Listening closely to the words of another – and to discern the deeper meaning of those words – is critically important for a spiritual accompanier. It is a skill that the Desert Fathers and Mothers discovered and developed in the Fourth Century. Those great men and women of the Church knew that people are not born with this skill; they need to develop it over time and with the help of mentors. Contemporary counselling psychology backs up what the Desert Fathers and Mothers learned thru the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
The Center of Ignatian Spirituality (CIS) provides the participants in the program of Spiritual Accompaniment and the Giving of the Spiritual Exercises with professional mentors and coaches to help them develop this critically important ability. As part of the learning program, all participants experienced the masterful teaching of Fr. Lê Văn Quang, SJ, Ph.D., and Ms. Nguyễn Phương Mai, MA, two clinically trained counselors and teacher from France. Both were born in Vietnam and traveled to France for education in the 1970s and remained there. This was their second time to CIS.
Over 10 working days, Fr. Quang and Ms. Nguyễn Phương Mai shared useful information about the skills of listening and speaking meaningfully. They backed up the theory with daily experienced of what they call “creative listening.” Daily, each participant was assigned a peer to talk with and then reversed roles. These sessions were done in front of all present so that useful feedback was given. The sessions were taped so the two peers could actually see and listen to their responses directly. For all the participants, listening and speaking skills advanced quickly in a short period of time.
Inviting professional persons from France, the United States, the Philippines, etc., to help in the training of CIS participants is one of the core strengths of CIS programs.
Video about the course: