Contemplative Programs by Shalem Graduates
The programs listed here are offered by graduates of Shalem's extension programs and are provided as a service for people looking for spiritual formation opportunities. They are not sponsored by the Shalem Institute. Contact each event directly to find out more information or to register -- you cannot register for these events through Shalem.
If you would like to have your event added to this list, please email your listing to Monica Maxon, our Director of Communications and Marketing, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
For a directory of spiritual retreat and conference centers, go to http://www.findthedivine.com, integrated with http://www.seekaretreat.com, a directory of retreat events, retreat leaders and spiritual advisors.
Spiritual Directors International also has a resource list of global retreat centers at http://www.sdiworld.org/retreat_centers.html
Click on the locations below to view the offerings only in that area, or scroll down to review all the offerings listed here.
District of Columbia
Event: Christian Meditation: Silence, Stillness, Simplicity
Dates: Fourth Saturdays
Time: 10 - 11 am
Place: Center for Prayer and Pilgrimage, Washington National Cathedral, Washington, DC
Cost: Free and open to the public
Details: Experience a rhythm of contemplative prayer that includes a reading fromm one of the great contemplatives, a period of silent meditation, and time for sharing and reflection.
Leader: Milo Coerper is a graduate of Shalem's Spiritual Guidance Program, Class of 1981 Local.
Contact: www.nationalcathedral.org/worship/prayer.shtml
Idaho
Event: Losses of Our Lives
Dates: November 19-21, 2010
Place: Monastery of St. Gertrude, Cottonwood, Idaho
Cost: $165.00 single / $220 double
Details: From birth until we take our last breath, life continually presents us with extraordinary gifts and unwanted losses. We'll explore awareness of the myriad ways we face loss daily, a posture of responding to loss without holding too tightly, and how we experience the sacred in loss.
Leader: Nancy Copeland-Payton is a graduate of Shalem's Leading Contemplative Prayer Groups and Retreats.
Contact: www.stgertrudes.org
Indiana
Event: The Life and Spirituality of Thomas Merton
Dates: April 17, June 12, July 17, August 21, September 18, and October 16, 2010
Time: 9 AM to 4 PM (The last session will be an overnight session.)
Place: John XXIII Retreat Center, 407 W McDonald Street, Hartford City, IN 47348
Cost: Each day is $22.00. The overnight is $60.00.
Details: Through this monthly retreat one will become more aware of Thomas Merton’s spiritual insights and contemplative practices. Through input, reading, reflection, videos and journaling one will come to a greater peace and a realization of the sacred in life. The retreat aims to help one come to some personal transformation and to begin or continue to work for justice in our society and our world. One of the books that is required reading is: A Retreat with Thomas Merton, Becoming Who We Are by Dr. Anthony T. Padovano.
Leader: This retreat will be facilitated by Sr. Joetta Huelsmann, PHJC, who has a love for solitude and contemplative prayer. Sr. Joetta also attended an Elder Hostel in Louisville, KY, for a week long learning of Thomas Merton and his spirituality. She is presently the director of John XXIII Retreat Center and is a graduate of Shalem's Spiritual Guidance Program.
Contact:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Maryland
Event:
Dates:
Time:
Place:
Cost:
Details:
Leader:
Contact:
Massachusetts
Event: "Living with God: Saints for Our Time"
Dates: September 18, 2010, 9 am to Noon, initial gathering; January 22,2011, 9 am to 3 pm, retreat ; May 7, 2011, 9 am to Noon, closing gathering; regular group meetings Wednesdays 9-11 am or 6-8 pm or Tuesdays 6:30-8:30 pm
Place: Gatherings at All Saints Church, Worcesters, MA
Groups at Boundless Way Zen Center, Worcester, MA or UCC Boxborough, MA or St. Francis Church, Holden, MA
Cost: $200 for the nine months; registration deadline September 10th
Details: A nine-month program building spiritual community through shared prayer and reflection in ongoing small groups; we will use "contemporary saints" to guide our prayer and reflection.
Leaders: Susie Allen (Associate Pastor at UCC Boxborough and musician) and Nancy Small (Hospice Chaplain for VNA and spiritual director). Both Nancy and Susie are graduates of Shalem's long-term programs.
Contact: To register or for more information, please contact Nancy Elder-Wilfrid, at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
; 508-752-3766, ext. #19.
Event: "Living in Ministry: Peer Coaching for Pastoral Leaders"
Dates: October 7, 2010; January 6, 2011; May 5, 2011; 9 am - 2 pm
December 2, 2010; February 24, 2011; 9-11 am
Place: Boundless Way Zen Center, Worcester, MA
Cost: $425; may be paid in installment; please register by September 20th
Details: An ecumenical program designed to support clergy and professional lay ministers in their pastoral, professional and spiritual lives, through regular gatherings and intentional life-coaching relationships within the group.
Leaders: Nancy Elder-Wilfrid (Clergy Associate at All Saints Church, Director of the Kairos Spiritual Life Center, graduate of Shalem's Spiritual Guidance Program and Clergy Spiritual Life and Leadership Program) and David Rynick (professional life coach and ordained Zen Sensei).Co-sponsored by Kairos Spiritual Life Center and the Boundless Way Zen Center.
Contact: To register or for more information, please contact Nancy Elder-Wilfrid, at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
; 508-752-3766, ext. #19.
New Hampshire
Event: "Resting in God: A Time for Prayer and Retreat"
Dates: Friday Oct. 15 - Sunday Oct. 17, 2010
Place: Barbara Harris Center, Greenfield, NH
Cost: $300; $290 if register by September 1st.
Details: Join us for the fifth annual Kairos fall retreat: a gift of spacious and gentle time, as we gather at the beautiful wooded retreat setting of the Barbara Harris Center. The retreat begins with supper on Friday and ends with lunch on Sunday.
Leaders: Nancy Elder-Wilfrid (Clergy Associate at All Saints Church and Director of the Kairos Spiritual Life Center) and Susie Allen (Associate Pastor at UCC Boxborough and musician). Both Nancy and Susie are graduates of Shalem's long-term programs. This event is sponsored by Kairos Spiritual Life Center, a Ministry of All Saints Church, Worcester MA.
Contact: To register or for more information, please contact Nancy Elder-Wilfrid, at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
; 508-752-3766, ext. #19.
New Mexico
Event: Embracing Advent's Night
Dates: December 1-5, 2010
Place: Casa del Sol Spirituality and Retreat Center, Ghost Ranch, Abiquiu, New Mexico
Cost: $625.00
Details: Do you yearn to slow down in these days before Christmas? Do you desire to experience Advent as a spiritual time of preparing ourselves for God's birth in this world? In this busy season, we will slow down and take time to listen for God's voice. We will look for God's Advents in our own lives. How can we make space in our lives where God can be born? We'll explore Scripture for insight and guidance. And we'll more deeply explore what it means to say "yes" to divine invitation.
Leaders: Nancy Copeland-Payton is a graduate of Shalem's Leading Contemplative Prayer Groups and Retreats.
Contact: www.ghostranch.org
North Carolina
Event: Contemplative Prayer Gatherings for Women
Dates: The 3rd Saturday of very other month (January, March, May, July, September, and November)
Time: 1:30 - 3:30 PM
Place: 5306 Villas Court, Winston-Salem, NC
Cost: Free
Details: We begin with a short welcome and introductions over tea, an opening prayer and a brief summary of the workings of the Spirit in each participant's life since our last gathering. This is followed by a short presentation for the day and 20 minutes of silence, journal writing and group sharing. We end with a selection of music and an intercessory prayer circle. This is an open group, so participants are free to join the gathering without having attended previous gatherings. Women of all religious denominations, those who are not affiliated with any denomination, and those who are seeking are welcome.
Leaders: Elaine Hartung is a graduate of Shalem's Leading Contemplative Prayer Groups and Retreats and an experienced group and workshop leader.
Contact: Elaine Hartung, 336.776.0359
Tennessee
Event: Keeping Faith: An Experience of Spiritual Deepening in Community
Dates: February 21-23; June 27-29; October 3-5, 2010
Place: St. Mary's-Sewanee, Sewanee, TN
Cost: $1,500 Applications are due by January 8, 2010.
Details: This is a nine-month program that will explore contemplative presence and practices, prayerful listening, discernment, spiritual community and contemplative activism. There will be three residential experiences at St. Mary's-Sewanee. During the program, participants are asked to be in spiritual direction, read and ponder four books, keep a journal, attend a two-day silent retreat on their own, and participate in a monthly group.
Leaders: Patience Robbins, Shalem staff member; Beth Hill, graduate of Shalem's Personal Spiritual Deepening Program; and Thomas Morris.
Contact: Thomas Morris, Director of St. Mary's-Sewanee at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
or 931-598-5342.
Virginia
Event: Contemplative Prayer Drop-in Group
Dates: Third Monday of each month - Please note, this group will NOT be meeting in July or August 2010.
Time: 7:30 to 9PM.
Place: Providence Presbyterian Church, 9019 Little River Turnpike, Fairfax, VA
Cost: No charge; occasional donations.
Details: The time includes brief introductions, opening prayer, some relaxation movements, the evening's presentation, 15 minutes of silence, journal-keeping and small group sharing. There is a closing intercessory prayer circle to name our concerns aloud or silently.
Leaders: Ann Kulp is a spiritual director, retreat leader, member of the Shalem Institute's associate staff, and author of SPIRIT WINDOWS, A Handbook of Spiritual Growth Resources for Leaders.
Contact: Ann Kulp at 703-978-9078 or
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
West Virginia
Event: Seasonal Quiet Days
Dates: WINTER: Stillness and Listening Wednesday, March 3, 2010
SPRING: Awakening and Newness Wednesday, May 12, 2010
SUMMER: Delight and Abundance Wednesday, July 28, 2010
FALL: Trust and Surrender Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Time: 10:00 am – 4:00 pm (Retreat House is available for overnight personal retreat time.)
Place: Rolling Ridge Study Retreat, Harpers Ferry, West Virginia (1 – 1-1/2 hrs from the Washington DC area)
Cost: No cost, donations welcome. Advance registration is necessary. Please bring a bag lunch.
Details: “Come away…and rest a while” Mk 6:31. What would happen if we took time aside from our ordinary busy weekday schedules simply to pray and reflect in a natural place apart? These four quiet days during the year offer us the opportunity to rest in the beauty of Creation’s varied seasons. They are a time apart to look and see, listen and hear in new ways. They are a chance to be nurtured by guided reflection around the seasonal themes, meditative walks in the woods, journaling and art, and the companioning presence of each other in prayer and sacred silence.
Leaders: Trish Stefanik, a resident of Rolling Ridge, is a graduate of Shalem’s Leading Contemplative Prayer Groups and Retreats Program.
Contact: Trish Stefanik at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
or call 304-725-4301. Also see www.rollingridge.net for more information.