My ministry emphasizes prayer to a loving God of the seeker’s belief. Contemplative prayer and “centering prayer” are at the core of my ministry. I help people deal with transitioning into the second half of life as well as discernment questions around God’s “will” and direction in life. This requires an intimate, felt sense of God’s presence and goodwill towards all of us in this world that has become so uncertain and fearful. I facilitate the Ignatian  Exercises with individuals and groups. I am intimately involved with 12 Step Spirituality for all addictions. Guided meditation and compassionate listening are an integral part of the process. I am available during the weekdays. I will also meet via phone, Skype, Zoom, or FaceTime at the client’s convenience. I will also design and facilitate a Private Directed  Retreat.

For over 40 years I have accompanied individuals on their spiritual journeys as a pastor, and a chaplain for the ill, the dying, the grieving, and those experiencing homelessness. In the last 20 years, I have also been a mental health counselor. In my desire to deepen my skills in spiritual companionship, I completed the Spiritual Direction program at Christian Formation and Direction Ministries – Arizona, It is my desire to journey to explore the God within each of us, regardless of faith tradition. This belief has drawn me to spiritual companioning with those experiencing losses of any kind as well as those seeking discernment for the next steps in their lives while exploring wherever the Divine may appear bringing healing to their soul and finding purpose. 

While “spiritual direction” is a process often described by some, Teresa finds the term “spiritual development” as appropriate. It is the lifelong journey of being present with an open, reflective, grateful and creative heart, mind, and soul. It is the slow revealing of envisioning our authentic selves as God sees us.  Teresa invites you to be accompanied, with supportive listening and noticing, in your experience of opening space for the Spirit to be recognized, surfaced and speak. Even in the darkness, growth can happen when light is shared. Her focus is in developing together “recipes for a sacred life” that can be nurtured through practices of exploring meditation, prayer, solitude, study, the mind/body connection, the arts, and celebration. Teresa has been facilitating in the fields of education, training, counseling, pastoral and liturgical ministry, and spiritual development for over 40 years. She has a special appreciation for accompanying those in challenging transitions and those navigating through searching and finding meaning through loss.  As the mother of five grown children, Teresa imagines the spiritual accompaniment of rebirth and renewal as much the same process of how a midwife accompanies a woman through their unique work laboring, delivering, and giving birth. She looks forward to being present with you toward safe passage and fruitful beginnings. 

Spiritual direction is a divinely guided relationship founded on trust, emotional and spiritual safety, consistency, and grace. It is a time of deep presence, presence to one another, presence to God and presence to the emergence of God’s loving spirit within one’s life.  Sheila is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist for over 40 years and has often shared that spiritual direction is much like relationship counseling between God and the beloved.

Sheila’s journey as healer and helper began in 1983 while studying dance/movement therapy at Loyola Marymount.  Following graduate school Sheila became trained and licensed in Marriage and Family therapy.  In 1998 Sheila acquired spiritual direction training at Kino Institute for two years.  Sheila is a trained trauma specialist, also trained in EMDR, and trauma-informed care and organizations. In 2014 Sheila received training as a non-medical professional from the Integrative Medicine Program (Dr. Weil) at the University of Arizona. Since 1983 Sheila has been on a journey of mind, body, soul integration for herself and all those she has the privilege to work with.

As a spiritual director for the Franciscan Renewal Center, Sheila has been blessed to provide spiritual direction to couples (marriages).  Spiritual direction with couples is very powerful and can be done monthly and or within a weeklong retreat or intensive.  Both are powerful in the healing of the relationship and the transformation of both individual and couple. 

My practice is grounded in Ignatian spirituality, based on the loving, healing ministry of Jesus and the belief that God can be found in all things.  God is the actual director.  My role is to create a non-judgmental, nurturing space, meeting each person where they are.  I accompany my directees while they deepen their relationship with God and grow in self-acceptance and a felt sense of God’s unconditional love.     

I especially enjoy working with individuals in transition, sharing the Prayer That Changes Everything with them.  This prayer particularly benefits anyone seeking the spiritual freedom to discern their next steps.  I have been a practicing chaplain/spiritual director since 2012, initially working as an on-call trauma hospital chaplain and hospice bereavement coordinator.  Before retiring in 2023, I worked as a chaplain with Creighton University for seven years, ministering to students, faculty, and staff in professional and graduate programs. 

My professional training includes completing a one-year residency in Clinical Pastoral Education, a training program for hospital chaplains.  I hold master’s degrees in ministry and Christian spirituality through Creighton University’s Christian Spirituality Program (CSP).  I have certificates in Ignatian Spiritual Direction and Directed Retreats and the History of the Ignatian Tradition, which included completing an Ignatian Pilgrimage. Gladyce is available weekdays and early evenings at the FRC by Zoom or phone.  I am also available to accompany individuals or groups through the Spiritual Exercises.  

Seeking a new way forward this year?  Let’s meet: no preparation needed... Just a time for sharing your story and your desires for the days ahead... Spiritual Guidance is a listening time... I’ll be at your side ~ listening along the way.

Milly Johnson completed spiritual guidance formation at The London Centre for Spirituality and holds an MA in Christian Spirituality from the University of   London. She has met with individuals for many years. She supports each person’s journey - whatever life holds. She listens and stands with you in times of seeking and transition.

Milly has an ongoing interest in spirituality and art - civic and cultural affairs; always open to embracing more within our everyday lived experience. She studies early Christian writers - especially Ignatius of Loyola, John of the Cross, and Julian of Norwich. She will happily journey with you through the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises. She has trained others in this way of ongoing support and discernment as well. Milly also offers guidance sessions with individuals each month online via FaceTime, Skype, or Zoom.

My approach to spiritual direction is deeply incarnational - that God earnestly desires to meet us where we are. The role of the director then is often one of assisting the directee with carefully looking and listening for how God is speaking to us: sometimes in very comfortable, familiar ways and sometimes in ways that open us to new insights and deeper faith. My own path has been profoundly shaped by Ignatian Spirituality, with influences from many other spiritual traditions and prayer practices that draw us closer to God’s abundant love. The formal training for my ministry in spiritual direction took place first through the Mercy Center in Burlingame, CA and then at The Jesuit Spirituality Center in Grand Coteau, LA.

I have offered spiritual direction and retreats in all parts of the US- east, west, north, and south with many wonderfully varied individuals and communities, through retreat centers, parishes, and college campuses. I continue to carry with me all of their creative ways of praying and then share them with new directees I encounter. In addition to listening to God’s voice in the personal/individual experience of prayer, because I have a doctorate in Liturgical Theology, from time to time I will also help directees look for the equally important communal prayer qualities of our faith journeys.  

For 30 years, I've walked alongside souls like yours, in hospitals, hospices, retreats, and sacred spaces, witnessing their extraordinary journeys of transformation. As a certified Spiritual Director, Chaplain, and counselor, I'm dedicated to providing a safe haven for exploring your deepest questions and finding meaning in life's twists and turns.

Think of me as a companion on your inner pilgrimage, someone who offers a listening ear, a gentle nudge, and a space to discern your path. Together, we can unravel the knots of life – illness, loss, grief, or simply a yearning for something more – and open the door to your true self in God.

My own story is rooted in Christian mysticism, nourished by the wisdom of Julian of Norwich, Franciscan, and Ignatian traditions, and the whispers of saints like Hildegard, Teresa, and John of the Cross. But my heart echoes with the mystic whispers of all faiths, for the Sacred shows up in a thousand ways, in every beating heart and breath.

So, whether you're a devout believer or someone simply seeking spiritual grounding, I welcome you with open arms. Together, let's listen for the divine dance in your life, and step into the next chapter of your unfolding soul.  Find me in the quiet comfort of the Casa, weekdays, Saturdays, and some early evenings. Or, let's meet through the magic of Zoom and embark on this journey together, one sunrise at a time.

I have been a spiritual director since 2005 and have a love for the "Celtic Spirit" which celebrates God in the rhythms and blessings of nature, in community, and in sacred place. I believe it is a privilege and blessing to companion others on the spiritual journey. Spiritual direction is a gift that allows us to name the constant presence of God in our lives and I am continually humbled by the way grace leads us and holds us.  I have worked as a lay minister in the Catholic Church for over 40 years, received a Master of Arts in Theology from the University of Dayton, and a certificate in Spiritual Direction from the Arizona Ecumenical Institute for Spiritual Directors. I have training in trauma-sensitive spiritual direction and welcome all who seek healing of spirit, especially those who struggle with the trauma of sexual abuse.  I coordinate the Spiritual Direction Ministry at the Franciscan Renewal Center as a staff member and am happy to meet with you in person or online.  

Everyone can benefit from a safe place where they can feel seen and deeply listened to. I provide such a place virtually or in person at the Franciscan Renewal Center for people to share what’s truly on their minds and in their hearts. I completed the Hesychia School of Spiritual Direction’s ecumenical and interfaith program in 2013 and have been a member of the Casa’s faith community for several years. As a writer and nature photographer, I honor the intersection of spirituality and creativity. Because of my own journey through grief after the loss of my daughter to brain cancer, I am comfortable walking alongside others through grief, health challenges, and life’s other twists and turns. Ignatian Spirituality, whose principle is finding God in all things, is the lens through which I see the world, and this influences my style of accompanying people on their spiritual journeys. Through conversations about God and what really matters, I help people notice God’s presence in their daily lives and throughout their life stories. God meets people where they are, so I try to do the same. 

Rene is a certified spiritual director and a member of Spiritual Directors International, ministering for 17 years. He received his education in Spiritual Direction in the graduate school of theology at Sacred Heart University, and is retired from Rhode Island College, a member of their professional staff for 35 years. Roman Catholic by choice as a Spiritual Director is nondenominational. He practices this Ministry of Presence with men and women of all different backgrounds, some in recovery, members of Religious communities, clergy, and folks who identify as LGBT.  Rene developed Spiritual Direction for folks living with AIDS while at the Miriam Hospital in Providence, R.I.  Before moving to AZ seven years ago he ministered with the Franciscans in Boston in the Spiritual Direction Center and with the men in formation for the local Franciscan Provence. Rene is available any day of the week or evening as needed and will meet via Zoom or at the FRC or where it is most convenient for the person.

Ria is Roman Catholic and received her Certification as a Spiritual Director through Christian Formation and Direction Ministries. In addition, she is a certified hospice volunteer who is passionate about creating a sacred space for families and their loved ones experiencing life-limiting illnesses and grief. Her interests, however, are not limited to this work. Ria’s training has prepared her to walk with people of different faiths and concerns, as they seek answers and direction for their lives. Ria’s goal is to listen to the needs of your searching heart. Her desire is to help you to discern where the Holy Spirit is leading you; to listen to His Voice; and to recognize God’s Love in life’s challenges, difficulties, and blessings, so that you can find inner peace and claim the truth of your belovedness. Ria is available mornings, weekends, in person, via phone, and via FaceTime.

Dr. Elizabeth Ursic holds a Masters of Divinity from Yale University, and a PhD in Religious Studies from ASU. She has been a member of Spiritual Directors International for over 20 years. She leads national and regional retreats on spiritual faith development. Her book, Women, Ritual, and Power: Placing Female Imagery of God in Christian Worship, has been used in retreat settings and seminary classrooms. Locally, Elizabeth is a professor of world religions and is committed to interfaith work. She is also a pianist, cellist, and composer. She teaches classes and leads retreats on contemplation, world religions, spirituality, imagination, and the arts. “Being a spiritual director is one of my greatest joys. I love to companion those who are exploring, wrestling, and deepening their relationship with God. I seek to create a safe space where everything can be shared with love and without judgment. I am in awe of how God works in our lives. It is a privilege to serve as a soul friend with those on their spiritual journey.” Availability is afternoons and evenings during weekdays, via phone, Zoom, or Skype.

Virginia has been a resident of the West Valley since childhood. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Humanities from Northern Arizona University. She is a practicing Roman Catholic, a professed Secular Franciscan, and received her spiritual direction certificate through the Arizona Ecumenical Institute for Spiritual Directors. Virginia focuses her spiritual direction on life transitions within general, interfaith, and Franciscan spirituality. How do we live in this moment, this place, here and now, joyfully with God? She is available weekdays and Saturdays, morning and afternoon, in person and via phone or Zoom.