Jane Vennard, who is profiled in S&P's Living Spiritual Teachers Project, offers lectures and leads retreats in ecumenical settings in the United States, Canada, and Australia. She is ordained to a ministry of teaching and spiritual direction in the United Church of Christ. She is also the author of several books on prayer and Fully Awake and Truly Alive.
For Vennard, teaching is a sacred art and people are called to it as a vocation. Or as Jungian analyst James Hollis put it: "We may choose careers but we do not choose vocation. Vocation chooses us." What does this entail? It is about sharing our gifts and being of service in the world.
Respect, challenge, and kindness are the foundations of the sacred art of teaching. These are amplified and sustained by teachers as they speak passionately with wonder about subjects they love. There is a transformative power in the teaching-learning process that comes alive in telling stories, asking questions, and listening well. Vennard discusses the heavy-duty dimensions of claiming authority by letting go of control and doing the inner work of dealing with our shadows.
Teaching — The Sacred Art by Jane Vennard is an evergreen resource filled with wisdom for teachers of all stripes as well as lifelong learners.
