“Formation must be centered on Jesus . . . Formation must be carried out in community . . . And formation must be tied to mission . . . We are formed as we go.” – Rich Villodas
Earlier this year, the Journal of Spiritual Formation and Soul Care published a supplemental issue on the Protestant Spiritual Formation Movement. The purpose of the issue is to reflect on the past, attend to the present, and lean into the future of the Movement.
This week we want to draw your attention to Rich Villodas’ prescient contribution, “Christ Formed in Us: A Pastoral Reflection on Spiritual Formation” (download and print the PDF here). Villodas argues that formation is not a set of techniques but a lifelong reorientation around the Spirit-dependent way of Jesus in community and mission. The essay highlights the inseparability of emotional health, communal confession, and encounter with the Holy Spirit in mature Christian life and touches upon some contemporary malformations shaping the church, particularly politicized, racialized, and compartmentalized discipleship.
Michael Di Fuccia, on behalf of the Editorial Team