Thursday will see a diverse group of sixteen men come to the Abbey for our fifth Monastic Immersion Weekend. MIWs offer men and women an opportunity to live in community-both the community of those attending the retreat and the monastic community-while providing ample time for silence, solitude and prayer.
Retreat can be structured in many different ways. Some are completely silent, like most of those taken in our Retreat House. Some are semi-active, like the Monastic Immersion Weekend, as you can see from the schedule posted below. And some retreats are very active, providing sessions a couple of times a day, programs for study and activity. We don’t do those here at the Abbey but know our Benedictine brothers and sisters in other monasteries do to great success.
What actually is the benefit to taking retreat? There is the obvious-you get away from the hustle and bustle of your everyday life. But in the case of the semi-active and active retreats there is an opportunity to build community within community. Our MIW participants seem to always mention in their evaluation how important it was to get to know the other people they met during the four days together.
What makes that happen? I believe it is because people on retreat are searching for something. And we often find that ‘something’ in the activity of the monastery, the programs perhaps, the Office and mass…
But we also find it in other people. God rests in each of us. The Kingdom of God is Within Us, Jesus said. And on retreat we have the perfect venue to explore God within us and in the hearts and minds of the other people with us.
We encourage you to explore opportunities for retreat, with us or anywhere that you believe you will be given the chance to find God. You won’t be disappointed.
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MONASTIC IMMERSION WEEKEND MASTER SCHEDULE
September 11-14
Thursday September 11
3:30-5pm Check in and Room Assigned
5:30pm Vespers
6:30pm Dinner in silence
7:30pm Complineand presentation of crosses by Prior Efrain (high altar)
8:00pm Q&A with Father Joseph and orientation
Great Silence and bed! (3 am comes quickly)
Friday September 12
3am Bell rings in Retreat House
3:30am Vigils
4:15am Half Hour Silent Prayer -Silence Ends
4:50am Choir Practice
7am Lauds/Mass
8:15am Breakfast in silence with reading
9am Conference #1- “Work as prayer.” Fr. James Orthmann
Complete Silence begins until after breakfast Saturday
2pm Mid-day prayer
5:30pm Vespers
6:15pm Dinner
7:30pm Compline
8:15pm Great Silence begins/continues
Saturday September 13
3am Bell rings in Retreat House
3:30 am Vigils
4:15 am Half Hour Silent Prayer
7 am Lauds and Mass
7:45 am Breakfast in silence
8:30 am Conference #2- “Contemplative Life Today” Sr. Kathy
12noon Lunch in silence with reading )
2pm Mid-day prayer
2:15 pm Conference #3- “Vocations aren’t just for monks” Br. Efrain
5:30pm Vespers
6:15pm Dinner with conversation
7:30pm Compline
Great Silence begins
Sunday September 14
3am Bell rings in Retreat House
3:30am Vigils
7am Lauds
Breakfast in silence on your own
11am Mass
12:20pm Mid-day prayer
12:40pm Lunch/wrap up and departure
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