Ethical Standards and Guidelines of the Catholic Spiritual Directors’ Registry

The Ethical Standards and Guidelines of the Catholic Spiritual Directors’ Registry document offers a comprehensive framework for spiritual direction and accompaniment, deeply rooted in the Church's theological and pastoral tradition, emphasizing the spiritual director's seeking personal holiness, intellectual competence, professional integrity, and adherence to the Magisterium, all while respecting the dignity and freedom of the directee.

Ethical Standards

A Catholic spiritual director’s ethical and moral conduct, as a member in the Mystical Body of Christ within His Church, is expressed through one’s daily personal and ministerial encounters has its foundations rooted in one’s ascent and faithfulness to the magisterial teachings and Traditions of the Catholic Church. Those who seek to be registered as a Site Member agree to the following guidelines.

Personal and Professional Ministry Guiding Standards 

In our personal spiritual formation, we seek to: 

• Live a life of prayer, both personal and communal. 

• Remain to be fully initiated in the Roman Catholic faith in good standing.

• Participate in regular spiritual direction.

• Make an annual silent retreat.

In our personal and ministry intellectual formation, we seek:

• Ongoing formation and study Scripture and the Church’s teachings in addition to theology, spirituality, psychology, and other disciplines related to spiritual direction and spiritual growth (theology of the Trinity, of Christ, of Salvation, of morality, and of the Church). 

• Ongoing discernment in our call to the ministry of spiritual direction. 

• Inquiry into and awareness of the influences of the secular culture on ourselves and our directees.

In our professional preparation and formation, we seek:

• To receive regular supervision individually or engage in peer-to-peer group. 

• Ongoing training in pastoral counseling skills and being aware of our limits. 

In the practice of spiritual direction and accompaniment, we: 

• Observe standard professional boundaries regarding relationships, setting, place, content, and other related areas.

• Strictly observe confidentiality (as limited by mandated reporting laws).

• Consult and refer to others in ministry or clinical professionals when we encounter areas of unfamiliarity or emotional or psychological disorders beyond our undersatandings or role. 

The Spiritual Director and the Spiritual Directee Relationship begins in the Trinitarian Covenant

Our relationship between director and directee models love between the Father and Son and Holy Spirit, for we are members of the mystical body of Christ within the Church.

In servicing others, we offer our directees information on the following: 

• The nature of spiritual direction – what it is and what its limitations

• The roles within the relationship

• The sessions - frequency and length

• The stipends

• The setting of goals and a process for evaluating accompaniment

In our relationships, rooted in the dignity of the person, for we are made in the image and the likeness of God, we:

• Acknowledge and honor the directee’s freedom of conscience, as we seek understanding one’s, tradition, spirituality, values, culture, autonomy, and God-given abilities as we meet them where they are, while supporting them under the guide of the Holy Spirit towards Christ.

• Inquire only as necessary on what is related to their prayer life. 

Our ministerial ethics reflect the covenant relationship between God and oneself and the directee by:

• Establishing and maintaining appropriate physical and psychological boundaries 

• Being aware of the following:

  • Any intimacy that may develop in such a relationship and avoid any potential for disordered affections of the directee or of the director by the directee. 

  • Any developments towards an imbalance in the relationship – leading to a perceived or a real use of ‘power over.’ 

  • Any words or actions which would foster dependency.

  • Any actions that would be deemed sinful.

  • Avoid dual relationships with directees to the extent possible to avoid any interference in the spiritual direction relationship.

In keeping confidentiality, we seek to: 

• Protect the identity of the spiritual directee, maintaining anonymity in discussions with supervisors and in a peer group setting.

• Keep confidential all oral, electronic, and written matters arising in the spiritual direction sessions. 

• Conduct spiritual direction sessions in environments allowing for private and confidential conversations.

• Share with the directee:

  • The limitations of confidentiality of electronic communications. 

  • The legal regulations requiring disclosure within their region - without their consent - to proper authorities, including but not limited to  cases of child, vulnerable persons or elder abuse; or physical harm to self and others – for the protection of life (suicidality or homicidality).

With spiritual director colleagues and others in ministry or the helping professions we seek to:

• Develop interdisciplinary relationships.

• Secure written release information from the directee when asked by the directee to provide specific information to others in ministry or other fields of the directee’s care.

Those individuals who seek to be registered as site members of the Registry of CatholicSD.org agree with and commit to follow these guidelines.

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Name                                                    Signature                                                        Date

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