Spiritual Direction
Spiritual Direction is an ongoing relationship in which one person helps another recognize and nurture the presence of the sacred already at work in their lives. Our list of local spiritual directors (below) includes those who meet with directees on site at St. Martin's and those who operate from home. For more information, contact the Rev. Jarrett Kerbel or the Rev. Barbara Ballenger.
List of Spiritual Directors
These area Spiritual Directors are currently taking new clients. St. Martin’s doesn’t formally endorse these practitioners, but offers their names for your consideration. We recommend that when making a decision about a spiritual director that you schedule a visit or two to determine if the fit is good and if their approach meets your needs.
If you are a Spiritual Director and would like to be included on this list, please contact the Rev. Barbara Ballenger, Associate for Spiritual Formation and Care.
Directors who can see directees at Hilary House at St. Martin’s
Kathleen Cleaver (Mt. Airy)
[email protected], Phone: 267.297.6036, Website: KathyCleaver.com
Through prayerful attention, Kathy meets with her directees to help them discern their own individual truth, inner wisdom and God’s loving guidance for them. Her areas of experience include: joys and challenges of marriage and family life, mid-life issues, enlarging images of God, dreams as a spiritual practice, life transitions and loss, marginalization, and building disciplines of a contemplative life. Kathy has been a Spiritual Director since 2000. She holds a M.A. in Holistic Spirituality/Spiritual Direction, CAS in Pastoral Counseling, Masters in Social Work and B.S. in Nursing. She can meet at Hilary House or at her home office.
Angela York Crane
[email protected], Phone: 215.253.8847
Angela provides spiritual direction in the manner of Friends (Quakers). During sessions, offered in a relationship of equals, we listen to the Inward Light and hunt for the clues of Spirit to discern what Inner Truth wants to be made known and how to listen to and live from our Inner Authority, the Risen Christ within. We look at the gifts of the light and the dark, explore how to integrate them for wholeness, and use the tension to birth further creativity in work, play, and daily living.
The Rev. Anne Ritchings
[email protected], Phone: 267.297.8467
Anne is a retired Episcopal priest who has received training in spiritual direction from The General Theological Seminary in New York and has a certificate from The Adelynrood School of Spiritual Direction. While rooted in the Benedictine and Celtic traditions of Christianity, she is familiar and comfortable with a variety of spiritual practices and traditions. She has experience working with interfaith direction and has been a spiritual companion for a number of artists. She describes her practice as “compassionate listening where we work together to discern the Spirit’s movement in your life.”
Directors who work from their own homes/studios
Susan Cole (Mt. Airy)
[email protected], Phone: 215.242.0611 x2
(Note: Because Susan is a member of St. Martin’s she does not see St. Martin’s parishioners.)
Susan sees people from a variety of faith traditions, including a large number of Jews. She is a retired United Methodist pastor with a strong background in Ignatian spirituality (trained as a director in that tradition). Because it is important for a director to be compatible with a directee, she invites people to come spend a session at no charge, to get acquainted, with space for questions and concerns.
Nicholas Collura, MDiv
[email protected], Website: https://nicholascollura.com
Nicholas works as an interfaith palliative care chaplain and is also a visiting retreat director at St. Raphaela Center in Philadelphia. He trained as a spiritual director at the Jesuit Collaborative in Boston and earned his MDiv at the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry before spending three years of his life as a Jesuit on the West Coast. A student of film and literature, he brings a reverence for the creative imagination to his work with directees. He works often with spiritual seekers and those with a Catholic or Jesuit connection, but welcomes all directees regardless of life experience or religious background.
Rabbi Dayle A. Friedman
[email protected], Phone: 215.266.3647, Website: www.growingolder.net
Rabbi Dayle A. Friedman is a spiritual director, social innovator, chaplain, and scholar. She has trained rabbis and chaplains, accompanied frail elders, taught and guided individuals embarking upon their “third chapters.” Through Growing Older, her Philadelphia-based, national practice, Rabbi Dayle offers spiritual direction for people beyond midlife, spiritual care for individuals and families facing dementia and frailty, and consulting on medical decisions and end-of-life care.
Rabbi Malkah Binah Klein
[email protected], Phone: 215.510.2172
Malkah Binah is a compassionate spiritual director who offers deep listening and supports individuals in connecting with their inner wisdom and the flow of Divine Love. She intuitively and gently weaves into her work a variety of modalities for grounding and deepening the connection to Spirit, including qi gong, writing, drawing, sacred text study, and chant. Malkah Binah meets with directees in her home in West Mt. Airy and, if need be, is also willing to explore sessions in your home or Skype sessions.
Connie Lezenby
[email protected], Phone: 267.664.3721
Connie offers individual and small group spiritual direction at Gwynedd Friends Meeting or in Lansdale, PA. She works with seekers from many faith traditions or those beginning a spiritual journey. Through questions and silent reflection we will explore your unique relationship with God, spiritual practices that deepen intimacy and the freedom that flows in a life lived in the awareness of God’s love. Sliding scale fee.
Rector (215) 247-7466 ext. 101 The Rev. Jarrett Kerbel (he/him) was educated at Northwestern University, the University of Chicago and Union Theological Seminary in New York City. He was ordained Priest in 1995 in Danville, Pennsylvania where he worked as a Hospital Chaplain and a Head Start teacher. Pastoral positions followed at the Church of St. John the Evangelist in Flossmoor, Illinois, St. Paul and the Redeemer in Chicago, and then Rector at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Park Ridge, Illinois. After following his wife, the Rev. Dr. Alison Boden, to her new position in Princeton, New Jersey, he was called to be the Executive Director of the Crisis Ministry of Mercer County. The largest food pantry and the gateway agency for Homelessness Prevention services in Mercer County, the Crisis Ministry also runs a Welfare to Work program and an innovative free farmers market. Jarrett became Rector of St. Martin’s in February 2011. He formerly served as the co-chair of Philadelphians Organized to Witness Empower and Rebuild (POWER). Jarrett serves as Dean of the Wissahickon Deanery and is an Associate of the Order of the Holy Cross. He is an Adjunct Professor at Princeton Theological Seminary where he co-teaches a regular class on Faith Based Community Organizing, Theology and Practice. Jarrett has been published in Sojourners, the Huffington Post, Yours the Power, and the Journal of Public Theology. He is the father of two children, Timothy and Martha. Associate Rector (215) 247-7466 ext. 102 Barbara (she/her) joined St.
Martin’s in 2014. In June
Barbara’s family moved from State College to Philadelphia, where her husband
works at Drexel University. They’re excited to be a part of St. Martin’s
vibrant faith community. Barbara’s family includes her husband, Jess, adult
son, Jesse, and high school-aged daughter, Hannah. Non-human family members
include Tara the rat and Oakley the dog. Barb began
seminary in the fall of 2017. Read more here. In June 2019, Barb was ordained a Deacon in the Episcopal Church,
on her path to full priestly ordination later in the year. Read more about becoming a deacon here. On Friday, December 13, 2019, Barbara was ordained to the Priesthood at St. Martin's.The Rev. Jarrett Kerbel
The Rev. Barbara Ballenger
Barbara hales originally from northeast Ohio, where she grew up and went to
school. She received a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Kent State
University and a master’s degree in pastoral ministry from Ursuline College.
Barbara’s ministry background is based largely in the Roman Catholic Church
where she worked for more than 17 years in a variety of faith-based positions,
including parish faith formation director, campus minister, newspaper reporter
and program coordinator for Catholic Relief Services. She also worked for eight
years in a performing arts ministry as a retreat leader, songwriter and
storyteller.
Most recently Barbara worked for Episcopal Relief & Development as a
training coordinator in US Disaster Preparedness and Response. She joined the
Episcopal Church in 2010, with the long-term goal of priestly ordination.
Woven through her work in ministry is a passion for social, economic and
environmental justice. Over the years, Barbara has worked on issues of peace
and non-violence, cultural understanding, global and domestic poverty,
sustainability and environmental stewardship.
For fun Barbara loves to read, make music, and turn broken things into mosaics.
You’ll probably also see her riding her bike around West Mount Airy and
Chestnut Hill. She might even stop and ask you for directions.
