Who Are the E-Course Teachers?

The Practicing Spirituality E-Courses and the 21-Day Programs have been created by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Co-Directors of SpiritualityandPractice.com. From a wide variety of books they have read and reviewed, they have chosen short readings; they have then added suggestions for how to practice those ideas.

The Practicing Spirituality E-Courses consist of 40 emails and will usually quote 40 different writers, while the courses in the "Spiritual Masters" series focus on the writings of one teacher. Usually, 21 different teachers are quoted in the 21-day programs.

Most of those quoted are contemporary writers whose books have been published in the last 25 years. They may be spiritual and religion writers, but they could also be poets, novelists, nature writers, and essayists. To make it easy for you to further explore their works, we include links to our reviews in the emails.

The Online Retreats and Elder Spirituality E-Courses are co-created and co-led by Spirituality & Practice and another religious or spiritual organization and/or individual teachers. In most cases, the course content, including any audio clips and short videos, is provided by our partner. Spirituality & Practice hosts the course and the Practice Circle. The sign-up pages for each e-course include more information on the organization and/or teacher.

What Are the E-Course Practice Suggestions?

Some of our retreats focus on classic practices of one of the world's religions, such as Centering Prayer, Intercessory Prayer, Lovingkindness meditation, or Remembrance of God. The e-course provides step-by-step instructions in these practices.

In other programs, you will be encouraged to do some conscious reflection on a text or a poem. For the "Practicing Spirituality" e-courses and some others, you will be encouraged to try simple practices as you go about your everyday activities. Read more.

How Do I Set Up My Account?

When you order your first e-course by hitting "subscribe" at the bottom of a description of an e-course, you will be walked through the process during checkout. You have to provide an email address and choose a password. If you already have an account with us, you can login to that account during checkout.

As a subscriber, you will have an account page for your e-courses. You can access this page anytime at the very top of every page on S&P by clicking "Sign In." If you are already signed in you will see "My Account" there.

All your E-Courses and Practice Groups are listed on your account page. When you click on the title, the emails you have been sent will drop down. You can read them online or have them resent. You can also see your Orders and Manage Your Account, updating your Profile, email address, interests, and billing/mailing information; we do not store credit card information.

How Can I View the Online Materials for My E-Course?

If you miss or accidentally delete any of your e-course emails, you can access the sessions in your online account. This video shows you how.

What Happens If I Sign Up After the Course Has Started?

All our "current" e-courses have start dates, but if you register late, you will still have access to all the material. Once you pay for your e-course, any of the sessions for that course that have already gone out will appear on your account page, which you can access from the "Sign in" button at the top right of any page. Your e-course is listed under "My E-Courses." You can read the sessions online or have them resent.

We do recommend that you begin any course by reading the first email, but often you can then jump ahead to the latest one and return to the others later. Most e-courses are not rigidly structured, so if you have to do the lessons out of order, that will be okay.

If you are doing a "current" course, you will want to join other participants in the Practice Circle as soon as possible. You will see that the Practice Circle is organized with a different "session" for every email. So, again, you can jump in at any point. It's not necessary to read all the posts for earlier sessions before joining the conversation. You may want to read through the Introductions in the Community area (and add your own). There is no time limit to when you can post to any area of the Practice Circle, and people actually post throughout a course.

Will an E-Course Be Offered Again?

If you can't do an e-course when it is first announced, you will still be able to take it. All our e-courses go into our on-demand system once they have finished their first run as a "Current E-Course with a Practice Circle." For on-demand courses, you choose your own start date and how often you want to receive the emails (daily, three times a week, twice a week, or weekly). You will have access to all the same content from the original run of the course, including audios and videos and recordings of any teleconferences. However, you will not have access to the Practice Circle where often the teacher has done additional teaching.

How Long Do I Have to Access the E-Course Content?

The emails for your e-courses will be archived on your account page at Spirituality & Practice indefinitely. The Practice Circles are usually open for more than six months. You will need to keep the link to the Practice Circle from the original emails you received in order to get into the Practice Circle; it will not be accessible through your account page.

How Much Does an E-Course or Practice Group Cost?

The "current" e-courses, where you do a course at the same time as a lot of other people, range from $31.00 to $75.00. These programs include access to a private online "Practice Circle" where you can interact with other course participants and the course leaders.

The "on-demand" e-courses, where you use our system to choose your own start date and the frequency of the emails, range from $21.00 to $65.00. These do not include a Practice Circle.

You may also be joining a custom e-course combining one of our e-courses with a private Practice Circle for your congregation or group; the price for these is determined based upon all the components of the program.

The fees for Practice Groups will depend upon the purpose of the group and the number of participants. These are announced on the registration pages.

These minimal fees are a very important source of support for Spirituality & Practice and for our partners, with whom we share the income. The fees cover the costs of our time developing and delivering the e-courses and keeping them available over time. They also support our ongoing work as one of the few sources of contemporary book reviews in the fields of religion and spirituality.

Can I Pay by Credit Card or Check?

When you click on the "Subscribe" button at the bottom of the description of an e-course, you will be walked through the sign-up process. On one page, you will be given an opportunity to either (1) pay by credit card through our secure server or (2) pay by check. If you choose the later, the next page will give you the instructions for how to make out the check and where to mail it.

You must go through the online system to get registered for an e-course, to have your email address added to the list, and to get access to the private Practice Circle. Please do not just send a check to our offices without going through these steps.

Can I Buy a Gift Certificate?

You can easily give a particular e-course by clicking the "Give as Gift" button at the bottom of its sign-up page. But if you'd like your recipient to choose his/her own e-course, you can buy a gift certificate.

We will send you a certificate (via email or postal mail) which you can give to your giftee. It will include instructions on how to redeem the certificate by (a) choosing an e-course at SpiritualityandPractice.com and (b) calling our office to sign up for and schedule the e-course. Four options are available here.

What Is Your Cancellation and Refund Policy?

An e-course can be cancelled at any time by notifying Mary Ann Brussat at SandPTeam@SpiritualityandPractice.com. Your order will be voided, and the e-course archives deleted from your account page.

At your request, refunds will be credited to your credit card. After the first email in any course, the refund will be calculated based upon the percentage of the e-course you have received. If, for example, you cancel after the first week of a four-week course, you will receive a 75% refund.

Can I Get a Scholarship?

At this time, Spirituality & Practice does not have a scholarship fund and so e-course scholarships are not available. Some of the organizations we partner with to produce online retreats do have the financial resources to offer partial scholarships; you will need to contact them directly.

If you would like to make it possible for people to take our e-courses who cannot do so without a scholarship, please make a donation, putting "scholarship fund" in the field indicating "I want my donation to be dedicated." Thank you for your generosity!

Can I Get Continuing Education Hours for an E-Course or Online Retreat?

Chaplains may claim CEHs for our programs. We are working on being able to offer CEUs to other professions. More information is here.