ground of accompanying others. Both the practical skills and the readings — such as the stages of spiritual growth — have provided a new ‘lens’ that not only enriches my congregational ministry, but also offers wisdom for other roles such as friend or parent. What a gift!â€
—Marcella Hershberger (MDiv 1987) is quarter-time Co-Pastor at Hudson Lake Mennonite Church in New Carlisle, Indiana. She also serves three-quarter time with Mennonite Mission Network in Elkhart, Indiana, as Division Coordinator for Ventures. She completed Spiritual Direction: Foundations in 2023–24 and is taking Spiritual Direction: Wisdom in 2024–25.

“The Spiritual Direction Practicum course comprised very valuable information in a good mix of theory, spirituality and practice. The time spent in class doing spiritual direction with other students was helpful and meaningful. I especially appreciated the way the professor led us in conversation to process what had happened so we could understand each participant’s experience and learn from each other. 
   â€œI continue to use the ‘self-supervision form’ from class in my private practice. It has become a prayer I do after each session to process what happened and how I’m feeling, which aids my self-awareness and deepens my relationship with Jesus. 
   â€œThe professor was good at identifying and communicating our strengths and encouraging us to develop them in our continuing practice of spiritual direction, remembering that it is the Holy Spirit who is effective — not us. The course gave me the information and experience I needed to find my personal approach to spiritual direction and feel confident in the role.â€
—Christina Rhebergen (GCSD 2024) of Vandalia, Michigan, took the Spiritual Direction Practicum for credit in 2023–24 as part of her Graduate Certificate in Spiritual Direction at AMBS. She has started a private practice called Present Spiritual Direction (). Her home congregation is Church of the Savior CRC (Christian Reformed Church) in South Bend, Indiana.

Seeking more training to enhance your practice of spiritual direction?

Graduate Certificate in Spiritual Direction (GCSD)

The Graduate Certificate in Spiritual Direction (GCSD) blends an interdisciplinary encounter with theological education with a significant experiential component

Learn more