What is Spiritual Formation?
Here are a number of definitions of spiritual formation from different Christians organisations and authors:
1. A call to spiritual formation 2009.
Christian spiritual formation is the process of being shaped by the Spirit into the likeness of Christ, filled with love for God and the world.
2. Dallas Willard.
‘Spiritual formation’ refers to the process of shaping our spirit and giving it a definite character . . . Spiritual formation in Christ is the process whereby the inmost being of the individual (the heart, will, or spirit) take on the quality or character of Jesus Himself. The Great Omission (San Francisco, CA: HarperSanFrancisco, 2006), 53
Christian spiritual formation is the process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others. It is inspired by the Holy Spirit and grounded in Scripture and a faith community.
4. Presbyterian Church of the United States.
Spiritual formation is the activity of the Holy Spirit which molds our lives into the likeness of Jesus Christ.
5. Richard E. Averbeck
Spiritual formation is… “the ministry through which we seek to stimulate and support the ongoing spiritually transforming work of the Holy Spirit in and through the personal lives, relationships, and ministries of genuine believers so that we all progressively become more conformed to the image of Christ according to the will of God the Father (Romans 8:26-30).” Richard E. Averbeck, “Spirit, Community, and Mission: A Biblical Theology for Spiritual Formation,” The Journal for Spiritual Formation & Soul Care 1, no. 1 (Spring 2008): 27
6. Tyndale University & Seminary
“Spiritual formation is the continuing response to the reality of God’s grace shaping us into the likeness of Jesus Christ, through the work of the Holy Spirit, in the community of faith for the sake of the world,” by Jeffrey P. Greenman and Donald Goertz, “Towards a Definition of Spiritual Formation”
7. M. Robert Mulholland, Jr.
“a process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others” (Invitation to a Journey: A Road Map for Spiritual Formation (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1993), 12)
