About Ruth Haley Barton

Ruth Haley Barton (Doctor of Divinity, Northern Seminary) has been a student, practitioner, teacher, and leader in the areas of Christian spirituality and leadership for over 25 years. Ruth is founder of the Transforming Center, a ministry dedicated to strengthening the souls of clergy, Christian leaders, and the congregations and organizations they serve. In that capacity, she has developed and leads the Transforming Center’s 27-month Transforming Community experience, a practice-based spiritual journey for leaders. 

A seasoned spiritual director, teacher and retreat leader (Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation, University of Chicago Institute for Pastoral Studies) she is the author of numerous books and resources on the spiritual life:  

  • Leading a Transforming Community: Foundations, Practices, and Strategies for Opening to God Together (releasing Oct. 13, 2026) 

  • Embracing Rhythms of Work and Rest: From Sabbath to Sabbatical and Back Again

  • Invitation to Retreat: The Gift and Necessity of Time Away with God

  • Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership: Seeking God in the Crucible of Ministry 

  • Pursuing God’s Will Together: A Discernment Practice for Leadership Groups  

  • Life Together in Christ: Experiencing Transformation in Community

  • Sacred Rhythms: Arranging our Lives for Spiritual Transformation

  • Invitation to Solitude and Silence: Experiencing God’s Transforming Presence

  • Longing for More: A Woman’s Path to Transformation in Christ

  • Equal to the Task: Men and Women Partnership at Work, at Church, and Home

  • An Ordinary Day with Jesus: Embracing the Reality of God in Your Everyday Life (curriculum co-authored with John Ortberg)

She teaches frequently at the graduate level and has contributed articles to many popular and academic publications including the Journal for Spiritual Formation and Soul Care and a festschrift honoring the work of Fr. Ron Rolheiser entitled The Future of Christian Spirituality: In Our Lives, in Our Churches, and in the Academy (2023).

She is married to Christopher and together they have three daughters, three sons-in-love, and twelve grandchildren whom they adore.

 
 
 
 

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