Soul Shepherds: 7 Spiritual Guides
Today: Julian of Norwich
Did you know that 88% of American Christians have progressed no further than the spiritual 'toddler' stage? Or that, despite this, there’s a spike in hunger for a deeper connection with God? These shocking truths point to a critical gap in how the church is helping hungry people grow spiritually—one that needs urgent attention. This data comes from two sources: Grey Matter Research and Barna.
First, Grey Matter Research’s 2022 study reveals a harsh reality: the Western church is failing to help Christians grow spiritually. By measuring spiritual growth like physical development, the data reveals that 88% of American Christians have not progressed beyond a spiritual toddler stage:
The second statistical snapshot was produced by Barna, also conducted in 2022. The study shows rising spiritual hunger across the U.S., signaling a hunger for deeper connection with God that the church is ill-prepared to meet:
In light of this troubling data about spiritual maturity and the hopeful data about growing desire for deeper connection with God, I feel an urgent calling to revive ancient models of spiritual formation—models that birthed wise guides who possessed proven and tested ability to guide people into deeper lives with Jesus. This is why I’m launching a spiritual direction training program in mid-March, to help fill communities with spiritual guides possessing the capacity to help others grow deeply in their faith. You can find out more about this training program HERE.
Part of my own preparation process for this training has been to immerse myself in the rich tradition of spiritual direction within Christian spirituality. I’m sharing seven spiritual guides who have caught my attention and helped spark my own journey into this beautiful ministry. Today, I’m drawing attention to Julian of Norwich.
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Julian of Norwich
When I think of Julian of Norwich, I think first of her core conviction: our souls are made for direct experience of God’s love and presence. We are capable of knowing God more than theologically or doctrinally. We are capable of doing more than follow moral rules. We possess a capacity that is the queen of human possibilities: we can know God personally, richly, and intimately. And this experiential knowledge of God changes us just as it changed her.
Julian was born around 1342, in Norwich, in eastern England. It was a time marked by the Black Death, political instability, and social unrest in England. Despite the turbulence of her era, Julian found a path of inner peace and deep connection with God. She chose the life of an anchorite, which meant she lived in a small, self-contained room attached to St. Julian’s Church in Norwich. The isolation she experienced in this cell gave space for her to deepen her life with God through prayer and contemplation. While she lived the life of a hermit within that small cell, there was a window opening onto the community. It was to the window people came for direction from a woman who began to be known for prayer, contemplation, and genuine encounters with Living God.
You can see in Julian’s effort to navigate the path to deeper awareness of God’s love one of the characteristic marks of a spiritual director. A man or woman who intends to guide others into deeper attentiveness to God’s Presence must know something of that interior way. Her guidance had the mark of authenticity. Those who came to her for direction knew she had traveled far on interior journey to a deeper encounter of God’s love and compassion.
Part of Julian’s journey into a deeper awareness of God was rooted in a severe illness at the age of 30 that nearly ended her life prematurely. Most of those closest to her during this dark moment had largely lost hope of her survival. But during her illness, Julian had a series of vivid visions that revealed to her the depth of God’s love for humanity. When she recovered, she wrote them down and these visions became the foundation for her later writings, particularly her book Revelations of Divine Love. At the heart of the revelation she had received was a deep awareness of the boundlessness of God’s love. This led her to one of her most famous statements, repeatedly shared with others: “All will be well.” This hopeful and comforting belief—that, no matter the circumstances, God’s love will make everything right in the end—became a cornerstone of her spiritual direction. While this conviction brought a never-ending stream of people to the window of her cell, it continues to be a message that has coresonated with countless people throughout the centuries.
I would be missing something important if I didn’t mention that Revelations of Divine Love is notable for more than its depth of spirituality. It was the first Christian writing in English authored by a woman. This was groundbreaking in an era when most theological works were written by men in Latin. Julian’s book was unique because it offered a woman’s perspective on God’s love, suffering, and redemption, all grounded in personal spiritual experience. As you read this report of her spiritual eyes opening to see and receive the revelation God gave, you’ll notice time and again that her focus was not on abstract doctrines but instead on the personal experience of God’s care and compassion, which she encouraged others to seek for themselves. When people sought her guidance, she listened attentively to their struggles and questions. Rather than offering doctrinal answers, Julian encouraged them to open their hearts to God’s love, trusting that even in the darkest times, God’s presence would bring healing and light.
In recent years, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, Julian’s teachings have found renewed relevance. As people faced isolation and separation due to lockdowns and social distancing, many turned to her writings for comfort. The solitude Julian had embraced in her own life resonated with those enduring emotional and spiritual loneliness. Her messages of God’s constant presence and the ultimate goodness of life provided guidance long after her life for many navigating the uncertainty of the pandemic.
Julian of Norwich became one of the most significant spiritual directors in Christian history and there is lots to learn from her example of spiritual direction. To my deep chagrin, I don’t always remember what she had learned through hard battle: “all will be well.” But, slowly, like a light beginning to rise once again after a dark time, I remember her guidance and am thankful for such a good and reliable guide.
In the spiritual guidance training I’m preparing, we will dig into Julian’s first-hand experience of God’s love and how she used that experience to help others find and follow the path to a life lived in awareness of God’s love.
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If you're ready to become the kind of guide who can help others cultivate a deeper relationship with God, I invite you to explore our upcoming spiritual direction training program. Reach out with questions or requests for more information. Together, we can access and bring to life the kind of environment and insights that Julian of Norwich discovered in her anchorite cell. Not only will we find a richer connection with God, we’ll become more capable of helping others journey toward true spiritual transformation.