Spiritual Discovery

A Method for Discernment in Small Groups and Congregations

By (author) Catherine C. Tran, Sandra Hughes Boyd Foreword by Jane E. Vennard

Publication date:

06 March 2015

Length of book:

162 pages

Publisher

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

ISBN-13: 9781566997737

Spiritual Discovery: A Method for Discernment in Small Groups and Congregations is a practical guide for groups desiring a prayerful approach to decision-making. This book offers step-by-step guidance for practicing this process, the powerful instrument Catherine Tran and Sandra Boyd have created to help groups enact spiritual growth and change in their communities.

Foreword by Jane E. Vennard
Introduction
Part One: The Prayer Model
Chapter 1 – Jane Vennard’s Prayer Model
Chapter 2 – The Prayer Model in Depth
Chapter 3 – Hospitality
Chapter 4 – Participants’ Roles in the Prayer Model
Chapter 5 – The Order of the Prayer Model
Chapter 6 – The Modified Prayer Model
Chapter 7 – Debriefing
Part Two: The Spiritual Discovery Method
Chapter 8 - Discernment
Chapter 9 – Group Administration
Chapter 10 – The Design of the Spiritual Discovery Method
Chapter 11 – Essentials for the Spiritual Discovery Method
Chapter 12 – Challenges Groups Encounter
Part Three: The Compassionate Observer
Chapter 13 - The Power of Compassion and Observation
Chapter 14 – The Disciplines of the Compassionate Observer
Chapter 15 – Challenges for the Compassionate Observer
Part Four: The Spiritual Discovery Method - Stories
Conclusion
Acknowledgements
Bibliography

Tran and Boyd have translated the spiritual direction work of Jane Vennard into a powerful model for group discernment and individual transformation. Like all spiritual direction, this model requires patience, dedication, and love, but the benefits in community are enormous.