What Kind of Seeker Am I? Exploring Spiritual Typing

What Kind of Seeker Am I? Exploring Spiritual Typing

Just as we differ in learning styles, sensory preferences, or personality traits, we also differ in how we connect with the Sacred. Some of us are drawn to silence, others to service. Some find the Sacred in books and study, others in drumming, caregiving, or deep conversation. These differences aren’t flaws—they’re invitations.

Spiritual typing systems should not limit us. Instead, they can offer language to name how we flourish—and where we might stretch. From ancient paths like the yogic traditions and Enneagram to modern tools like the MBTI, seekers across cultures have recognized that the soul has many ways of journeying toward wholeness. This post offers a broad look at spiritual “maps,” helping you notice your inclinations and recognize others’ paths with compassion.

You’re invited to engage reflectively—and playfully.

Martha or Mary? Active or Contemplative?

The story of Martha and Mary (Luke 10:38–42) offers one of the oldest spiritual “typing” moments in the Christian West. Martha tends to the practical; Mary listens at the feet of the teacher. Many of us hold both—but one may come more naturally. Which feels more like home to you?

Four Classical Catholic Types

Catholic writers have often described four main spiritual orientations:

• Ignatian – Action-based, service-oriented, practical, drawn to discernment.
• Augustinian – Heart-centered, relational, emotionally attuned.
• Thomistic – Rational, intellectual, engaged with truth-seeking and theology.
• Franciscan – Experiential, nature-loving, justice-focused.

Each offers a way of being faithful. None is superior. Which resonates most deeply with your lived spirituality?

(See also the Spirituality Wheel by Corinne Ware for a widely-used adaptation of these types.)

The Four Yogic Paths: An Ancient Typology

Long before MBTI or even the Enneagram, the yogic tradition recognized multiple paths:

• Bhakti Yoga – Devotion, especially to a deity or the Divine in form.
• Raja Yoga – Meditation, breathwork, and posture—inner discipline.
• Karma Yoga – Service and ethical action.
• Jnana Yoga – Study, contemplation, and inquiry.

These are not exclusive but complementary. You may walk one more easily, but all are part of the human spiritual capacity.

Kripalu offers a helpful introduction here: https://kripalu.org/resources/bhakti-yoga-path-devotion

MBTI and Spiritual Style

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) isn’t a spiritual tool per se, but many find it helpful for noticing how personality influences spiritual engagement:

• Introverts may gravitate toward solitude, journaling, or contemplative prayer.
• Extroverts might be energized by group ritual, song, or shared study.
• Thinkers often prefer structure, philosophy, and exegesis.
• Feelers may be drawn to spiritual care, storytelling, or embodied practice.

Explore an MBTI-style test here (note: these are informal, not diagnostic): https://www.bustle.com/p/11-personality-tests-similar-to-myers-briggs-perfect-for-people-who-are-obsessed-with-mbti-2949167

Enneagram

The ancient spiritual system of the Enneagram has potential for spiritual companions. I cover more about it in a separate blog post.

Other Spiritual Typing Systems

• Keirsey Temperaments: Guardian, Idealist, Rational, Artisan https://keirsey.com/temperament-overview/
• SpiritMap: Unity Church’s online tool for identifying spiritual style
  http://www.spiritmap.org/
• Sandra Krebs Hirsh & Jane Kise’s Soul Types – A MBTI-based approach to spiritual style
  https://bigpicturequestions.com/what-is-your-spiritual-type/
• Three Dimensions of Ecology: Soil, Soul and Society
  by SATISH KUMAR (excerpt)
  "..., an ancient Hindu text, the Bhagavad Gita, contains a trinity which in my view is holistic, and inclusive of ecology, spirituality and humanity. That trinity in Sanskrit is yagna, tapas and dana. Yagna relates to human/nature relationships, tapas relates to human/divine relationships and dana relates to human/human relationships. I have translated this trinity into English as Soil, Soul and Society." (Essay in "Spiritual Ecology: The Cry of the Earth" Ed. by Llewellyn Vaught-Lee
  
• Eclectic Spiritual Classifications: From Islamic reflections, many traditions frame spirituality through different lenses—service, surrender, wisdom, devotion, justice. https://al-islam.org/invitation-islam-survival-guide-thomas-mcelwain/identifying-types-spirituality-and-types-approach 

Try It

Here are some invitations to explore your spiritual type through journaling, art, movement, or conversation:

• How do I tend to meet the Sacred—through silence, song, service, reflection, community, or study?
• What nourishes me: solitude or shared ritual? Insight or imagination?
• Which of the yogic or Catholic types calls to me today?
• If I place myself in the story of Martha and Mary, where do I feel most alive?

Bonus: Ask a friend or spiritual companion how they connect to the Sacred. What do you learn from the differences between you?

Want a deeper exploration? Try my Spiritual Typing Self-Assessment.

Whoever you are, however you seek or explore, you are whole, holy, and worthy.

Rev. Amy

See also these posts

• Spiritual Direction for a Variety of Brain Types – Honoring how different minds connect with the sacred, including sensory preferences and communication styles. https://abeltaine.blogspot.com/2025/04/spiritual-direction-and-variety-of.html

• Practicing Consent in Spiritual Direction – Reflects on adapting to different seekers’ needs and ways of being. https://abeltaine.blogspot.com/2025/04/embracing-consent-foundation-for.html 

• You Belong Here: Your Place in the Work of Justice  – Affirms that spiritual justice seekers and compassionate people come in all forms, voices, and paths. https://abeltaine.blogspot.com/2025/02/you-belong-here-your-place-in-work-of.html

For Further Exploration

• Benner, David. Spirituality and the Awakening Self – Explores personality and transformation from a Jungian Christian perspective. https://www.drdavidgbenner.ca/spirituality-and-the-awakening-self

• Chittister, Joan. The Friendship of Women – A poetic and insightful reflection on spiritual types through women of the Bible. https://benetvision.org/books/the-friendship-of-women/

• Myers, Isabel Briggs. Gifts Differing – Classic guide to MBTI with sections on vocation, spirituality, and community. https://www.capt.org/catalog/itemdetails.cfm?ItemID=2

• Ware, Corinne. Discover Your Spiritual Type – A practical, accessible book with inventories and exercises. https://www.upperroom.org/resources/the-spirituality-wheel

• Ware, Corinne. Discover your Spiritual Type: A Guide to Individual and Congregational Growth, 1995 https://johnfisk.wordpress.com/2013/01/27/the-four-spiritual-types-paths/ 

• Kumar, Satish. “Three Dimensions of Ecology: Soil, Soul, Society” – Reframes spirituality through action, contemplation, and compassion. Essay in Spiritual Ecology: The Cry of the Earth, ed. Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee. https://spiritualecology.org/essay/soil-soul-society

This Heart of Spiritual Direction series is ©2025 Amy Beltaine, all rights reserved. You may freely reprint any blog post, website, or print resource. Simply include the following attribution, and if you print online, make the link at the end live:

Article ©2025 Amy Beltaine, all rights reserved. Reprinted with permission. This article and hundreds of others, along with other free resources are available at http://www.AmyBeltaine.info