Protestant Spiritual Exercises. Joseph D. Driskill

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      PROTESTANT

      SPIRITUAL

      EXERCISES

      THEOLOGY

      HISTORY

      AND

      PRACTICE

       Joseph D. Driskill

      Copyright © 1999 by Joseph D. Driskill

      Morehouse Publishing, 4775 Linglestown Road, Harrisburg, PA 17112

      Morehouse Publishing, 445 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016

       Morehouse Publishing is an imprint of Church Publishing Incorporated.

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher.

      Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

       Cover design by Corey Kent

      Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Driskill, Joseph D.

      Protestant spiritual exercises: theology, history, and practice / Joseph D. Driskill.

      p. cm.

      Includes bibliographical references.

      ISBN 0-8192-1759-X (paper)

      1. Spirituality—Protestant churches—History of doctrines. I. Title.

      BV4501.2.D688 1999

      248’.088'2044—dc21 99-12527

       To the people whose stories are contained herein

      Contents

       Acknowledgments

       Introduction

       1. Theological Affirmations

       Introduction

       The Gifts of the Spirit

       The Lived Experience of Faith

       Conclusion

       2. The Development of the Spiritual Life

       Introduction

       The Spiritual Journey: Faithfulness to the Will of God

       Beginning the Spiritual Journey

       A Model for Spiritual Development

       Using Spiritual Practices

       Spiritual Discipline

       Spiritual Direction

       Spiritual Discernment

       Spiritual Development

       3. Guidelines for Using Spiritual Practices

       Introduction

       Skills of the Leader

       Context

       The Use of Technological Resources

       Personal Characteristics of the Participants

       The Spiritual Practices

       The Teaching Process

       Resources for Referral

       Group Process

       Spiritual Growth for the Congregation

       4. Spiritual Practices

       Introduction

       Relaxation Exercises

       Rule of Life

       Four-Stranded Garland

       Prayer of Examen

       Prayer for a New Earth

       Morning and Evening Prayer

       Keeping a Journal

       Covenant Group

       Conclusion

       Appendix

       Notes

       Bibliography

      Acknowledgments

      I wish to express my gratitude to a number of people who have contributed to the making of this book. William McKinney, President of Pacific School of Religion, planted the seed by asking if I had developed a book on Protestant spirituality. Professor C. S. Song invited me to provide church leaders from Taiwan with a continuing education session focused on Protestant spiritual exercises. In the midst of this, Debra Farrington, from Morehouse, called to discuss a project on which she was working. When the conversation turned to my work, her interest was piqued and eventually a contract was signed. Debra has been a marvelous mentor through this entire process.

      The support of others must also be recognized.