Spiritual Direction
Our Parish has two St. Jean Vianney parishioners trained and certified in Spiritual Ddirection. Diane Abbondante and Jo Gomez offer their ministry in Spiritual Direction here at St. Jean Vianney, and virtually. “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.” ( 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. 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 not counseling, therapy or financial advice, but is regularly scheduled conversations about God and one’s relationship with God shared with trained professionals.
Spiritual Directors are interested in the desires, tranquilities, anxieties, joys or sorrows you experience during prayer, as well as the ideas and reflections you have during prayer and in daily life.
The Spiritual Director serves as a holy listener in a confidential, non-judgmental, and supportive setting. A Spiritual Director does not direct or tell a seeker what to do or not do. Rather using the word direction implies an attentiveness to the ways in which the Spirit is working in the seeker’s life. The Holy Spirit is the active presence always available to guide in every contemplative encounter of spiritual direction. (Adapted from William Stafford and Janet Ruffing)
Here is what others have said about going to Spiritual Direction:
It helps to keep prayer and God at the center of my life.
It allows me a space for radical transparency.
It helps to discern the voice of God and the voice not of God.
It helps to develop an integrated Christian character
It keeps me accountable to my faith commitments
It helps me to notice, own and to share with God my struggles, joys,
hopes, pain and gratitude.
Diane Abbondante
Diane is wife, a mom, a Mimi and a now retired RN of 30 years. While going
through Diaconate formation classes with my husband Richard, I felt a great
desire to go deeper in my own spiritual life. So, in March of 2010 I started meeting with
a Spiritual Director once a month, and I still meet with this Spiritual Director today. He
has accompanied me through discernments, hardships, hurricanes and so much more.
After a few years it was suggested to me by my director and others that I consider
training to be a director as well. This took me by surprise. While on retreat to discern
this call I felt the Lord telling me “Hearts will be opened and Souls will be changed.” I
felt the Lord had opened my own heart and stirred a flame in my soul to know his unconditional love for me. These were also the words I needed to hear to apply for the internship. It was a two-year journey and I trusted if God wanted this for me he would continue to open doors.
I was certified in 2015 from the Archdiocesan Spirituality Center in Metairie,
LA.. under the direction of Sister Dorothy Trosclair, O.P. and Sr. Noel Toomey, Op. I
received my certificate and approval to do Spiritual Direction in the Diocese of New
Orleans at that time and now able to do direction in the Diocese of Baton Rouge.
Since that time, I have completed additional training to give the 19th annotation (The
Spiritual exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola in daily life). Watching others grow in
relationship with Jesus, seeing them learn the gifts of discernment, guiding them
through the joys and struggles of daily life has been the greatest gift that I get to
receive. It is amazing to watch this transformation, but even more so Jesus becomes real to me
as I listen and watch what Jesus is doing in the life of the seeker in front of me.
I also attend monthly peer group supervision meetings for Spiritual Directors in the Diocese
of Baton Rouge. I am member of the Louisiana Spiritual Directors Association and the
Ignatian Ministries Spiritual Directors Collective lead by Becky Eldredge Spiritual
Director.
As a parishioner of SJV I serve as a Eucharistic minister, Lector, Homebound Minister,
and a member of the Catholic Daughters Association. I assist my husband Deacon
Richard at Baptisms and the Marriage preparation process.
My greatest joys in life are my family and helping them in their busy lives. I love all
things Ignatian and seeing God in my everyday life experiences. I love my morning
coffee with God, morning mass, my daily examen and a good piece of Chocolate. I love
spiritual reading and my time alone in adoration with God. I love to watch Tennis,
woman’s basketball, and I am a big fan of LSU baseball and football and recently a new joy
playing Pickleball with my grandchildren. The greatest privilege I have is that God has allowed me to witness hearts being opened to love God, follow God and grow in intimacy and
relationship with Him. I look forward to walking with my fellow parishioners and others who
desire a closer walk with Jesus and the gift of spiritual direction.
Presently I see directees for one-on-one Spiritual Direction at SJV, at my home and
virtually by appointment.
May the love of God become real for you and stir a fire of flame in your soul.
“All for the Greater Glory of God”
Diane Abbondante
985-665-2210
[email protected]
Our Parish has two St. Jean Vianney parishioners trained and certified in Spiritual Ddirection. Diane Abbondante and Jo Gomez offer their ministry in Spiritual Direction here at St. Jean Vianney, and virtually. “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.” ( 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. 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 not counseling, therapy or financial advice, but is regularly scheduled conversations about God and one’s relationship with God shared with trained professionals.
Spiritual Directors are interested in the desires, tranquilities, anxieties, joys or sorrows you experience during prayer, as well as the ideas and reflections you have during prayer and in daily life.
The Spiritual Director serves as a holy listener in a confidential, non-judgmental, and supportive setting. A Spiritual Director does not direct or tell a seeker what to do or not do. Rather using the word direction implies an attentiveness to the ways in which the Spirit is working in the seeker’s life. The Holy Spirit is the active presence always available to guide in every contemplative encounter of spiritual direction. (Adapted from William Stafford and Janet Ruffing)
Here is what others have said about going to Spiritual Direction:
It helps to keep prayer and God at the center of my life.
It allows me a space for radical transparency.
It helps to discern the voice of God and the voice not of God.
It helps to develop an integrated Christian character
It keeps me accountable to my faith commitments
It helps me to notice, own and to share with God my struggles, joys,
hopes, pain and gratitude.
Diane Abbondante
Diane is wife, a mom, a Mimi and a now retired RN of 30 years. While going
through Diaconate formation classes with my husband Richard, I felt a great
desire to go deeper in my own spiritual life. So, in March of 2010 I started meeting with
a Spiritual Director once a month, and I still meet with this Spiritual Director today. He
has accompanied me through discernments, hardships, hurricanes and so much more.
After a few years it was suggested to me by my director and others that I consider
training to be a director as well. This took me by surprise. While on retreat to discern
this call I felt the Lord telling me “Hearts will be opened and Souls will be changed.” I
felt the Lord had opened my own heart and stirred a flame in my soul to know his unconditional love for me. These were also the words I needed to hear to apply for the internship. It was a two-year journey and I trusted if God wanted this for me he would continue to open doors.
I was certified in 2015 from the Archdiocesan Spirituality Center in Metairie,
LA.. under the direction of Sister Dorothy Trosclair, O.P. and Sr. Noel Toomey, Op. I
received my certificate and approval to do Spiritual Direction in the Diocese of New
Orleans at that time and now able to do direction in the Diocese of Baton Rouge.
Since that time, I have completed additional training to give the 19th annotation (The
Spiritual exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola in daily life). Watching others grow in
relationship with Jesus, seeing them learn the gifts of discernment, guiding them
through the joys and struggles of daily life has been the greatest gift that I get to
receive. It is amazing to watch this transformation, but even more so Jesus becomes real to me
as I listen and watch what Jesus is doing in the life of the seeker in front of me.
I also attend monthly peer group supervision meetings for Spiritual Directors in the Diocese
of Baton Rouge. I am member of the Louisiana Spiritual Directors Association and the
Ignatian Ministries Spiritual Directors Collective lead by Becky Eldredge Spiritual
Director.
As a parishioner of SJV I serve as a Eucharistic minister, Lector, Homebound Minister,
and a member of the Catholic Daughters Association. I assist my husband Deacon
Richard at Baptisms and the Marriage preparation process.
My greatest joys in life are my family and helping them in their busy lives. I love all
things Ignatian and seeing God in my everyday life experiences. I love my morning
coffee with God, morning mass, my daily examen and a good piece of Chocolate. I love
spiritual reading and my time alone in adoration with God. I love to watch Tennis,
woman’s basketball, and I am a big fan of LSU baseball and football and recently a new joy
playing Pickleball with my grandchildren. The greatest privilege I have is that God has allowed me to witness hearts being opened to love God, follow God and grow in intimacy and
relationship with Him. I look forward to walking with my fellow parishioners and others who
desire a closer walk with Jesus and the gift of spiritual direction.
Presently I see directees for one-on-one Spiritual Direction at SJV, at my home and
virtually by appointment.
May the love of God become real for you and stir a fire of flame in your soul.
“All for the Greater Glory of God”
Diane Abbondante
985-665-2210
[email protected]
Jo Gomez is a certified spiritual director with training from the Archdiocese of New Orleans Spirituality Center, under the direction of Sr. Dorothy Trosclair, O.P. Jo began providing ongoing spiritual direction in the fall of 2023. She holds a Bachelor of Science in elementary education from LSU, a Master of Religious Education from Loyola University New Orleans, and a certificate in spiritual direction.
When asked about what attracted her to spiritual direction, Jo replied, “I was raised Catholic, and I was active in church activities as a teen. But it was wasn’t college that I began to take my faith seriously. I sought out a spiritual director to help me develop a consistent prayer life. This marked the beginning of my lifelong relationship with spiritual direction, which I find an invaluable resource for living out my faith more consistently and appreciating God at work in my life.”
Jo recognizes spiritual direction as a gift of being listened to and affirmed in her unique relationship with the Trinity.
Jo and her husband Rudy have five grown children and eight grandchildren. They are members of Saint Jean Vianney Catholic Church parish. Jo participates in her parish as a lector and spiritual director. Her service roles within the church have included social responsibility chair on the parish council, eucharistic minister, Catholic school teacher and catechist. She has also been involved in retreat ministry.
Jo has an ongoing interest in learning scripture more deeply and developing practical tools for spiritual growth. She enjoys reading, spending time in nature, and hanging out with her grandchildren. Jo is available for spiritual direction in person and virtually via Zoom or FaceTime.
[email protected]
225-202-8636
When asked about what attracted her to spiritual direction, Jo replied, “I was raised Catholic, and I was active in church activities as a teen. But it was wasn’t college that I began to take my faith seriously. I sought out a spiritual director to help me develop a consistent prayer life. This marked the beginning of my lifelong relationship with spiritual direction, which I find an invaluable resource for living out my faith more consistently and appreciating God at work in my life.”
Jo recognizes spiritual direction as a gift of being listened to and affirmed in her unique relationship with the Trinity.
Jo and her husband Rudy have five grown children and eight grandchildren. They are members of Saint Jean Vianney Catholic Church parish. Jo participates in her parish as a lector and spiritual director. Her service roles within the church have included social responsibility chair on the parish council, eucharistic minister, Catholic school teacher and catechist. She has also been involved in retreat ministry.
Jo has an ongoing interest in learning scripture more deeply and developing practical tools for spiritual growth. She enjoys reading, spending time in nature, and hanging out with her grandchildren. Jo is available for spiritual direction in person and virtually via Zoom or FaceTime.
[email protected]
225-202-8636