This week, I wanted to offer a few resources to help us reach our goals for our spiritual life in the new year.  New York Times had this article by Susan Gregory Thomas on the benefit of a silent retreat.  Here is an excerpt from her experience at Wernersville Retreat Center. 

  I sat on one of these at the top of a hill, closed my eyes and sat. I don’t know how long I was there, not meditating “on the breath” or deliberately clearing my mind, but simply internally rolling over the words of my custom-tailored Matthew 3:17. Slowly, though, I grew to feel still and happy.

Later that night, I peeked into the center’s adytum, a dark and lovely stone chapel whose altar glowed with candlelight. I approached a pew and knelt. I thought about my closest family and friends and how Matthew 3:17 might be custom-fit for them, too. Again, time evaporated. That night, I slept 12 hours straight. I hadn’t slept half that much in more than a decade.  To read the rest….

 As our first resource for developing our spiritual life for the new year, I encourage you to attend a silent retreat.  There are silent retreats offered all over the country in retreat houses.  Many offer weekend version as well as 5-8 day silent retreats.  If you are interested to find out more about silent retreat locations, here are a few places to look (I have attended retreats led by these religious orders in Louisiana and Georgia);   

• Jesuit Retreat Centers
• Cenacle Sisters
• Sisters of St. Joseph 

Other options to help your search: 

• Retreat Finder
• Bustedhalo’s Retreat Finder

If you have questions about what a silent retreat is, let me know!

Becky Eldredge

Becky is an Ignatian-trained spiritual director, retreat facilitator, and writer. She is the author of the Busy Lives and Restless Souls (March 2017, Loyola Press) and The Inner Chapel (April 2020, Loyola Press). She helps others create space to connect faith and everyday life through facilitating retreats and days of reflection, through writing, and through spiritual direction. With nearly twenty years of ministry experience within the Catholic Church, Becky seeks to help others discover God at work in the every day moments of people’s lives by utilizing St. Ignatius’ Spiritual Exercises and the many gifts that our Catholic faith and Ignatian Spirituality provide.