Food for Thought

Catholic laity must consider spiritual direction if they are to follow the Second Vatican Council's teaching on the universal call to holiness, writes

Jul 07, 2017

Catholic laity must consider spiritual direction if they are to follow the Second Vatican Council's teaching on the universal call to holiness, writes Russell Shaw in an article for The Catholic Thing.

Fifty years after the council taught that all Christians "in any state or walk of life are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of love" -- holiness -- says Shaw, "only a handful of laywomen and men make use of this standard tool of the interior life, spiritual direction."

It is the key to discovering and living one's vocation. St. John Paul II indicated this, says Shaw, when the pope wrote in the apostolic exhortation "Christifideles Laici," that the laity need "recourse to a wise and loving spiritual guide," a spiritual director.

"Failure to grasp that laypeople have vocations," says Shaw, "is part of the legacy of clericalism. It is high time and then some that all of us got over it."

Spiritual direction, helps "us hear clearly and respond faithfully to this day-in day-out summons to the following of Christ" and supports the ongoing discernment of one's vocation, which continually unfolds throughout life, writes Shaw.

"Speaking about spiritual direction, providing realistic ways of receiving it and pointing to its benefits could produce surprisingly positive results over time. It's worth a try."

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