Creighton University’s Graduate Certificate in Spiritual Direction and Directed Retreats (SDDR) offers a transformative experience of reflection, prayer, worship, community and study that cultivates a deep knowledge and personal appropriation of Christian Spirituality in the Ignatian tradition.
Grounded in the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola, the SDDR Certificate forms students to be certified spiritual directors using the contemplative-evocative method. The certificate includes a nine-month, directed practicum experience with supervised spiritual direction and retreat formation. You will cultivate an apostolic spirituality and personal renewal that will help you respond creatively and faithfully to the many urgent issues facing church and world in the twenty-first century.
Creighton offers guaranteed tuition discounts for this mission-centered program. The program addresses one of the four universal apostolic preferences of the Society of Jesus, namely to "show the way to God through the Spiritual Exercises and Discernment."
This program will give you opportunities to gain a deeper understanding of Christian Spirituality and integrate this learning with your own experience. You will be encouraged to internalize what you learn and apply it to your own life through careful methods of Ignatian discernment. Upon graduation, you will join a highly diverse alumni community of nearly 1,000 students in over forty states and fifteen countries.
The Graduate Certificate in Spiritual Direction and Directed Retreats is typically completed over the course of three summers. Students pursue in-person courses during the annual four-week summer term and learn in community with Cristian Spirituality Program (CSP) students from around the world. Online courses are also offered during the fall and spring semesters. To be admitted to the SDDR Certificate, you must have a history of regular spiritual direction and be at least 30 years of age.
Creighton's Christian Spirituality Program conducts an eight-day silent directed retreat to contemplate, relax and enjoy God's work. The retreat is hosted at Creighton University's Retreat Center located near Griswold, Iowa. The directors of the retreat are CSP graduate students trained in the evocative-contemplative approach of spiritual direction and supervised by experiences spiritual directors. The retreats are open to the public.
May 17–26, 2024 | May 28–June 6, 2024
For questions about the retreat or other non-admissions related questions, contact csp@creighton.edu.
New 2024 Summer Schedule: A single, four-week term with three-credit classes will run from June 10 through July 5. Creighton will also offer an optional one-week term with one-credit classes from July 8-13.