A Lay Womans Reflection on Marist Spirituality and the interface with Spiritual Direction by Bev McDonald, B.Theol.
For Colin, Nazareth is a place of deep interior relationship with God which carries the seed of Pentecost as it represents submission, discernment and contemplation in readiness for whatever the Holy Spirit asks. Marist spirituality emanates from this point of stillness. The two mysteries are not treated by Colin as separate theological events needing analysis. The key point for him was to keep looking at the person of Mary, who found a home at Nazareth and in the early churchshe who was the woman who pondered the Word in her heart was also the woman on mission, her heart on fire with the Spirit (Larkin, p. 102). Colin recommended warm[ing] yourselves at the fire of Gods love (A Founder Speaks 140:13, p. 398).
By contemplating both Nazareth and Pentecost through the person of Mary, Colin brings an enriching perspective whereby the two become telescoped in her life. In Mary, a Pentecost had already taken place at Nazareth when the Holy Spirit came down on her at the Annunciation. In Mary, the still life of Nazareth was being lived in the Pentecost life of the early church. (Larkin, p. 102) Marist spirituality carries the call to be like Mary, to be contemplative in action and active in contemplation. It is not a question of choosing one or the other, or of choosing one at one moment and the other at another, but of keeping the two realities in balance (Larkin, p.90 cf. A Founder Speaks 141:5, p. 401).
Fidelity to the Holy Spirit is spoken of as the unifying principle of Marist spirituality.
It was the Holy Spirit who guided Mary and fashioned her so In this sense, to live the Marist spirit is to listen to the thousand suggestions of the Spirit speaking to us about our particular situation. (Larkin, pp. 90 & 161)
For Mary, the focus is always on God and this offers a strong interface with spiritual direction. We seek to discern the presence and work of God within everyday life and to encourage the directee in this intentional attentiveness.