Spiritual direction and the encounter with God
Subtitle: a theological inquiry
By: William A. Barry.
Edition: Rev. ed.
Publisher: Paulist Press
Published: 2004
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 111
Subjects: Spiritual direction.
Description: "Is what we call 'the encounter with God' merely a depth experience of the psyche or does it have a specific theological character? In this revised edition of his best selling book, William Barry shows how it is possible to understand an encounter with the Triune God in this world, and how that process can be interpreted and aided by a spiritual director. Using the insights of John Macmurray and John Smith, Barry describes how a relationship with God develops and how one can discern whether a particular experience is from God or not. This understanding of religious experience comes from a theology of community, communal discernment and ministry in the church. This book will be helpful to spiritual directors, educators and theologians, as well as all educated seekers desiring a deeper relationship with God. In this revised edition, the author has added reflections on God's presence to suffering and evil and to evildoers, updated the bibliography, and freshened his examples for the 21st-century reader"--Amazon.com.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 110-111).
Table of contents: title: Introduction; title: Understanding God's presence in the world; title: The religious dimension of experience; title: A theology of Trinity and of community; title: The development of the relationship with God; title: A theology of discernment of spirits; title: A theology of the ministry of spiritual direction.