With any significant experience, it's important to process in an external way and with others. After every other walk or so, take time to reflect and share in a small group.

How to Debrief Your Via Divina Experience

Use some of the questions below, plus a question or two from each walk's theme (found in the journal).

Encourage everyone in your group to speak. Notice if you haven’t heard from someone or if one person is dominating the conversation, and if so, gently invite equal participation.

RECOGNIZE

• Where did you go?
• What did you see on your walk? (Feel free to share pictures.)
• What did you think about while walking?

REFLECT

• What stuck out to you from the audio guide?
• A walk-specific question from the Debrief Guide

RESPOND

• What have you been learning about a particular walk's theme that you want to remember?
• Is there a next step you feel led to take in light of that walk's theme?

The Approaching Differences Diagram

Some things in our Franciscan Way experience might stretch you: exercise, outside speakers at special events, things said in debrief, the repetitiveness of breath prayer or other spiritual practices you may not be familiar with. Any time you experience this dissonance, we invite you to view it as an opportunity for growth. Ask God what he is teaching. Be curious. Build relationships.

To learn more about this vital tool for loving and working well across cultures, please visit InterVarsity's Multiethnic Ministries page.

Sharing Stories about your Experience

Have you ever spent time around a table or fire pit sharing stories with family or friends? When we share stories, our lives intertwine and weave together and community deepens. You may even sense a small transformation in your soul.

Stories - those narratives that connect disparate events with a thread of meaning - are an essential part of being human. In his latest book, Mark Yaconelli writes that “the practice of storytelling, particularly when sharing the real stories from our own living, tethers us to what matters most - our families, our friends, nature, the hearts we carry, the wondrous mystery of life itself.”

A related definition of pilgrimage is a journey taken in light of a story (Paul Elie). Not any story, but one that holds deep meaning within our souls. As we journey towards this story we encounter many threads: stories related to that original one, stories within ourselves, and stories of our companions. Through engaging with this tapestry of narratives in the liminal, in-between space of pilgrimage, our stories are seen and heard in new ways. This becomes part of the process of transformation that draws us to God’s larger story.

Since stories and stories shared in community are such a significant part of pilgrimage, we encourage you to integrate this into your Via Divina practice. Invite one or more people to engage with this journey together. Maybe you’ll walk together while listening to the audio guides and then stop at a park bench or cafe to reflect on your time. Or, perhaps you’ll gather to share your experiences of several walks over a meal, a fire pit, or both. Whatever works for your group, we encourage you to find a time and place (even virtually if need be) to gather and share stories from these walks.

STORY PROMPTS

Here are a few prompts to get you started.

• What story from the audio guide resonated with you? What story raised questions?
• Reflecting back on the experience of your walk, what events come to mind? What did you encounter along the way? How did this make you feel? Do you see any meaning arising from these events?
• How did God show up in any of these stories, if at all?
• What story from your past (your life, readings, viewings) comes to mind that you would like to share with others?

STORY GUIDELINES

• Trust God - the ultimate author - to be in the midst of our storytelling.
• Practice confidentiality within your group.
• Share and listen to stories without analyzing or trying to rewrite another’s story.
• Come with a non-judgmental posture.
• Bring along your curiosity and wonder.

Walking Together

As part of this Via Divina - or divine way - you may want to plan a time to walk in story together with a group. Here are two ideas to get you started on taking a mini-pilgrimage with these audio guides.

1. Gather a group at a local park or street corner and walk while listening to one or more of the audio guides. Everyone is invited to walk at their own pace and then meet up in a coffee shop or someone’s home to share stories and respond to some of the reflection questions.
2. Facilitate a walk that uses elements of an audio guide, but without everyone listening to the guides or at least not the entire time. Here’s a possible outline. Some groups may like more or less time to walk in between the sharing moments – or may want to have sharing at the beginning and end – with a longer time of uninterrupted walking.

• Gather in a circle and make introductions.
• Provide a short overview of the walk.
• Guide the embodied exercise from the walk.
  • Walk (5–10 minutes)
• Guide the embodied exercise from the walk.
  • Walk (5–10 minutes)
• Share scripture or another story from the guide.
  • Walk (5–10 minutes)
• Reflect on that story, share a second story from the guide.
  • Walk (5–10 minutes)
• Introduce the breath prayer from the walk.
  • Walk (5–10 minutes)
• Invite a final reflection and opportunity to share stories.