Upcoming Programs

Saturday, July 18 through Friday, July 24 Directed Retreats $100 non refundable deposit is due at time of registration. $430 for early registration (60 days prior to retreat beginning) $475 for registration less than 60 days prior to retreat beginning. Holy Family Chapel, Nazareth July 18-24 (Saturday-Friday) August 3-9 (Monday-Sunday) Aug 30-Sept 5 (Sunday-Saturday) A directed retreat is a sacred time spent in silence, prayer and reflection with God and scripture. Retreatants meet each day with their retreat director, who listens prayerfully and attentively for the movement of the Spirit within the retreatant’s life, heart and prayer. There are several trained and experienced retreat directors available during each of the retreat weeks and choice of director will depend on availability of openings at registration. Each retreat week begins at 2 p.m. on the first day with an opening prayer service in Holy Family Chapel and concludes with the noon meal on the final day. Shorter retreats, 3-4 days, may also be scheduled depending on availability of directors. Please contact us for more information. Registration is required one month prior to the first day of the retreat. When registering online, please indicate the retreat week you wish to attend in the Additional Comments field at the bottom of the registration form.

Saturday, July 18 Walking the Labyrinth with Mary of Magdala 9:00 am - 12:00 pm    $35.00 Romero Room Elizabeth Tompkins This contemplative labyrinth walk experience will focus on the mystique of Mary Magdalene, sometimes described as the disciple to the disciples of Jesus. Her feast is celebrated in July, and current scholarship has provided much new wisdom about her. Her life and spiritual heritage will be explored with music, icons and the body prayer of walking the Reconciliation Labyrinth on the grounds at Nazareth (rain or shine). Participants are requested to wear comfortable shoes, clothing appropriate to the weather, and encouraged to bring journals. The retreat guide, Elizabeth Tompkins, is a spiritual director/companion and a long-time labyrinth facilitator. Please register by July 6.

Friday, August 21 through Saturday, August 22 Sampling Living From Within Begins Friday at 7:00 pm and continues through 3:30 pm Saturday 3rd Fl Community Room Marianne Novak Houston This program is designed to give participants a brief sample of the four weekend seasonal retreat series Living from Within: The Journey Toward an Undivided Life based on the work of Parker Palmer, which begins in October. If you are curious about the four-part seasonal retreat series that has been offered annually, this is your opportunity to sample a taste of this life enhancing experience. This weekend program, facilitated by Marianne Novak Houston, will provide an overview of the retreat series designed to renew your spirit and reconnect with the wellsprings of your service to others. Come and experience this taste of the power of reconnecting who we are with what we do. Then consider extending the journey by registering for the full Living from Within experience. The full program meets quarterly, one weekend each season beginning in fall 2009. $115 registration includes meals, air conditioned overnight accommodations and materials $85 commuter rate does not include overnight accommodations $25 non-refundable deposit is due with registration Please register by August 7.

Thursday, September 10 Staying Close to the Sacred, An Evening with Mark Nepo 6:30 pm - 9:00 pm     Holy Family Chapel, Nazareth Mark Nepo Since everything is sacred, staying close to what is sacred is a matter of presence and attention more than travel to some secret place. In essence, staying close is a pilgrimage to the heart of where we are. Stories and poems are teachers that guide us in that journey within. Mark Nepo, a gifted writer, poet and philosopher will share readings from some of his works and engage us in conversation around big questions of loving, of sufferieng, and staying on the path. He has been called an "an insightful religious thinker and a decidedly credible voice of contemporary spirituality" and a "deep optimist" who never looses touch with the light that illuminates the heart of the world. Please visit www.MarkNepo.com to learn more about Mark and his work. Mark will read from some of his new work, as well as providing an opportunity to engage in exercises, dialogue and Q&A. The evening will conclude with the opportunity to purchase his books and have them signed. Register by August 20, $20 ($10 student) Register after August 20, $25 ($15 student) Please register by August 28.

Beginning Friday, September 25 Porch Talks with Phil Gulley Holy Family Chapel, Nazareth Philip Gulley Transformations Spirituality Center and Nazareth Association present author and PBS television 'star' Philip Gulley for two different presentations. On Friday, September 25, from 6:30 - 8:30 p.m., Philip will speak and read from his recent memoir recounting his coming-of-age years in Danville. I Love You, Miss Huddleston: And Other Inappropriate Longings of My Indiana Childhood. This heartwarming book may make you laugh and cry. On Saturday morning, September 26, 9:30 a.m. - noon, he will present a session on another of his recent works If the Church Were Christian scheduled for release January 2010. Philip is the host of “Porch Talk with Phil Gulley” on the PBS program Across Indiana and has been called Indiana’s Garrison Keillor. He says “I get a lot of letters from people who say, ‘I grew up in the town you write about and wish I could live there again.’” A Quaker minister, he has become a vibrant voice of small-town American life and is the author of Front Porch Tales, Hometown Tales, and For Everything a Season as well as a series of novels set in the fictional town of Harmony. Gulley lives in Indiana with his family—in a rambling old house with a welcoming porch and his eclectic chair collection (sixty-four at last count). For a preview of Philip Gulley and his work check out his website: www.philipgulley.org. Philip Gulley also has a video tidbit from his book posted on YouTube. This program will be held in the Holy Family Chapel. Please enter through the main Nazareth Center entrance. Call ahead to arrange for barrier-free access. The events will include the opportunity to purchase his books and have them signed. Register by September 1, $20/session, $35 for both sessions Register after September 1, $25/session Please register by September 11.

Monday, October 12 8th Annual Community of Caregivers Gathering, a Conference for Professional & Pastoral Caregivers Understanding and Managing Ambivalence: Integrating Mind, Body and Spirit 9:00 am - 4:30 pm     Fontbonne Auditorium Fr. Ken Schmidt and Sharon G. Froom Caring for others can be a very rewarding, enriching, demanding, and oftentimes frustrating experience. We can be inspired, energized, distressed, drained, lifted up and left feeling ‘used-up’—all in the course of the same day. We can both love and ‘hate’ the work and those we work with, all at the same time. We are frequently awash in a sea of ambivalent feelings that conflict with our sense of self as spiritual and caring. This ambivalence can leave us with a confusing mix of thoughts and feelings that we don’t like or know what to do with. Our faith calls us to loving service of the ‘neighbor’ and those we minister with and care for, but we don’t always feel very loving, spiritual, or appreciated. This day with Fr. Ken Schmidt and Sharon Froom is the opportunity to be with others who share similar experiences and feelings. Through a combination of input, exercises, personal reflection, sharing, and dialogue we will learn how to better embrace our humanity as caregivers. We will leave with tools and practical techniques for managing ambivalent thoughts, feelings and behaviors. Click here for a copy of the Brochure. Register by September 1, $70 Register after September 1, $85 Please register by October 1.

Friday, October 23 through Sunday, October 25 Living From Within: The Journey Toward an Undivided Life A Four Part Retreat in the Spirit of the Work of Parker Palmer Begins Friday at 7:00 pm and continues through 12:00 pm Sunday October 23 - 25; January 15 - 17; April 16 - 18; June 11 - 13 (a series of 4 retreats) 3rd Fl Community Room Marianne Novak Houston The more passionate we are about our life and work, the more vital it is that we take time to renew our own spirits – to reconnect with the wellsprings of our service to others. In this series of four retreats we will focus on the rejoining of soul and role, on reconnecting who we are with what we do. The focus is neither on techniques nor skills required in our work, but on renewing our inner lives. Using solitary, small and large group formats, poetry, archetypal and personal stories, we will address basic life questions which, though they are personal and private, are often deeply instructive when shared in a “circle of trust.” This series, led in the spirit of the work of Parker Palmer, is open to those interested in participating in the four seasonal retreats during which a “courage community” will form. In this environment of trust the deep work of soul is given voice. This is the approach which has proven transformational for the numerous participants in these circles which Marianne has led throughout the U.S., Australia, Canada, and Asia. For a taste of the program attend the introduction program August 21-22. Registration costs include a private air-conditioned guest room with bathroom, meals, snacks, spacious grounds to walk, and time to “be”. Bring a journal, writing materials, and clothing appropriate for variable indoor and outdoor temperatures. Check in between 5:30 and 6:30 p.m. on the first day of each of the four retreat weekends. Space is limited so register early for this 4 weekend series. Save money and register for the four part series by September 23 A non-refundable deposit of $240 for the series is due with registration. Balance of $225 due upon arrival for each of the four weekends. Register after September 23, $315 per weekend; non-refundable deposit of $360 due A non-refundable deposit of $360 for the series is due with registration. Balance of $225 due upon arrival for each of the four weekends. All registrations must be received by October 9, 2009 so that we may prepare a place for you.