With rich insights, creative tools, and a wealth of resources, this is an essential companion for anyone exploring or deepening their journey in spiritual direction. It serves as both a handbook for practitioners and a resource for those in training.

Spiritual direction is a vocation rooted in presence, attention, and contemplative encounter. In The Spiritual Director, Julia Mourant invites practitioners into a deeper understanding of this sacred ministry, embracing its charism as a way of being rather than a set of skills. She explores the distinctive nature of spiritual direction as both vocation and spiritual gift, grounded in experiential formation, theological reflection, and the capacity for personal growth and transformation.

Rather than offering a manual on how to ‘do’ spiritual direction, this book opens a contemplative space for readers to reflect on their own journey. It addresses common themes that arise in training and practice, and considers the skills, interventions, and ethical foundations that support good practice. Throughout, the spiritual director is encouraged to seek accountability, support, and ongoing discernment.

A guide not just for the mind, but also for the heart, The Spiritual Director offers an essential companion for those who walk alongside others in the sacred work of spiritual accompaniment.

Julia Mourant is a priest in the Church of England and worked as a diocesan director of ordinands for eight years. She now teaches the Sarum Certificate in Spiritual Direction course at Sarum College, Salisbury. She has an MA in coaching and mentoring practice.