Spiritual Direction Relationship Between Priests and Nuns

[damoneccles]

Hello! I’m new to this forum community, thanks for having me

I have a question regarding spiritual direction and the priesthood…my question is: can a priest receive formal spiritual direction from a qualified nun? There are certainly many instances of deep ‘spiritual friendship’ throughout Church history, such as the relationship between Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross, but is anyone aware of any specific theological conflicts that would prohibit the spiritual direction from a nun offered to a priest? Are there any historical instances of teachings or prohibitions on the matter that I am not aware of?

Look forward to any answers I can receive!

 

[Cor_ad_Cor]

Why not? Your premise is that the “nun” (sister) is qualified, so why would this be an issue? There are lay people who guide others in spiritual direction; this would be one of those cases.

It would be unusual, perhaps, if only because of the ‘routine’ of the priest’s diocese or order, where the spiritual director may be more formalized into his formation from the beginning of his discernment/calling, and many times it’s another priest for those reasons - but that’s not to say a spiritual director for anyone must be a priest.