Spiritual Direction

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Spiritual direction is the art and practice of companioning you on
your spiritual journey.   It is an ancient tradition that encourages you to look for God’s presence and grace in the everyday moments and events of your life.
Spiritual Direction Ministry is a ministry of SCPC through the Spiritual Life Ministry.  
This ministry is available to all. Contact any one of the Directors listed below for more information about spiritual direction or to schedule an appointment.

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Meet our Spiritual Directors

Mary Boutselis, [email protected]  (814) 883-4225 

Mary Boutselis is a member of State College Presbyterian Church and has been active in the Spiritual Formation Ministry Unit, in leading the weekly Centering Prayer ministry, in the leadership team for Sabbath Away and in leading retreats on Centering Prayer, Women’s Spirituality and Mindfulness in Daily Life.  She is a certified Spiritual Director, having completed the two-year training program in spiritual direction through Oasis Ministries in 2014 and the subsequent Deepening Year for Direction Ministries in 2017.  She has also completed the Centering Prayer Facilitators Training from Contemplative Outreach.  Currently, Mary is  engaged in a series of week-long directed retreats focused on deepening a relationship with God.  Mary’s spiritual direction practice is supported by her participation in two peer groups and by her membership in Spiritual Directors International.  A daily contemplative prayer practice for many years has cultivated and supports a deep awareness of God’s presence and guidance in her daily life.

Jackie Naginey Hook,  [email protected](814-404-0546)

Jackie is a spiritual director and celebrant. She offers individual and group spiritual direction, programs and retreats in spirituality, grief, loss and forgiveness and is an ordained elder in the State College Presbyterian Church. In conjunction with Koch Funeral Home, she co-created and facilitates the Helping Grieving Hearts Heal program, including Having the Talk of a Lifetime, grief companioning, memorable funeral ceremony creation, remembrance service facilitation, legacy reception coordination and community outreach. Jackie is a graduate of Spiritual Direction for Spiritual Guides (2011) and Deepening Year for Direction Ministries (2012) through Oasis Ministries and is a member of Spiritual Directors International. She is also trained as a Life-Cycle Celebrant® (2014) and is an alumnae member of the Celebrant Foundation and Institute. Jackie has a B.S. in Business from Penn State University and an M.A. in Wellness from the University of Central Florida.  Her work is about helping people find hope, healing and
wholeness.

Mary Jane Kistler, [email protected] (814)571-6600

A former Deacon and Elder of the State College Presbyterian Church and is currently active on the Membership and Spiritual Formation Committees. As part of the latter, she edits and co-coordinates the Advent and Lenten Devotionals, and has hosted retreats on Centering Prayer, the Welcoming Prayer, and a number of Henszey Lecture Series speakers such as Diana Butler Bass, John Philip Newell and Father William Meninger.  She is a 2016 graduate of Oasis’ Spiritual Direction for Spiritual Guides and 2017 graduate of the Deepening Year Direction Ministries programs, has completed the Centering Prayer Facilitators Training from Contemplative Outreach, and has been studying and working with the Enneagram as a tool for spiritual transformation through the Enneagram Institute for the past five years. She relishes a minimum of two intensive retreats each year, with a number of small ones interspersed throughout.

Paul Meister, [email protected]

​Paul completed a two-year training program in spiritual direction from Oasis Ministries in spring 2017and is a member of Spiritual Guides International.  Also a member of State College Presbyterian Church since 1995, he has led numerous activities associated with the spiritual and corporeal development of children, young men, and men in the second half of life. With training and experience in The Way of Council, over the last several years Paul has led the Men’s Covenant Group, a bi-monthly gathering of men seeking spiritual deepening. He is a key contributor in The Crossings, an annual young men’s rites of passage. Paul is the convener for the Pennsylvania Chapter of Illuman, a global non-profit organization committed to men seeking to deepen their spiritual lives, where he completed a Rites of Passage program and later served as coordinator and teaching elder.