COURSE DESCRIPTION
“A Way of Leading” is a three-session course that provides content, resources and practices for facilitators of contemplative groups. The sessions will cultivate space to learn and assimilate the experience of leading groups through a community of practice. Learning with others alongside you will provide the greatest source of integration as an effective facilitator.
The purpose of this “way of leading” is to recognize that how you lead is as important, if not more important, than what you present in a group. To lead in a contemplative way requires a counter-intuitive approach that relies on the Spirit’s movement occurring in the facilitator and the group. The dynamic of listening holds elements that are different than listening one-on-one.
In the time together, using material typically offered to Spiritual Directors, our focus will be divided into three topics:
(1) exploring how God creatively and curiously works in groups
(2) what is important for you to listen to in others
(3) what you bring to the contemplative group as the facilitator
SESSION DATES
Thursdays, 1-3pm
January 18
February 1
February 15
TIME
1-3pm PST
LOCATION
Manitou Presbyterian Church, Tacoma, WA
COST
$50
(if you have attended in the past, no cost)
FACILITATOR
Dr. Mary Pandiani, D.Min, serves as Selah’s Executive Director, leading the community and organization through its current transition period into future possibilities. Mary has served in various capacities for Selah, including as a founding board member, seminar/group leader, and co-facilitator for Selah’s extended programs, Living From The Heart and Way of the Heart. Mary is a spiritual director and coach, co-facilitator for a spiritual direction training program, and advisor for doctoral students. Mary received her Doctorate of Ministry at Portland Seminary, and her work focuses on a posture of contemplative living across the seasons of life. Her foundation starts with a love for the God who wants to be known and a desire to help others to pause-notice-listen-respond in ways that lead to a deeper understanding of God’s divine invitation. With the support of her husband Bill, Mary serves Selah while also enjoying her family of four adult daughters and their families. Mary lives in Gig Harbor WA where she knows the value of beauty in creation and the gift of community.
