FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact the SDI office at 425-455-1565
E-mail: membership@sdiworld.org


February 23, 2011—Members of many faith traditions will gather in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, to explore Cultivating Compassion, the theme of the twenty-first annual educational conference hosted by Spiritual Directors International (SDI), April 28 — May 2 at the Westin Peachtree Plaza.

The keynote speaker is Dr. Janet Ruffing, RSM, Professor in the Practice of Spirituality and Ministerial Leadership at Yale Divinity School, Connecticut, USA. The author of several books including Uncovering Stories of Faith: Spiritual Direction and Narrative, she also travels extensively to present workshops. More than forty other workshop presenters will join Dr. Ruffing to address issues from the perspective of compassion and spiritual care.

Spiritual directors, also known as spiritual companions or guides, use open dialogue and contemplative practices to help people discern the presence of God or the Sacred in their lives. An ancient practice, spiritual direction is found in every major world religion. Today, spiritual direction is experiencing a renewal because contemplative practices such as prayer, meditation, and mindfulness are taught by spiritual directors to everyone who is seeking a closer relationship with God.

For more than twenty years, through its conferences, contemplative retreats, pilgrimages, and other educational programs, SDI provides a forum for spiritual companions of many spiritual traditions to connect, share resources, and build bridges of understanding. With more than 6,500 members in fifty-three countries, SDI is a multi-faith global learning community that offers educational support for spiritual directors, and assistance for individuals wanting to connect with spiritual directors.

Visit www.sdiworld.org for additional information on Cultivating Compassion and to see a complete list of workshop presenters.

Available for interview: Liz Ellmann, MDiv, Executive Director and conference presenters upon request. Contact the SDI office to schedule interviews at 425-455-1565 or membership@sdiworld.org.



Contact the SDI office at 425-455-1565
E-mail: membership@sdiworld.org.


Spiritual Direction Explores Ways to Cultivate Compassion.
Spiritual care workers from a variety of faiths meet to discuss current topics from a compassionate perspective: fatigue and burnout; supervision; aging and illness; sexual abuse; the importance of creativity and dreams for listeners and seekers. Prominent spiritual leaders will speak.

September 1, 2010--Spiritual Directors International (SDI) explores the theme of Cultivating Compassion during an educational conference in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, April 29 - May 1, 2011. A pre-conference event is free and open to the public. For more than twenty years, SDI has been providing educational programs for the public and its multi-faith membership in more than fifty countries. Internationally renowned spiritual speakers known for their innovative wisdom and often outspoken views are expected to attract overflow crowds.

Speakers: Plenary keynote, Dr. Janet Ruffing, RSM, and conference spiritual director Wilkie Au, MDiv, PhD, together with more than forty-five international presenters, who include: Lucy Abbott-Tucker; Lauren Artress; James Conroy, SJ; Linda Douty; Rose Mary Dougherty, SND; Dwight Judy; Diane Millis; Linda Thal; Maureen Conroy, RSM; John Griffith; Marianne Hieb, RSM; Rabbi Ted Falcon; John Stuart; and Norvene Vest. Complete speaker index is online.

With members representing a spectrum of faiths, including Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, and those with “no spiritual preference,” SDI supports everyone who listens with compassion by offering spiritual guidance to people throughout the world. By publishing books, periodicals, and offering educational programs for not only spiritual directors but also the general public, Spiritual Directors International raises awareness of the value of tending the holiness in each person’s life.

Spiritual Directors International’s dynamic growth is seen as a result of many seekers’ interest in probing their own relationship with God. Spiritual directors, who often are called spiritual companions or spiritual guides, help people recognize for themselves what God or the Sacred is doing in their lives. In the Christian tradition, spiritual direction is based on early examples of guidance offered by the desert fathers and mothers who counseled newer Christians. Each major world religion has an early expression of spiritual companionship. The Spiritual Directors International conference provides a forum for spiritual companions of many faiths and traditions to share resources and build bridges of understanding. SDI is a global learning community of educational support for spiritual directors and assists seekers in connecting with a trained spiritual director.

Available for interview: current executive director, Liz Ellmann, MDiv. For a list of workshop presenters go to http://educationalevents.org/presenters. Contact the SDI office at 425-455-1565 or E-mail: membership@sdiworld.org .

For Immediate Release
 
Spiritual Directors International
Phone: 425-455-1565
E-mail: office@sdiworld.org
www.sdiworld.org
 
 
International Meeting of Spiritual Directors in Houston, Texas, USA

Houston, Texas, February 1, 2009 - People concerned about spiritual well-being, from around the world and across faith traditions, will gather in Houston, Texas, April 15-21, 2009. Looking to the future, the events focus on spiritual companioning in health care, with the marginalized, in inter-faith dialogues and with the next generation, and, will provide a foundation of hope for these challenging times.

Events include: pre-conference institutes on Men’s Spiritual Journey; Health Care as Sacred Vocation; and, Practices of Spiritual Presence, a free, interactive, public event introducing spiritual direction and being present, with some of the practices of this contemplative ministry. The three-day conference includes workshops with an international faculty and a special mealtime interfaith dialogue facilitated by the Houston-based Amazing Faiths Project, a post-conference Leadership Institute and a Pilgrimage to Sacred Sites in Houston.

Ronald Rolheiser, OMI, is the keynote speaker of the conference, which is open to everyone interested in the ministry of spiritual companionship. Rolheiser is President of the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio, Texas. His books are popular throughout the English speaking world and his weekly column is carried by more than sixty newspapers worldwide.

Spiritual direction is the process of accompanying people on a spiritual journey. It is a contemplative practice common to all faith traditions with the director called variously companion, counsellor, mentor, teacher, witness, or guide. In these challenging times more and more people are called to this process, both as companion and searcher, individually and in groups.

Spiritual Directors International is a multi-faith learning community that provides support for and communication among spiritual directors, interns, clergy, laity, chaplains, hospice workers and others involved in spiritual care. In addition to hosting educational events, Spiritual Directors International publishes Seek and Find: A Worldwide Resource Guide of Available Spiritual Directors, Presence journal, Connections newsletter, Guidelines for Ethical Conduct in Spiritual Direction, and other resources that foster the global ministry of spiritual direction.  

Google Ranks Spiritual Directors International Number One

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contact: Nick Wagner

editor(at)sdiworld.org

www.sdiworld.org


Google “spiritual director,” using the “I’m Feeling Lucky” option, and you’ll get the website for Spiritual Director’s International (www.sdiworld.org). That’s because the Spiritual Directors International home page has been ranked first by Google out of more than 4,850,000 possible pages. Change the search term to “spiritual direction,” and the Spiritual Directors International site is still ranked number one.

“This is very exciting,” said executive director Liz Budd Ellmann. “Since launching our renovated site, it has been our goal to establish a place on the web where the entire world can come to learn about spiritual direction.”

“Spiritual direction,” according to Jesuit Father James Keegan, “is the contemplative practice of helping another person or group to awaken to the mystery called God in all of life and to respond to that discovery in a growing relationship of freedom and commitment.” Keegan is a member of the organization’s coordinating council.

According to Ellmann, the next stage of development of the popular site will be to include a “Seek and Find" directory of spiritual directors all over the world. “Anyone can find a spiritual director on our site right now. All they have to do is click on the ‘Find a Spiritual Director’ link. Then they can use an interactive world map to find a regional coordinator who knows all the spiritual directors in their city or area. But we plan to give people even more direct access in the near future by using the Internet to help connect directors and directees.”

The site also provides a “how to” segment, according to Ellmann, that walks the uninitiated through the process of finding a spiritual director that fits with the spiritual and cultural background of the seeker. “Finding a spiritual director is a very personal and spiritual quest,” said Ellmann. “We suggest a person seeking a spiritual director contact at least two spiritual directors to interview using some of the questions we provide on the website.”

Workplace Expert Discusses Spirituality in the Office

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Nick Wagner

Spiritual Directors International

editor(at)sdiworld.org

www.sdiworld.org

Liz Budd Ellmann, executive director of Spiritual Directors International, recently participated in a panel discussion on group spiritual direction in the workplace at the Heart of Spiritual Guidance conference in Palo Alto, California. Ellmann, who established a spiritual direction ministry serving people in the workplace before coming to Spiritual Directors International four years ago, has a deep interest in how spiritual direction can be used in group settings. During the panel discussion, she pointed out that spiritual direction is a growing ministry around the world and group spiritual direction in particular is a growing phenomenon. “I believe spiritual direction can help anyone live a more fulfilled life,” said Ellmann. “However, most people will likely not find themselves in a traditional, one-on-one, spiritual direction setting. Bringing the ministry of spiritual direction to naturally occurring groups, such as work groups, is a more realistic way for people to explore their spiritual journeys.”

 Spiritual Directors International began in 1989, in a gathering of primarily Roman Catholic spiritual directors at Mercy Center in Burlingame, California. In the ensuing years, the organization has grown to include members in more than 50 countries around the world and in a wide variety of faith traditions. According to Ellmann, the organization continues to grow at a rapid rate.

For information on resources for using spiritual direction the workplace, e-mail Spiritual Directors International, office@sdiworld.org.