Faith in the Body All that we experience of God in this life is mediated through physicality. Matter is the matrix of grace. This retreat offers an invitation to further welcome and nurture the love of God which has made a home in our flesh and blood on this living earth. Through simple experiments in breath, movement, stillness and singing, and incorporating reflections on Scripture, the Rule of Benedict and the gleanings of contemporary neuroscience, we will open ourselves to formation and transformation in the Body of Christ. Facilitator – Ellen Oak I am a musician—conductor, mezzo-soprano, pianist and composer—and liturgist based in …
A Day Away
A Day Away retreat— Balance Led by Oblates Camille Banks and Mary Hoddy Saturday, March 2, 2019 9:30 am-5:00 pm $50 for the day including lunch All women welcome You are always invited to extend your retreat. Contact Amanda Conwayto check room availability. Are you dissatisfied with the things that seem to consume your energy and time? We’ll provide a spacious day to consider how to focus on the essentials of life. Join us as we explore the Benedictine value of balance. Retreat leaders Camille Banks has been an Oblate since 2005 and a Spiritual Formation Specialist for InterVarsity in Lakes and Plains …
A Day Away
A Day Away retreat— Balance Led by Oblates Camille Banks and Mary Hoddy Saturday, March 2, 2019 9:30 am-5:00 pm $50 for the day including lunch All women welcome You are always invited to extend your retreat. Contact Amanda Conwayto check room availability. Are you dissatisfied with the things that seem to consume your energy and time? We’ll provide a spacious day to consider how to focus on the essentials of life. Join us as we explore the Benedictine value of balance. Retreat leaders Camille Banks has been an Oblate since 2005 and a Spiritual Formation Specialist for InterVarsity in Lakes and Plains …
Oblate retreat – open to the public
The Spiritual Practice of Friendship led by Brad Lutz Looking at our experience, Scripture and the Rule, we will consider that friendship is more than being friendly—it is a spiritual practice that opens us to the workings of God’s grace. Our sessions will include time for reflection and sharing as well as didactic. Facilitator: Brad S. Lutz is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ and has served congregations in PA, OH, IL and FL, where he is currently interim pastor at the Church of the Palms, Delray Beach. His ministry has also included hospice chaplaincy and AIDS …
Oblate retreat (open to the public)
Benedict for Baby Boomers: Aging Gracefully in the Footsteps of St. Benedict led by Trisha Day The Rule of St. Benedict is filled with timeless wisdom and practical insights for people regardless of how old they are. Nevertheless, it’s worth paying attention to what Benedict has to say about the “elders” of the monastery, pointing out that they are to be respected for the wisdom they have acquired. Unfortunately, those of us who live in our own fast paced, youth oriented culture can easily lose sight of that kind of wisdom because it’s often drowned out by trends, priorities and …
Oblate retreat (open to the public)
Compassionate Communication: Right Relationships with myself and others Facilitated by Mary Hoddy, HWM Oblate, and Mary Kay Reinemann Assisted by Lynne Smith, Denise West, Paz Vital, and others from Madison Area Nonviolent Communication Practice Groups As Oblates, we value deep listening and having what Benedict calls right relationships, but it’s not always easy. Compassionate communication is the intention to stay present to one another as we make a connection in which everyone’s needs are valued. This includes our own needs as well as the needs of others. This practice is based on Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication and Robert Gonzales’ Living …
Oblate retreat (open to the public)
Beholding Beauty: The Art of the Benedictine Heart of God Facilitated by Gabriele Uhlein, OSF, Ph.D. Beauty lures us, holds us and humbles us. The beautiful Heart of God empowers us, transforms us and allows us to be present without exception, in every place and for all time. Come and experience what a Franciscan discovered about the beautiful, Benedictine heart of God. See what is emerging in the contemporary church as the beauty of oblate commitment comes into full flower in the Age of the Laity. Gabriele Uhlein, OSF, Ph.D. Franciscan, psychologist, theologian and artist, Sister Gabriele has dedicated over …
A call to justice: Benedictine perspectives on listening, right relationships and public witness
The Oblate retreat, February 19-21, 2016, brought together 66 Oblates of Holy Wisdom, women and men from near and far, to learn from the sisters about the ways justice is expressed in Benedictine life through listening, right relationships and public witness. The following reflections come from a presentation given by Joanne Kollasch, OSB, on February 19, 2016 (pictured above). Today if you hear God’s voice, harden not your heart. —Prologue, Rule of Benedict There are many ways to hear God’s voice if we are silent and listening, if we are able to “welcome one another with the courtesy of love.” …
Building community through shared Benedictine values
Sister Joanne will be quick to tell you that Benedictine spirituality does not exist in the abstract. It only comes alive as people embody it. It is learned and passed on person to person through relationships. Having lived this life for over sixty years, Joanne embodies the Benedictine values of the monastery in her unique way. Joanne is passionate about passing on the Benedictine way of life to everyone with whom she comes into contact. You have probably experienced the values of hospitality, respect, simplicity and beauty through Joanne. She embodies Benedictine values in the way she greets guests, in …