Code of Ethics for Christian Spiritual Directors and Supervisors

 (Adapted from AECSD and ESDA Codes of Ethics)

What is Christian spiritual direction?

Christian Spiritual direction is a ministry by which one person journeys contemplatively with another who is seeking to discern God’s presence and activity in their everyday experiences, to enhance their growth in intimacy with God, and encourage their right relationship with all creation. The Triune God is the primary director in spiritual direction relationship, while the human spiritual director is more of a witness, which points to God’s activity on behalf of the directee. God’s activity is rooted in loving character “as revealed in Scripture and grounded in the redemptive work of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross. Spiritual direction involves reflecting on how the Father, Son and indwelling Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ are transforming a believer into Christlikeness and how a believer is responding or not responding to God’s invitations for the believer to participate in that process.” This companioning ministry is a resting place for those who want to discover and savor God’s loving presence and partner more fully with God’s activity in the world.

Role of the spiritual director?

As a supportive companion, the spiritual director explores in an open, prayerful environment, how the Divine is moving in the life of the person coming for spiritual direction. They are drawn to this ministry by a sense of call from God, a call that is “complemented by appropriate gifts, education and formation which have been recognized by the community of spiritual directors. Spiritual directors have formal qualifications which includes experience in contemplative spiritual direction practice out of which they listen contemplatively and respond appropriately from a depth of personal experience of life and faith. They allow their own spirituality to grow and mature with an ever-deepening awareness and understanding of struggle, paradox and mystery. They develop a wide vision embracing the various traditions of Christianity and respecting others’ faith traditions and spiritual perspectives.”

Why do spiritual directors need a code of ethics?

Spiritual direction acknowledges and values the nature of God’s presence in all creation. This divine presence in all humans must be acknowledged and respected within the spiritual direction relationship. Because spiritual directors minister in a professional capacity, engaging others in deep personal contact, any misuse of power by a director exposes the person being directed to the possibility of its abuse. Directors may not use others for their own pleasure, satisfaction or benefit. For virtue and accountability, spiritual directors regularly seek spiritual direction and supervision for themselves in order to grow in self-awareness and freedom that will ultimately foster an active contemplative spiritual practice to nurture the directees growing relationship with God.

The Code

1. Spiritual directors act responsibly towards themselves by:

1. Maintaining responsible association with their own spiritual community.

2. Maintaining their own life of faith and spiritual practice.

3. Remaining abreast of developments in the field of spiritual direction through continuous practice and on-going formation. 

4. Maintaining an appropriate understanding of the cultural, socio-historical and environmental contexts in which contemporary spiritual direction operates.

5. Maintaining contact with an appropriate spiritual direction community or peer group.

6. Receiving appropriate supervision, consulting other appropriately qualified persons when necessary.

7. Exercising self-care by living a wisely balanced life-style.

2. Spiritual directors act with responsibility towards their directees by:

1. Commencing spiritual direction by first discussing with the prospective directee:

   1. The nature of spiritual direction;

   2. The respective roles of spiritual director and directee;

   3. The length and frequency of direction sessions;

   4. Confidentiality and its limitations;

   5. Remuneration

   6. The regular evaluation of the relationship;

   7. Freedom of both parties to terminate the relationship.

2. Seeking to maintain a reasonable workload by limiting the number of directees to that which is reasonable and ensuring an appropriate spacing of appointments.

3. Referring directees to other appropriately qualified persons as necessary.

4. Ensuring that directees who have ongoing relationships with health professionals make known to those health professionals their involvement in spiritual direction where appropriate.

5. Ensuring, in situations where they have other professional qualifications (such as a psychologist) that they clarify with their directees the nature of their relationship as a spiritual director.

6. Not continuing spiritual direction relationships in cases where it is not in the best interests of the directee

7. Respecting the dignity of each directee, all appropriate physical, psychological and social boundaries are maintained within, and outside of, the spiritual direction relationship. The director makes those boundaries very clear to the directee.

8. Respecting the privacy of their directees, for example, by:

   1. protecting the identity of the directee, including the fact that a person is a directee;

   2. Keeping confidential all oral communications concerning spiritual direction;

   3. Taking all reasonable precautions available to ensure spiritual direction via electronic means is as secure as possible;

   4. Not recording unwarranted personal information and ensuring that any such (personal) information is held in strict confidentiality, except where otherwise legally required;

   5. Conducting direction meetings in an appropriate location;

   6. Ensuring that both spiritual director and directee are aware of any legal requirements that may override confidentiality, including, but not limited to, provisions about child abuse, sexual assault of children or adults, elder abuse and physical harm to self and others, and other criminal behaviors.

3. Spiritual directors act with responsibility towards faith communities by:

1. Being aware of, and respectful to the faith traditions and spiritual communities to which their directees belong.

2. Not engaging in any proselytising that is directed towards changing the commitment of a directee to the director’s spiritual community or tradition

3. Respecting the processes of corporate discernment, accountability and support offered by individual spiritual communities.

4. Spiritual directors act with responsibility towards colleagues by:

1. Respecting other spiritual directors, ministers and professionals and not disparaging their work.

2. Requesting their directees to inform other relevant professionals, e.g. psychologist, that they are receiving spiritual direction, where appropriate.

3. Not giving to or receiving from other spiritual directors, ministers or other professionals, information about their directee without the written permission of the directee.

5. Spiritual directors act with responsibility towards society by:

1. Representing their qualifications clearly and accurately in any public communication.

2. Providing information about their services in a way that serves the ministry and charism of contemplative Spiritual Direction.

3. Not making statements that contain false, misleading information or misrepresentations about the value and expectations of spiritual direction or a particular spiritual director, nor statements that exploit a directee’s fears, anxieties or emotions, or belie the ‘slow action of God’ that is inherent in spiritual direction.

4. Conforming to (Federal and the relevant state) legislation about non-discrimination.

5. Conforming to (Federal and the relevant state) legislation requiring the disclosure of information to public authorities in cases of disclosure by a directee of abuse or knowledge of abuse, danger to self or crime.

6. Spiritual directors act with responsibility in the role of supervisor by:

1.  Seeking to provide a compassionate, contemplative and discerning presence to skillfully accompany directors in for the benefit of their directees growth in God.

2. Not providing supervision or consultation without the necessary knowledge and skill to supervise or consult appropriately and only within their areas of knowledge and competence.

3. Working towards setting clear, appropriate, and culturally sensitive boundaries.

4. Not engaging in any dual or multiple relationships with a supervisee in which there is a risk of exploitation of or potential harm to their supervisee.

5. Evaluating their supervisee’s performance in a manner that is fair and respectful.

6. Ensuring supervisees to act responsibly toward their directees, themselves, communities, colleagues and society by and ascribing to this code of ethics or another a recognized code of ethics for spiritual directors.

7. Communicating to supervisee that the supervisor does not carry liability insurance for the supervisee and is not liable for breaches of ethics on the part of the supervisee. As such they may  encouraged to consider the purchase of liability insurance to cover their individual practice.

8. Encouraging Supervisees to affirm membership in a professional association for spiritual directors.

7. Spiritual directors act with responsibility towards students by:

1. Instructing only within their areas of knowledge and competence.

2. Evaluating their participants’ ongoing development in a manner that is fair, respectful and transparent.

3. Ensuring all participants have multiple and varied opportunities for spiritual direction experiences in a supervised environment which is safe for both director and directee.

4. Taking reasonable steps to ensure that directees are informed that their director is in formation.

5. Ensuring that their relationships with students are constructive, non-exploitative, and respectful.

6. Ensuring that ethical responsibilities of spiritual directors, as set out in this code, are integral to students’ course work.

Data Protection Protocol

Jackie Sevier, M.A.

Revised 2024

My spiritual direction and supervision practice often involves the sharing of electronic data via email or shared drive. As a supervisor, I am obligated to protect the data and confidentiality of my directees, supervisees and their directees. This policy on data protection will inform how I intend to manage the confidential information shared with me.

Email & Contact information: 

• I maintain a password-protected email address, that only I can access, for receiving my supervision case documentation and for communicating with my directees/supervisees.

• I use encryption software - SendSafely Chrome Extension, so I can send encrypted files and messages directly from Gmail. Nobody other than me and the people I send items to, can view them. 

• I have the following confidentiality statement at the bottom of my outgoing email:

CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE: The contents of this email message and any attachments are intended solely for the addressee(s) and may contain confidential and/or privileged information and may be legally protected from disclosure. If you are not the intended recipient of this message or their agent, or if this message has been addressed to you in error, please immediately alert the sender by reply email and then delete this message and any attachments. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any use, dissemination, copying, or storage of this message or its attachments is strictly prohibited. 

Electronic Devices (computer/tablet/smart phone) 

• I use fingerprint, face scan or screen lock technology on any device on which I receive email; make phone calls; or conduct video conferencing with directees/supervisees.

• I maintain password-protected accounts, that I do not share with others, for things like videoconferencing, calendaring, self-scheduling, mobile phoning. 

• I keep electronic direction/supervision documents in a separate, password-protected electronic file (stored locally on my personal computer or a locked physical file) until I am finished with them.

• I delete electronic files or shred physical files regularly or at the conclusion of the direction/supervision relationship.

• I have set a reminder on my calendar to delete any overlooked confidential material. 

Other Practices:

• I insist that supervisees disguise names and identities of their directees both in their written cases and in their conversations with me.

• I have included data protection practices into my covenant with supervisees. 

I survey my devices regularly and delete any unnecessary confidential files that have escaped my notice.