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What makes God the best listener?
“That’s how God listens to us.” Fr. Robert Presuttie said this during the half-day retreat at Divine Mercy University. The curious statement caught my attention. The retreat was tucked away in a five-day spiritual direction residency devoted to practicing listening skills. Each day the students would practice role-playing different scenarios that a spiritual director might encounter. They weren’t doing spiritual direction but practicing the foundational skill that makes for a good spiritual director: Deep listening. As an adjunct faculty member, I facilitated the role-plays, offered suggestions, and evaluated the students’ use of these skills. These skills included silence, presence, affirmation, empathy, and images. The goal for the students was to deepen…