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Spiritual Direction
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Two St. Patrick parishioners trained in spiritual direction, Faye Coorpender and Melinda LeBlanc, offer their services here at St. Patrick. Spiritual direction is help given by one Christian to another, thereby enabling that person to pay attention to God’s personal communication, to respond and grow in intimacy with this God, and live out the consequences of the relationship. (Taken from William A. Barry and William J. Connolly, The Practice of Spiritual Direction.)
- Spiritual direction is concerned with a person’s actual experience of a relationship with God.
- Spiritual direction is about a relationship. The religious experience is what happens in an ongoing relationship between the person and God. Most often this is a relationship that is experienced in prayer.
- Spiritual direction is a relationship that is going somewhere. God is leading the person to deeper faith and more generous service.
- The real spiritual director is God. God touches the human heart directly. The human spiritual director does not “direct” in the sense of giving advice and solving problems. Rather, the director helps a person respond to God’s invitation to a deeper relationship.
- Spiritual direction is not counseling, therapy or financial advice, but is regularly scheduled conversations about God and one’s relationship with God shared with trained professionals.
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Faye Coorpender
Faye Coorpender is an Ignation-trained spiritual director. A retired teacher of English Literature and Theology, a former youth minister, and RCIA catechist, Faye says that her role as a spiritual director is one of the greatest blessings in her life. Faye and her husband, Bill, are parishioners of St. Patrick Parish in Baton Rouge. In her spare time, Faye enjoys creative writing, blogging, gardening, and time shared with her six grandchildren.
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Melinda LeBlanc
Melinda received her certification in Spiritual Direction from the Archdiocesan Spirituality Center in New Orleans in 2012. After retiring, she served as spiritual director and campus minister at Christ the King parish at LSU for four years. She offers individual spiritual direction, group direction, the Spiritual Exercises, and retreats. She is currently on the board of the Louisiana Association of Spiritual Directors, serving as board secretary. She holds a Master of Pastoral Studies degree from Loyola University. She has been attending St. Patrick Parish for the past 20 years. As a parishioner, she serves as a Eucharistic minister and homebound minister. Melinda is excited to offer spiritual direction here at St. Patrick parish, and looks forward to sharing her love of God and prayer with fellow parishioners and others on their faith journey.
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