Training of Spiritual Directors for Effective Spiritual Development of Candidates to the Priesthood in St. Paul's Major Seminary Juba, South Sudan

Abstract

This study examined the training of spiritual directors for the effective spiritual development of candidates for the priesthood at St. Paul's Major Seminary, Juba-South Sudan. The objectives of the study are: To explain how the current spiritual directors in St. Paul's Major Seminary acquire interpersonal skills for facilitating spiritual development of candidates to priesthood; to state what guides the current spiritual directors in St. Paul's Major Seminary in Juba, to arriving at right discernment that promotes the spiritual development of candidates to priesthood; to expose the personal experiences of spiritual life of current spiritual directors which promotes spiritual development of candidates to priesthood; and to suggest approaches that could promote training of spiritual directors for effective spiritual development of candidates to the priesthood. The study was anchored on James Fowler's theory of faith development 2005 Convergent parallel mixed method research design was used in this study. Quantitative data was analyzed descriptively and presented using tables and figures. Qualitative data was analyzed and presented in narrative form. The main findings suggest that it is important to train spiritual directors before their assignment. In the formation houses, in order to equip them with the needed skills to help the candidates. In conclusion, the spiritual development of candidates to priesthood does not only depend on the training of spiritual directors, but also on the personality and experience of directors.