The Craft of Questions

Description: This course introduces students to how spiritual directors can help guide persons into greater awareness, curiosity and contemplative reflection through thoughtful, well-discerned questions.

Outcomes: Having fully engaged with this class, students will be able to (1) discuss the role of awareness in the spiritual journey, (2) demonstrate various forms of open and evocative questions, (3) demonstrate a variety of techniques for framing and shaping questions to elicit reflection and foster curiosity.

Format: A self-paced “four-week” class consisting of 10- to 20-minute instructional videos along with reflection and worksheet assignments. It's recommended this course be taken in conjunction with the Listening Conversations Practicum.

Supplementary reading: Anthony De Mello, Awareness: The Perils and Opportunities of Reality, New York: Image, 1992, $9.99 ($12.99 Kindle), 179 pp. assigned.