Affirming the directee is an important part of spiritual direction. The definition of affirming is helpful. I was in another spiritual direction program prior to Heart of Christ, and one of the conversations we had was about affirming (or not) someone in spiritual direction who was in an “irregular relationship.” It became a heated discussion. We moved from discussing direction to the right/wrong of the behavior of the directee, and many of us felt that we were being asked to affirm the person’s behavior. As a director, we should affirm the worth and unique goodness of the directee, regardless of the particular sins we may be aware of. We should be welcoming and encouraging, helping them grow in holiness. Affirming them is another way of loving them and sharing the love of Christ with them.
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