| CODE | MRT5861 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| TITLE | Spiritual Companioning, Confession and Safeguarding | ||||||||||||||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course | ||||||||||||||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Moral Theology | ||||||||||||||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | Spiritual direction is an ancient practice which in the Christian tradition dates back to the desert fathers. Although practices of mentorship pre-date the Christian practice of spiritual direction, the latter has its own rationale and goals. In spiritual direction one seeks to become aware of God's presence in personal life and to make life decisions in light of that awareness through the accompaniment of a gifted and trained mentor. The ministry of Spiritual Direction is a helping tool which enables the directee to articulate and understand one's own search for meaning through life situations and events. Spiritual direction as a practice distinguishes itself from psychotherapy or counseling although it utilizes many skills of these clinical practices. This study-unit aims at enabling participants to integrate their theological and psychological training from previous courses and utilizing it through theory and supervision in the practice of spiritual direction. The second part intends to prepare students for the ministry of confession by familiarising them with the different situations they can expect to meet and helping them acquire the attitudes and skills needed for this ministry. The study-unit also introduces the themes of abuse and safeguarding within the context of pastoral care. A number of lectures dedicated to this topic will present students with the foundation knowledge related to the causes, dynamics and effects of abuse, the key standards, values and principles of safeguarding, the main principles of self-care, and the basic ethical and legal obligations for those engaged in ministry with minors and vulnerable adults. Study-unit Aims: - At providing participants with the necessary knowledge and skills to help people asking for spiritual mentorship in a pastoral relationship; - To enable students to acquire the theoretical and practical skills in the area of hearing confessions that they will need in their priestly ministry; - To enable students to grasp the key standards, values, principles and obligations of safeguarding children and vulnerable adults. Learning Outcomes 1. Knowledge & Understanding By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: 1. evaluate and discuss the charism of Spiritual Direction; 2. distinguish Spiritual Direction from other types of personal accompaniment to a directee (psychotherapy, counseling, etc...); 3. improve ways how to implement an effective Spiritual Direction; 4. evaluate confession in the liturgical and pastoral contexts; 5. implement theoretical knowledge of moral theology into practice during the celebration of the Sacrament of Penance; 6. implement the key standards, values and principles of safeguarding; 7. identify different causes, dynamics and effects of abuse. 2. Skills By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: 1. develop an identity of the pastoral minister; 2. develop focused attentive listening skills; 3. develop empathy and compassion; 4. challenge different age groups they will meet in confession; 5. deal more confidently with the most common situations they will come across in the ministry of confession; 6. implement key safeguarding principles within their respective settings; 7. recommend interventions and courses of action to prevent abuse. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main Texts: Spiritual Direction - Barry William – Connolly William, The Practice of Spiritual Direction, New York: The Seabury Press, 1982. - Barry William, Spiritual Direction and the Encounter with God: A Theological enquiry, Mahwah/nj: Paulist Press, 1992. - Costa Maurizio, Direzione spirituale e discernimento, Rome: ADP Edizioni, 2002. - Douglas Julie M., Handbook for Spiritual Directors, Mahwah/nj: St. Pauls 1998. Confession - Gula, Richard, Ethics in Pastoral Ministry. New York: Paulist Press 1996. - Gula, Richard. To Walk together again, the Sacrament of Reconciliation. New York: Paulist Press 1989. - Pontifical Council for the Laity. Vademecum for Confessors Concerning Some Aspects of the Morality of Conjugal Life. Vatican City 1997. Safeguarding - Maltese Ecclesiastical Province (2014). On Cases of Sexual Abuse in Pastoral Ministry. Statement of Policy and Procedures in Cases of Sexual Abuse. - Pope Francis (2019). Apostolic Letter Vos Estis Lux Mundi. - Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (2020). Vademecum on Certain Points of Procedure in Treating Cases of Sexual Abuse of Minors committed by Clerics. Supplementary Readings: - Bonnici John S., Person to Person. Friendship and Love in the Life and Theology of Hans Urs von Balthasar, New York: St. Pauls, 1999. - Bonello Kathleen, A Historical Sketch of the Catholic Tradition of Spiritual Direction by means of Letters – A Representative Selection, in Melita Theologica 58/2 (2007) 31-88. - Brundell Michael, Traditions of Spiritual Guidance. Themes in Carmelite Spiritual Direction, in The Way 25/3 (1985) 236-245. (available at the Carmelite Institute Library - Mdina) - Bumpus Mary Rose – Langer Rebecca Bradburn, Supervision of Spiritual Directors: Engaging in Holy Mystery, Harrisburg, Morehouse Publishing, 2006. - Burrows Ruth, Guidelines for Mystical Prayer, Denville/nj: Dimension Books, 1980. - Empereur James L., Spiritual Direction and the Gay Person, London: Geoffrey Chapman, 1998. - Haring, Bernard. Shalom, Peace: the Sacrament of Reconciliation. New York: Paulist 1969. - Haring, Bernard. The Sacrament of Reconciliation. Slough 1980. - Friggs, B. (2012). Child Protection. The Essential Guide for Teachers and Other Professionals whose Work Involves Children. (Australia: Woodslane Pty Ltd). - Demasure, K., Fuchs, K.A. & Zollner H. (2018). (Eds.) Safeguarding. Reflecting on Child Abuse, Theology and Care (Leuven: Peteers). - Pope Francis (2018). Letter to the People of God. - Moore, J. (2020). The ABC of Child Protection. (London: Taylor and Francis). - Laws of Malta (2020). Cap. 602: Minor Protection (Alternative Care) Act. - Government of Malta (2020). Mandatory Reporting Guidelines for Professionals in Terms of Cap. 602 of the Laws of Malta. - Keeping Children Safe (2020). The International Child Safeguarding Standards. |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture and Independent Study | ||||||||||||||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Emmanuel Agius Charlo Camilleri Kevin Schembri Mark Scicluna Carl Mario Sultana |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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