106. Alison Umminger Mattison, Spiritual Director and Retreat Facilitator

Show Notes:

Alison Umminger Mattison talks about a 20-year stint as an English professor, a marriage, a 13-year-old daughter, and publishing a book. She also pursued a master's in Christian spirituality and spiritual direction certification, focusing on spiritual direction, work, retreat, ministry, and facilitating silent retreats with themed content. She has moved around the world, from Boston to London, DC to Missouri, Indiana to Atlanta, and now resides in Carrollton, Georgia. She also discusses her master's degree and her spiritual guidance and retreat ministries.

A Journey in Spiritual Companioning

Alison talks about a spiritual retreat she attended, her experience there,  and how this led to a new direction in her life. She explains that spiritual companioning is a listening vocation that involves spending time with people in a healthy space, listening to their stories, heart desires, and listening without judgment. Spiritual companioning focuses on walking with people as far as they need to go. This is different from being a priest, rabbi, minister, or pastor, as it is not about running an organization. Alison discusses her approach to finding spiritual directors. She also shares her experience with two recent retreats, including one on the art and spirituality of Gerard Manley Hopkins.

What Happens on The Retreat 

Alison talks about her retreats, which include guided meditations, befriending darkness, soul collage, imaginative prayer, and visual meditations. The first evening, she walks people through a guided meditation, asking them to think about what word or phrase is coming up for them. After leading the meditation, she asks people to trust and let go of their needs. She discusses befriending darkness and the importance of being with others in the same situation. She encourages people to spend time in silence and create mandalas to explore the depths of their lives. She also offers micro spiritual direction, and introduces attendees to an imaginative prayer technique. Lastly, the retreat concludes with a visual meditation called Vizio Divina, where people look at a picture and reflect on what they are attracted to, resist, or miss from it. 

Understanding Prayer and Meditation

Alison talks about meditation and prayer. She shares that monks often use techniques like Lectio Divina, where one takes a verse and meditates on it and asks for help or guidance. This technique allows individuals to practice patience and kindness, allowing them to carry the word with them throughout the day. She emphasizes that prayer is a toolkit for spiritual direction, and that each individual may find a form of prayer or meditation that works for them. 

The Work of a Spiritual Director

As a spiritual director, Alison often begins by asking questions about the person's spiritual journey and their current state. She has learned to trust her intuition and also listens for words, phrases, or images that come up during the conversation. If they resonate with the person, they may be more open to discussing them. She also listens for consolation or desolation, whether the person is moving away from desolation or towards greater faith, hope, and love. She asks open-ended questions, allowing the person to go deeper with their feelings and experiences. She never asks if something sounds like it's a hopeless or unfulfilling space, as it allows the person to explore their feelings and experiences. She emphasizes the importance of listening and trusting in the process of counseling.

Spiritual Direction as an Ancient Practice

Alison explains what spirituality means to her and that the role of a spiritual director dates back to monks. It has evolved from being primarily clergy to becoming more popular among the laity. Spiritual directors International offers a broad range of practitioners, including shamans, artists, and Zen practitioners. They serve different religious traditions and can be found in schools that work with their traditions. While the role may have been traditionally filled by a formal clergy member, it is now becoming more accessible to lay people. The term "spiritual director" is not new, but it is becoming more common and accessible.

Teaching Fiction Writing and Screenwriting

Alison has a PhD in 20th century literature and an MFA in creative writing. She teaches fiction writing and screenwriting, focusing on narrative perspectives rather than helping students create screenplays. Her journey from a PhD to an MFA and screenwriting began when she struggled with plotting and received rejections for her first novel. She started taking screenwriting classes in Atlanta to put joy back into writing and improve her plotting skills. Screenwriting is structured, making it easier for students to focus on plotting and avoid nebulous spaces. It also provides a social environment, with table reads and conversations about topics that transcend the isolating feel of writing. This social aspect of screenwriting helps students form friendships and feel more comfortable sharing their work. The conversation turns to education in today’s society, and developing classes of interest to today’s students, and Alison’s book. 

Harvard Professors and Courses of Influences

Alison’s favorite courses include the Myth of America class, and she explains why she found this class to be particularly interesting and meaningful. The course focuses on the frontier, western expansion, and the concept of individualism, as well as the individual versus culture debate. She believes that the American dream concept is still rich and valuable for students to explore. 

Timestamps:

02:00: Spiritual Direction and Retreats 

06:15: Differences Between Spiritual Direction and Other Roles 

15:39: Meditation and Prayer in Spiritual Direction 

26:45: Challenges and Rewards of Teaching 

38:54: Personal Life and Book 

40:42: Influential Courses and Myth of America 

42:51: Future Plans and Invitation to Retreats 

Links:

Linkedin:  www.linkedin.com/in/alison-umminger-mattison/

Website:  sacredlistening.net

Upcoming retreat:  https://ignatiushouse.org/calendar/spiritual-writing-retreat-jan2025/

Featured Non-profit

The featured non-profit of this episode is National History Day, recommended by Zachary Schrag who reports:

"Hi. I'm Zachary Schrag, class of 1992 the featured nonprofit of this episode of The 92 report is National History Day. National History Day has given millions of students in grades six through 12 the chance to pursue original historical research and to present their findings in a variety of formats. I am proud to have served as a volunteer judge at local and national contests, and to have contributed to the 50 for 50 fundraising campaigns. You can learn more at NHD. That's National History day.org, and now with this week's episode, it's your host, Will Bachmann."

To learn more about their work visit: NationalHistoryDay.org.