Life is full of decisions. And there is never a guarantee that the decisions we make will for sure be the right decisions. However, we can be open to a posture of decision-making that reflects a God-focus. We can enter into a process of discernment, which is a particularly appropriate kind of decision-making for an individual participating in the Rite of Christian Initiation or Reception.
Discernment is not a foolproof set of directions one follows to come to the perfect solution. Rather, it is a surrender into a process of coming to fuller self-knowledge and responding out of that experience. While the practical judgment made is of definite value, it is the whole process of trust and surrender that is of definite value. We can never know if the decisions we make are “right” decisions because we see now “only as in a glass darkly.” However, we can know we make a “good” decision if we have been faithful to the demands of the discernment process.
What Discernment is Not
• Discernment does not occur only through gut-level responses such as
feelings or emotions. Affectivity, however integrated, cannot be the
sole criterion for decision.
• Discernment does not in essence happen through a systematic and
logical process. It is more than decision-making. It is an adventure
that faces the mystery of God's stirrings.
• Discernment usually does not occur through private revelations to an
individual. Private revelations are prone to self-deception and therefore
need the community's confirmation.
Guidelines for Discernment
• Discernment is the art of finding meaning in our daily lived lives, as it
reflects God's revelation. It is not about seeing new things, but seeing
things in a new way.
• Often we can discern the ways of God by using common sense
supported by informed and prudent judgment, but sometimes we
overextend our competence, and therefore blind ourselves to the need
for further investigation and consultation.
• Discernment is a holistic process which involves the intellect,
psychological state, affectivity, spiritual, volitional and physical. All
elements of our embodied person can play a role in offering cues.
• One can approach the process of discernment with confidence that
God will guide us in our faithful searching. Such a level of trust
presumes a developing relationship between us and God.
• We must be comfortable with the possibility of a wrong decision, but if
we are faithful to the process of discernment, we can rest in the
certitude of a good decision, knowing that God will use whatever our
falterings are to bring about good.
• Discernment occurs in God's time (kairos), the appointed time, the
time that best serves the building of God's reign. It is not calculated
and cannot be measured, except in terms of fidelity. It takes trust to
llow God's time to emerge, to know the right moment and not to rush.
• Discernment leads us to a sense of detachment -- the ability to
remove ourselves enough to be able to accept whatever is asked of
us. Such detachment teaches us to make room to welcome whatever
is given, to accept all as gift.
• Discernment requires obedience and surrender. Obedience means
truly listening to the words of life, and then responding. Surrender
means turning over private expectations and desires for the greater gift
that we can receive if we open our hearts to God.
Four steps or “movements” characterize the discernment process:
Deliberation
Deliberation includes acquiring the necessary information to make aninformed decision, honestly assessing our current situation, and envisioning new possibilities. It requires exploring all sides, weighing the pros and cons, and considering all of the possibilities.
There are two forms of deliberation which are necessary for discernment: First, we need to consult with ourselves. We need to seriously consider our gifts and our limitations. Second, we need to consult with others. We need someone who is objective and leaves us free to make our own decisions, even if they are poor decisions.
During this stage of the discernment process, we should ask ourselves:
• Am I open to consult other persons in this process?
• Do I consult with legitimate authorities -- people who know me well -- for
feedback and direction?
• Do I make time for silence and solitude in this discernment process?
• Do I make time to pray during this discernment process?
Reflection
There are also two types of reflection. The first type assumes certain expectations. We have already make up our minds, and have decided what we will discover. Such reflection does not lead to honest discernment. The second type of reflection opens us to the truth in whatever way it emerges. We do not protect ourselves from the uncomfortable. We allow the issues and ideas raised during deliberation to work from the inside out. We listen, slowly and respectfully. This kind of reflection requires a certain level of disinterested involvement -- we give ourselves over to the process, without deciding ahead of time what the result will be.
During this stage of the discernment process, we should ask ourselves:
• Where is God for me in all of this?
• How does this relate to my life in my family, among friends, within my
community or work?
• In what ways will my decision promote Christian love and
Christian values?
• What is the most response-able course to take?
Insight
Insight emerges slowly and gradually, as we purge ourselves of the desire to “short-cut” the discernment process. When we give ourselves over to the discernment process, we open ourselves to whatever insights might emerge on a deeper level where images are being transformed, our experiences reinforced, and our awareness of ourselves is being clarified. Insight emerges through a birthing process; it is a gift of the Spirit.
During this stage of the discernment process, we should ask ourselves:
• Have I made time to let all of this settle down and to seep into my
being?
• How do the insights which emerge relate to my lived experience and
my relationship to God?
• Is there a sense of inner peace and quiet with the choice which is
emerging?
• Can I honestly say that this decision “fits” with my true sense of
myself?
Decision and Action
After prayerful reflection and consultation, we can come to a posture of liberation and hence a decision. This decision will affirm and promote the gifts we have been given for building up the reign of God. We should resolve to follow the decision which emerges through the process of discernment, until evidence presents itself that the decision needs to be reevaluated. We can trust the presence of the Spirit in the decision which emerges through our discernment when it leads to a fuller expression of the gifts of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (cf. Galatians 5:22-23).
[Adapted from Thomas H. Morris, The RCIA--Transforming the Church.
©1997 by Paulist Press.]
• • •
By Fr. Ron Rolheiser
What follows is a series of principles to help us discern God's voice among the multitude of voices that beckon us....
• The voice of God is recognized both in whispers and in soft tones, even as it is recognized in thunder and in storm.
• The voice of God is recognized wherever one sees life, joy, health, color, and humor, even as it is recognized wherever one sees dying, suffering, conscriptive poverty, and a beaten-down spirit.
• The voice of God is recognized in what calls us to what's higher, sets us apart, and invites us to holiness, even as it is recognized in what calls us to humility, submergence into humanity, and in that which refuses to denigrate our humanity.
• The voice of God is recognized in what appears in our lives as "foreign", as other, as "stranger", even as it is recognized in the voice that beckons us home.
• The voice of God is the one that most challenges and stretches us, even as it the only voice that ultimately soothes and comforts us.
• The voice of God enters our lives as the greatest of all powers, even as it forever lies in vulnerability, like a helpless baby in the straw.
• The voice of God is always heard in privileged way in the poor, even as it beckons us through the voice of the artist and the intellectual.
• The voice of God always invites us to live beyond all fear, even as it inspires holy fear.
• The voice of is heard inside the gifts of the Holy Spirit, even as it invites us never to deny the complexities of our world and our own lives.
• The voice of God is always heard wherever there is genuine enjoyment and gratitude, even as it asks us to deny ourselves, die to ourselves, and freely relativize all the things of this world.
From Fr. Rolheiser's syndicated column, online at
http://www.ronrolheiser.com/columnarchive/?id=832\
Watch this video presentation on discernment