William A. Barry
Personal Information
Description
William (Bill) Barry, a distinguished spiritual director and author, was born in Worchester, MA. He entered the Society of Jesus in 1950, studied philosophy in Germany from 1953 until 1956, and was at Weston College for theology studies from 1959 until 1963. Ordained a priest in 1962, Barry went on to earn a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Michigan in 1968. In 1969, he began teaching psychology at Weston School of Theology, Cambridge, MA, and in 1971 was named director for the Center for Religious Development. He served in both capacities until 1978, when he was put in charge of formation for the New England Jesuit Province. Barry was the Assistant Director of Novices for the Province (1985–88) when he was named Rector of Boston College. From 1991 to 1997, he served as Provincial of the New England Jesuits. Following that, he was named co-director of the Jesuit Tertianship Program. Barry later directed retreats at Campion Center in Weston, MA. Despite such a busy and committed life, Barry found the time to write more than 15 books, including The Practice of Spiritual Direction, God and You, Finding God in All Things, An Invitation to Love, Who Do You Say I Am?, Experiencing God in the Ordinary, and A Friendship Like No Other. Barry had the rare ability to present complex spiritual issues in clear, well-written prose. He was one of the most significant Ignatian commentators of the early 21st century. He died in December of 2020, leaving a legacy that will long influence spiritual directors and seekers.
Books
Spiritual direction and the encounter with God
"Is what we call 'the encounter with God' merely a depth experience of the psyche or does it have a specific theological character? In this revised edition of his best selling book, William Barry shows how it is possible to understand an encounter with the Triune God in this world, and how that process can be interpreted and aided by a spiritual director. Using the insights of John Macmurray and John Smith, Barry describes how a relationship with God develops and how one can discern whether a particular experience is from God or not. This understanding of religious experience comes from a theology of community, communal discernment and ministry in the church. This book will be helpful to spiritual directors, educators and theologians, as well as all educated seekers desiring a deeper relationship with God. In this revised edition, the author has added reflections on God's presence to suffering and evil and to evildoers, updated the bibliography, and freshened his examples for the 21st-century reader"--Amazon.com.
Who Do You Say I Am?
"I believe that research on the historical Jesus need not be a threat but can be a spiritual resource for us Christians," says the author. Drawing on the highly acclaimed work "The marginal Jew" by John Meier, he helps us sift the evidence to discover what we can know with historical certainty about Jesus. But he leads us beyond the facts of history to an encounter with the risen Jesus, sharing both his own experience of prayer as well as the stories and accounts of other contemporary Christians who have come to know the risen Lord. He guides us in a prayerful dialogue that bridges the gap between the Jesus of history and the Jesus we experience in faith.