CCS Faculty

CCS Faculty

The Center for Christian Spirituality is blessed with an impressive faculty whose members are well-respected for their scholarly accomplishments and their gifts as spiritual guides and teachers. Together, they form a rich resource for you whether you are seeking education and formation for ministries of spiritual guidance or are hoping to enrich your own spiritual path towards God. 

Clair W. McPherson
Associate Professor of Ascetical Theology
B.A., Washington University
M.A., University of Missouri
M.Div., General Theological Seminary
Ph.D, Washington University (literature)
An Episcopal priest, scholar, author and spiritual director, Clair's primary academic interest is the spirituality and artistic expression of the early medieval periods. He has written three books—Understanding Faith, Grace at This Time, and Keeping Silence—and is currently working on a book about angels and demons. He is also a Contributing Editor for the magazine Spirituality and Health. 
 Courses
Angels and Demons
The Art of Meditation
Discernment and Desire
Introduction to Christian Spirituality: Exploring the Classic Texts and Practices
Sanctify This Altar to be Thine: Classic Anglican Spirituality
Spirituality of the Early Church

Jerome W. Berryman
Distinguished Visiting Professor
An Episcopal priest, Jerome W. Berryman has spent close to forty years creating a methodology for the spiritual guidance of children known as Godly Play. The educational theory of Godly Play is rooted in the use of ritual, story, and the creative process. Godly Play adapts Montessori’s approach in order to stimulate children’s active participation in story and ritual and to awaken their creativity for the learning of the language, sacred stories, parables, liturgical action, and silence of the Christian tradition. Jerome has written numerous articles and books, including Children and the Theologians: Clearing the Way for God's Grace, Godly Play and Teaching Godly Play.
Courses
Challenge of Children to the Church: Theology and Grace
Godly Play Practicum for the Spiritual Guidance of Children I
Godly Play Practicum for the Spiritual Guidance of Children II
The Spirituality of Children
Playful Orthodoxy: A Theory for the Spiritual Guidance of Children

Adjunct Professors

Cynthia L. Black
B.A., Hobart and William Smith Colleges (religious studies, music)
M.Div., Church Divinity School of the Pacific
Doctor of Divinity (Honoris Causa), Church Divinity School of the Pacific
An Episcopal priest, Cynthia is a leading voice within The Episcopal Church on issues of human sexuality. She produced the award-winning documentary Voices of Witness Africa about the experiences of LGTB Anglicans; created and presented Inclusion Activism, a series of workshops for Integrity USA; and was a founding steering committee member of Claiming the Blessing, a coalition of Episcopal organizations and individuals advocating for full inclusion of all the baptized in the church’s sacraments. Her numerous articles, for such publications as Ruach and The Witness, reveal the connections between human sexuality, faith and spiritual expression. She also serves as Chair of The Episcopal Church Executive Council's Committee on the Status of Women.
Course
Anglican LGBT Spirituality

Barbara Cawthorne Crafton
B.A., Rutgers University
M.Div., General Theological Seminary
Author of many books and a popular retreat and workshop leader, Barbara is one of the best known spiritual guides in the United States today. She directs The Geranium Farm, an institute for spiritual growth that publishes her celebrated Almost Daily eMo read by people worldwide. An Episcopal priest, she has served parishes in New York City, as a waterfront chaplain, and as a chaplain at Ground Zero during the recovery effort. Most recently, she was the interim rector of St. James, Florence, Italy.
Courses
Jesus Wept: When Faith and Depression Meet
Retreats & Quiet Days Leadership Practicum
 

Suzanne Guthrie
B.A., George Washington University
M.A., Oblate School of Theology
Suzanne Guthrie is an Episopal priest, author, and the creator of weekly self-guided retreats on Sunday Gospel texts for Edge of the Enclosure. Her favorite job in the church has been as a Children's Priest and a Christian Education Consultant. She has also served as a parish priest, college and university chaplain, and has lead retreats throughout the United States since 1979. She is the author of Grace's Window and Praying the Hours. She and her husband Bill live with the sisters of The Community of the Holy Spirit on their organic farm in Brewster, New York.
Course
Pretending Bible Stories Practicum: Embodying Texts for Memory and Meaning
Suzanne has led Embodying the Text workshops for children, multi-generational groups, college students, parishes and Elderhostels for two decades.

Fletcher Harper
A.B., Princeton University
M. Div., Union Theological Seminary
Fletcher is an Episcopal priest and Executive Director of GreenFaith: Interfaith Partners for the Environment, an interfaith coalition that works with houses of worship, religious schools and people of all faiths to become better environmental stewards. Under his leadership, GreenFaith has developed innovative programs linking religious belief and practice to the environment. An award-winning spiritual writer and nationally-recognized preacher on the environment, he teaches and speaks nationwide about the moral, spiritual basis for environmental stewardship and justice. Before joining GreenFaith, he served as a parish priest for ten years.
Course
GreenFaith: Earth Spirituality, Stewardship & Justice Practicum

David G. R. Keller
BA., Hobart College (history)
M. Div., General Theological Seminary
Ed.D., New York University
David is an Episcopal priest and co-founder and director of the Contemplative Ministry Project. He is the author of Oasis of Wisdom: The Worlds of the Desert Fathers and Mothers and Come and See: The Transformation of Personal Prayer. He collaborated with Fr. Thomas Keating, and others, to produce Spirituality, Contemplation, and Transformation: Writings on Centering Prayer. Formerly Steward of the Episcopal House of Prayer at St. John's Abbey, Collegeville, MN, David and his wife Emily Wilmer are now Stewards of Oasis of Wisdom, an institute for contemplative studies, practice and living in Ashville, NC. His ministries have included twenty years in the Diocese of Alaska where he worked with Alaska Native leaders in developing theological education for lay and ordained ministry within Indian and Eskimo communities and thirteen years in the Diocese of Arizona where he directed The Bishop's School for Ministry Development, a seminary-without-walls program for lay ministries and diaconal formation.
Courses
Jesus' Life of Prayer
Contemplative Prayer Practicum
Introduction to the Wisdom of the Desert Fathers & Mothers

Jonathan W. Linman
B.A., Carleton College
M.Div., Trinity Lutheran Seminary
Ph.D., Duquesne University
An ordained minister of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), Professor Linman currently works as the Assistant to the Bishop for Formation in the Metropolitan New York Synod, spending time as a theological educator and spiritual guide for the many constituencies served by the synod. He has been a parish pastor and seminary professor. From 2001-2009, he served as the Director of the Center for Christian Spirituality and Professor of Ascetical Theology at General Seminary. His new book Holy Conversation: Spirituality for Worship (Fortress, 2010) links themes of spirituality and worship, inviting readers, through the power of the Spirit, to deepen their encounter with Christ in Word and Sacrament. 
Courses
Lectio Divina Practicum
Liturgical Spirituality Practicum
Spirituality of Preaching Practicum

Westina Matthews
B.A., University of Dayton (education)
M.S., University of Dayton (education)
Ph.D., University of Chicago (education)
Westina is an Episcopal lay leader, spiritual director, and author of three books in the Have a Little Faith series, as well as articles on the spiritual life in Sacred Journeys, Forward Movement, Essence, and other periodicals. A graduate of the highly respected Shalem Institute’s Spiritual Guidance Program for the education and formation of spiritual directors, she currently serves as a spiritual director for the General Seminary community. In 2010 – 2011, she was a Fellow at Harvard University. Prior to pursuing her interest in spiritual direction, she led Merrill Lynch's community business development and philanthropic efforts, for which she was was named by Ebony among the 100 Best and Brightest Black Women in Corporate America.
Courses
Contemplative Spiritual Direction Practicum
Contemplative Practices for Spiritual Direction Ministry
Contemplative Supervision for Individual and Group Spiritual Direction

K. Jeanne Person
A.B., Princeton University (economics)
M.S., Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
M.Div., Harvard Divinity School
S.T.M., General Theological Seminary
An Episcopal priest, author and spiritual director, Jeanne presently serves as the Director of the Center for Christian Spirituality. She is co-editor of Lifting Women Voices, an anthology of prayers by Anglican women and girls on issues of global poverty, and co-author of Where You Go, I Shall: Gleanings from the Stories of Biblical Widows. She is a member of The Episcopal Church Executive Council's Committee on the Status of Women and serves on the Spirituality Faculty for CREDO. Prior to coming to General Seminary, she was a parish priest for ten years, serving in two New York City parishes.
Courses
Holistic Spirituality and Wellness Practicum
Keeping Silence with Children
Praying with Mary Practicum
Supervision for Spiritual Direction with Marginalized Persons
Tutorial Seminar for Beginning Seminarians

Nancy Roth
B.A., Oberlin (music)
M.Div., General Theological Seminary
Th.D. (Honoris Causa), General Theological Seminary
Nancy is an Episcopal priest, retreat leader, author, dancer, and musician. Her work as a resource person in the area of spirituality draws on her many interests: the integration of body and spirit, the contemplative tradition of prayer, the arts, and the relationship of Christian faith and ethics to environmental issues. Her many books include Grounded in Love: Ecology, Faith and Action, Organic Prayer, The Breath of God: An Approach to Prayer, and An Invitation to Christian Yoga. She is a faculty member of the CREDO project, a week-long wellness program for clergy, and an associate of the Contemplative Project, sponsored by the Foundation for the Meditative Process. She has served as Chaplain for the Spouses of the Bishops of the  Episcopal Church.
Course
Ecology, Faith & Action: Empowering the Church
 

Anne Winchell Silver
B.A., William Smith College (psychology)
M.A., New York University (counseling)
M.A., General Theological Seminary (spiritual direction)
Ph.D., Fordham University (counseling)
Before becoming a spiritual director in New York City, Anne served for thirty-two years on the counseling faculty at Kingsborough Community College (CUNY) in Brooklyn. She is the author of Trustworthy Connections: Interpersonal Issues in Spiritual Direction (Cowley, 2004) and co-author of Where You Go, I Shall: Gleanings from the Stories of Biblical Widows (Cowley, 2005). Her current areas of interest in research and teaching include: individual and group spiritual direction; spirituality in everyday life; ethical issues in pastoral care and spiritual direction; vocation and ministry of the whole people of God; writing as a spiritual practice; and the spirituality of bereavement.
Courses
Individual Spiritual Direction Practicum
Group Spiritual Guidance Practicum
Supervision for Individual and Group Spiritual Direction
Supervision for Individual and Group Spiritual Direction: Peer Relationships

Chad Thralls
B.A., West Virginia University
M.Div., Union Theological Seminary
Ph.D., The Catholic University of America (Christian spirituality)
Courses
Open Your Eyes Practicum: Attention, Seeing and the Spiritual Life