Introduction to Centering Prayer Workshop
Sat, Aug 28

Led by Bruce Gardiner, hosted by Br. Charles

Based in the Christian contemplative heritage, and most particularly in the anonymous 14th century English classic, The Cloud of Unknowing, Centering Prayer is a method of response to God’s invitation to enter into loving intimacy and ever-deepening relationship. The practice prepares us to be open, available, and present to God’s action and presence in the innermost recesses of our being. It facilitates a process of interior transformation initiated by God and leading, as we consent, to divine union.

Centering Prayer has been given its contemporary expression by Trappist abbot, Fr. Thomas Keating, O.C.S.O., who also founded Contemplative Outreach in order to bring the riches of the Christian contemplative heritage to a lay audience beyond the cloister.

“An Introduction to Centering Prayer” will consist of four brief talks and two periods of centering prayer. The talks explore prayer as relationship, the method of centering prayer, and its fruits. Also there will be ample time for responding to participants questions.

Bruce Gardiner is the local contact person for Contemplative Outreach in the Albany and upper Hudson Valley area. He is a graduate Formation for Ministry Program (Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany) and has served as an FMP retreat leader and staff member. Bruce has been commissioned by Contemplative Outreach and Fr. Thomas Keating to teach Centering Prayer and Lectio Divina. With over thirty years of management and church consulting experience, Bruce is currently affiliated with the Princeton-based consultancy Kepner-Tregoe, Inc.

Fee: $35 for day, includes lunch
Deposit: $35

 

September 8 to 10 (Wednesday to Friday)
Going on Before, Celtic tradition

Led by Br Andrew

We customarily think of the past as behind us – long gone and finished. But there are traditions, the Celtic for one, that see the past as having gone ahead, making ready the road that we will travel. In this retreat we will look at ways the Celtic people paved our way and so help us walk
on into God's future.

Fee: $170 Deposit: $70

September 14 - 17 (Tuesday to Friday)
Library Volunteers Work Week

Accompanied by Brs Adam and Bernard

Holy Cross monks and their friends have been collecting books since 1884. The West Park part of the Holy Cross Library has over 15.000 volumes and counting...

In recent years, the librarians have embarked on yet another conversion experience: shifting the catalog form index cards to an on-line medium. This is a long-term project that requires a lot of labor. Over the past few years we have accomplished a great deal with the help of enthusiastic volunteers - and we have plenty more to do.

The work week balances work, rest, prayer and recreation.Work in the library can be dusty; bring appropriate clothing for your work times.

Fee: $210 Deposit: $70

September 17 to 19 (Friday to Sunday)
Fall Associates Weekend - Living with your Rule

This retreat is a time for Associates, working with members of the Monastic Community and other Associates, to explore ways of enriching your life through a clearer understanding of the Benedictine Rule and the individual Associates Rule. We share insight and experience as we
journey together on our conversion of life. This program is particularly well suited to newer Associates (or to those considering becoming Associates) who are looking for guidance in developing and maintaining their rule.

Fee: $170 Deposit: $85

September 28 to October 1 (Tuesday to Friday)
A Feast for the Soul
Retreat for Adults Who Work With Youth

Led by Jenifer Gamber and Fran McKendree

Since 2007, youth leaders from across the country have gathered for a time of spiritual refreshment, learning and networking at Holy Cross Monastery in West Park, NY. Join Jenifer Gamber and Fran McKendree in September 2010 for "A Feast for the Soul." Our time together will focus on the prayer as the heart of our lives and the lives of the youth we serve. Through worship, music, conversation and meditations we will explore a variety of spiritual disciplines that ground our life and ministry. Come and explore within the peace of a monastic setting. Special guests Ana Hernandez will lead a session of chants and Becky Neilson will lead a session
in painting icons.

Jenifer Gamber is the author of My Faith, My Life: A Teen's Guide to the Episcopal Church and Youth Faith, Your Life: An Introduction to the Episcopal Church.

Fran McKendree is a singer, songwriter, and recording artist. He lives in Hendersonville, North Carolina and can be frequently found at Kanuga sharing stories, games, and songs with youth and those who love them.

Fee: $320 Deposit: $80

October 5 to 8 (Tuesday to Friday)
Paint your Faith

Led by Elizabeth Rundquist

How can you express your faith without words? If you would like to join a group of people who have questions, and are eager to explore new art media, come join us. The structure of this retreat will be in workshop format. We will move from group discussion to individual art expression. There will be ample individual reflective time. The Monastery and the life within it inform our journey, adding to our deepening understanding of what faith is for each of us. Although the retreat is geared towards visual expression, writers may find different ways of using words. Directed are activities, designed to enhance flexibility and increase expression will be presented. Art materials will be provided. Journals for writing and sketching to use during the retreat and take home will be provided. Come; be prepared for a challenging journey, while anticipating the growth of new branches.

"Paint Your Faith" workshop will be led by Elizabeth Rundquist, MA, ATR-BC. She is a practicing artists and art therapist/psychotherapist. She has many years experience working individually and in groups. She is a graduate of Education for Ministry.

Fee: $260 Deposit: $70

October 5 to 8 (Tuesday to Friday)
Monastic Living as a Vocation

A program for single men aged 20 to 48 who are interested in exploring Benedictine monastic life as a possible vocational path. Join the brothers of Holy Cross Monastery for three full days of prayer, work, study and conversation. Discover what this ancient way of life can offer you today. Begins at 2 p.m. on Tuesday and ends after lunch on Friday.

Fee: $50 to be paid as a deposit at the time of reservation

 

October 14 to 17 (Thursday to Sunday)
Prayerful Stitches - Co-creation in Yarn & Needles

Led by Bros. Charles Mizelle and Bernard Delcourt

On this retreat we will focus on being mindful and intentional in our yarn work. We will spend quiet time working at our respective projects while praying. We will consider a yarn project for homeless people. We will swap tips, advice and stitching anecdotes.

You need to already know a technique of your choice (knitting, crocheting, needlepoint, etc.) and to bring your own stitching material. While mutual coaching on technique will be possible at specific times, our focus will be on prayerful work on our respective projects and exploring the spirituality of that work.

On Saturday, this retreat will visit the NY Sheep & Wool Festival...true bliss for all yarn addicts. (See www.sheepandwool.com for details.)

Bros. Charles and Bernard are avid crocheters themselves.

Fee: $370 Deposit: $80

Meditation in the Christain Tradition I (Silent)
Fri, Oct 29 — Sun, Oct 31

Led by The Rev. Mary Gates
& Br. Bede

This retreat will introduce the participants to the major practices of meditation currently used in Christianity. Each method will be introduced and a generous amount of time allotted to practice each one, so full familiarity with the meditation practice can be begun. Plenty of time is also allowed for questions and for sharing the experience of the practices. We also touch on the meditative stage where techniques need to be abandoned so a deep and silent awareness of God can be cultivated. Beginners will find plenty of help in getting started and people with experience will find challenge to develop their practice.

The Rev. Mary Gates has studied with Thomas Keating and has taught Centering Prayer for more than 20 years.

Br. Bede is Prior of Holy Cross Monastery and active in the ministry of spiritual direction and teaching meditation.

Fee: $250 Deposit: $80

Benedictine Spirituality and the Arts
Channels of Grace for Daily Living

Thu, Nov 04 — Sun, Nov 07
Led by Jane Tomaine

One of life’s joys is to experience the arts—music, fine art, craft, architecture, poem and story. Yet, the arts do more than provide an experience of beauty. They are God’s Presence and Spirit touching a place deep within us to bring peace, energy and hope. How might we be open on a deeper level to the grace that comes through the arts? How can the arts become a daily experience of God’s presence? How can the arts help us see the sacred in the ordinary? This retreat will explore how the arts are windows to the holy that teach us to look deeply at life around us and how they support the spirituality found in the Rule of St. Benedict.

We will explore ways that the arts are channels of God’s grace and presence, and seek God’s presence through reflection and prayer using the fine arts, music, poem and story. We will look for ways to bring the spiritual gifts of the arts into daily life and share how the arts have been meaningful to us. We will also learn ways that Benedictine Spirituality can prepare us for this experience of God through the arts and in our daily life with all its challenges and joys.

Please bring to the retreat an example of the arts that has been important and meaningful to you. This could be an actual painting or a craft item, picture of a painting, sculpture or building, a piece of music, a poem, play, movie or ballet, etc. These can be religious in subject matter but do not need to be. Choose an example that has deeply moved you. At the retreat you will have an opportunity to reflect on and share your experience with this meaningful example of the arts.

Jane Tomaine is an Episcopal priest and nationally known retreat leader from New Jersey and is the author of St. Benedict’s Toolbox: The Nuts and Bolts of Everyday Benedictine Living, published by Morehouse.

Fee: $420 Deposit: $85

Unity in Contemplation
A Centering Prayer Retreat

Tue, Nov16 — Fri, Nov 19
Led by Br Charles

This Centering Prayer immersion retreat will give participants an opportunity to deepen their Centering Prayer practice. We will also view a series of talks by Fr. Thomas Keating on the Spiritual Journey. The talks include The Divine Economy, The Symbol of the Cross, and The School of Love. The basic method of Centering Prayer will also be reviewed making this retreat appropriate for both new and long time practitioners.

Fee: $240 Deposit: $70

Thanksgiving — the Monastery Way
Tue, Nov 23 — Fri, Nov 26

Thanksgiving is a national holiday with deep spiritual roots. In our lives filled with tremendous blessings it is vital to take time to give God thanks. Join us to help put some holy into your holiday. And yes — we do have a lovely and traditional thanksgiving feast.

Join us for as many of these days as you like.

Fee per day: $70 Deposit: $35

Awakening in Advent (Silent)
Fri, Nov 26 — Sun, Nov 28

Led by Carolyn Bluemle

Wake up in mind body and spirit to the unbelievable gift of God’s incarnation among us. This Advent, let us strip away layers of busy-ness, tension, distractions, and exhaustion… Let us allow ourselves to be open and vulnerable enough… That we may awaken to the gift of God’s presence that is given every day, and is celebrated at Christmas.

In this guided retreat we will pray with silence, with song, and with our bodies, as each is inspired and able. We will practice yoga to open and integrate our bodies with our minds and spirits. We will pray with postures to music and words. By working with the postures and song, we can tap into the depth of our longing and the depth of our hope. Also: beautiful prayer with the monks, Taize Chant together, guided nap, and times of silence and stillness for meditation.

No previous yoga experience is necessary. All sequences and poses can be adapted for any and every body. Discover how opening your body can help to deepen your relationship with God.

Please bring a symbol of your intention for the retreat to place on a prayer table in the practice room.

Carolyn Bluemle has taught yoga since 1989 and is Iyengar certified. She teaches at Unity Woods Yoga Center and in the Sacred Circles program at the Washington National Cathedral. During doctoral studies in philosophy at UC Berkeley, she honed her analytical skills. Years as a dancer inspired her appreciation of the rhythms and poetry of the body. Through the healing practices of yoga, meditation, and Taize chant she has renewed her Christian faith with joy and compassion. Her teaching, precise and enthusiastic, reflects her deep experience of yoga as prayer.
Fee: $240 Deposit: $80

November 30 – December 3 (Tuesday to Friday)
Library Volunteers

Accompanied by Brs Adam and Bernard

Holy Cross monks and their friends have been collecting books since 1884. The West Park part of the Holy Cross Library has over 15.000 volumes and counting...

In recent years, the librarians have embarked on yet another conversion experience: shifting the catalog form index cards to an on-line medium. This is a long-term project that requires a lot of labor. With the help of enthusiastic volunteers at these library weeks, we have more than 4,000 titles already in the electronic system. Only 11,000 more to go...

The work week balances work, rest, prayer and recreation. Work in the library can be dusty; bring appropriate clothing for your work times.

Fee: $180 Deposit: $70

Advent Retreat (Silent)
Fri, Dec 03 — Sun, Dec 05

Leb by Br. Bede & The Rev. Suzanne Guthrie
Music by Sr. Helena Marie, CHS

Darkness and light, endings and beginnings, longing and fulfillment. These are the themes of Advent; and we will weave them together through reflection, silence, music, and story, to help you prepare for the living of the coming Mystery of Christ among us.

Suzanne Guthrie is an author and conductor of retreats and conferences. Her books Grace’s Window and Praying the Hours have been widely read and appreciated, and her retreats at Holy Cross and elsewhere have been greatly valued by those who have attended. She concentrates on the spiritual tradition of Christianity, especially the Carmelite mystics, and uses their teachings in her work with young people and with retreatants of all ages.

Br. Bede is Prior of Holy Cross Monastery. He has been active in the practice of spiritual direction for many years and in teaching about spiritual direction and meditation. He is the author of the widely-read booklet, Using the Jesus Prayer.

Fee: $240 Deposit: $80

Individually Directed Retreats
Tue, Dec 07 — Fri, Dec 10 or Sun, Dec 12

Limited Registration

Spending time in prayer and silence is a classic way to deepen your spiritual life and to enhance your experience of Advent. Participants will meet individually each day with a Spiritual Director who will assist and guide you in responding to God’s movement in your life and in responding to the invitation to deeper union with God. Participants start the retreat on Tuesday and may conclude on Friday or Sunday, depending on your needs.

Participants are asked to include a brief synopsis of your spiritual journey and a statement of your hopes for the retreat.

Fee for Tue — Fri: $250 Deposit: $80
Fee for Tue — Sun: $430 Deposit: $80

Christmas or New Year’s
the Monastery Way

 

Tue, Dec 21 — Sun, Dec 26
Tue, Dec 28 — Sat, Jan 01

Christmas time at the Monastery is quite remarkable. It is a time filled with feasts and celebration. Many evenings in the Pilgrim Hall are accented with a story reading or carol sing. Most of all it is a time to gather, as those shepherds did in Bethlehem, to offer praise to God and pray for peace on earth using the ancient cycle of monastic prayer. Join us for any or all of these days.

Fee: $70 per weeknight, $85 per weekend night Deposit $35

“Cheshbon Nefesh”
An Accounting of the Soul at the New Year

Thu, Dec 30 — Sat, Jan 01, 2011

The retreat begins at 2 PM on December 30th
Led by Br. James

“Cheshbon Nefesh” is the practice of our Jewish sisters and brothers of accounting for their soul and for their community between Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur (the Jewish New Year and Day of Atonement which occurs in the Autumn). This is a spiritual practice with ancient roots and one that can apply to our Christian heritage as well.

We invite you to spend the New Year holiday in a relaxing and peaceful atmosphere in which we will have ample time and silence to reflect on the past year and prepare for the new one as well. There will be meditations led by Brother James on the turning of the year, and in private reflection discerning how our soul’s account ledger adds up at this point in time. Additionally, we will “pray in the New Year” (voluntarily) with a meditative service from 11:30 pm until 12:30 am over the New Year.

Fee: $160 Deposit $70

January 18 to 21 (Tuesday to Friday)
Rest, Rejuvenate, Reflect and Write – A Winter Retreat for Writers

Led by Joan Ball

Join an eclectic group of creative writers for four days and three nights of rejuvenation, reflection and writing at the beautiful guesthouse at Holy Cross Monastery. Whether you write for others or to feed your own soul, this retreat is designed to provide space to enjoy both community and solitude in a peaceful, generous and inspiring setting. Opportunities to share work and explore creativity together will be balanced with ample time to focus on unique creative, physical
and spiritual needs. To learn more please contact Joan at joanpball@gmail.com.

Joan Ball is author of “Flirting with Faith: My Spiritual Journey from Atheism to a Faith-Filled Life.”

Fee: $290 Deposit: $70

January 27 to 30 (Thursday to Sunday)
Winter Associates Weekend

Led by Br. Reginald-Martin Crenshaw, OHC

The Winter retreat for Associates (and those considering membership in the Associates) focuses on prayer, conversation and mutual support as we explore the relationship between the life and thought of St Benedict and of Fr James Huntington, the founder of the Order of the Holy Cross, whose rules have formed and shaped the life of the Order and of our Associates. This retreat is an
opportunity to explore conversion of your life through interaction with a community of Associates. Come join us for a stimulating and fun weekend that will provide you with insight into the living of your spiritual path.

Fee: $240 Deposit $80

February 1 to 4 (Tuesday to Friday) and

Feb 4 to 6 (Friday to Sunday)
A People's Spirituality: Following Our Ancestor's Footsteps to a Hopeful Future

Led by Diana Butler Bass

Both retreats will explore an open, inclusive, and spiritually motivating vision of history and its relationship to living well in the world and attending to the future. Each, however, will have a slightly different focus. The weekday retreat will focus on questions of theology and leadership in congregations, faith communities, and society; the weekend retreats will be more focused on personal spirituality and prayer.

Dr. Diana Butler Bass is an author, teacher, and speaker who works to help people understand faith analytically and personally. She strives to live in the Christian heart of generative, welcoming, and transforming love that can heal the world.

Tuesday to Friday: Fee $360 Deposit $70
Friday to Sunday: Fee $330 Deposit $80

February 11 to 13 (Friday to Sunday)
Thomas Merton: Prophet for Today

Led by Esther de Waal

Thomas Merton, the monk, fits no simple category! During this retreat we shall explore some of the aspects of his life which challenge us. We shall turn not only to his creative gifts as a writer, but to his photography as well, which reveals him as an artist with the camera.

Esther de Waal is the author of numerous books which focus on Benedictine Spirituality and Celtic Spirituality. She studied and taught at Cambridge University. She travels widely to lead retreats and give lectures. She lives in a small cottage on the Welsh/English border.

Fee: $250 Deposit $80

February 15 to 20 (Tuesday to Sunday)
Exploring Divine Forgiveness & Compassion--A Centering Prayer Immersion Retreat

Led by Fr Carl Arico

Forgiving is one of the most difficult and complex gestures and yet, like love, it is one of the things which defines the essence of our humanity. In fact, the contemplative dimension of forgiveness reveals that at its core, forgiveness is a divine gift of love, a movement of love so profound that it reveals the truth of our nature--fully human and enlivened with the divine potential through Christ. This Centering Prayer Immersion Retreat will help us to deepen our Centering Prayer practice while fully embracing forgiveness and compassion as a divine gift of love.

Fr. Carl Arico is Vice President of Contemplative Outreach. He was one of the original co-founders of Contemplative Outreach with Fr. Thomas Keating and has been a part of his work on Centering Prayer since its early beginnings in 1980. He is a beloved retreat leader in Centering Prayer retreats and author of the book "A Taste of Silence: A Guide to the Fundamentals of Centering Prayer".

Fee: $495 Deposit: $85

February 22 to 25 (Tuesday to Friday)
Interpreting Monastic Buildings

Led by Esther de Waal

When we learn to read architecture as we do a written text, it can tell us much of the vision and values of its age. In this retreat we shall explore, visually, medieval Benedictine and Cistercian abbeys as well as such contemporary monastic achievements as St John's Collegeville and Christ in the Desert. Special attention will be given to stained glass.

The concern is not that of the art historian, but of the Christian who wants to learn more of the riches and relevance of the monastic habitation.

Esther de Waal is the author of numerous books which focus on Benedictine Spirituality and Celtic Spirituality. She studied and taught at Cambridge University. She travels widely to lead retreats and give lectures. She lives in a small cottage on the Welsh/English border.

Fee: $290 Deposit: $70

Hold the dates:

Tuesday, March 15 to Friday, March 18 - Library Volunteers
Friday, Mar 18 to Sunday, Mar 20 - Lenten Retreat led by Martin Smith
Tuesday, April 12 to Friday, April 15 - Individually Directed Retreats
Thursday, April 21 to Sunday, April 24 - Triduum & Easter