Pause... Reflect... Grow in Awareness...
Archives
Archives
The following Shalom Place reflections, programs and retreats have been offered IN THE PAST.
Be sure to check our website and FaceBook page regularly for future offerings!
Bridges to Contemplative Living
with Thomas Merton
Becoming Who You Already Are
Bridges to Contemplative Living
with Thomas Merton
Becoming Who You Already Are
For more information about this program, please click here.
Dates: Eight sessions beginning Thursday, February 9, 2023
Times: 7:00 - 9:00 PM
Facilitator: Burnie Thorp
Location: Shalom Place (in the Mount St. Joseph Education Centre)
Register by phone: 705-254-4690, email: [email protected] or by completing the contact form by January 30.
Suggested Offering: Your gift allows the ministry of Shalom Place to continue.
Thank you for your generosity!
E-transfer: [email protected]
Cheques: Shalom Place,
c/o 59 Glen Ave.
Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 5V1
In person
program!
In person
program!
December 23: O Emmanuel
December 23: O Emmanuel
December 22: O King of Nations
December 22: O King of Nations
December 21: O Rising Sun
December 21: O Rising Sun
December 20: O Key of David
December 20: O Key of David
December 19: O Root of Jesse
December 19: O Root of Jesse
December 18: O Lord
December 18: O Lord
December 17: O Wisdom
December 17: O Wisdom
Advent Retreat:
"Less Hectic; More Holy"
Advent Retreat:
"Less Hectic; More Holy"
Date: Saturday, December 10, 2022
Time: 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Location: St. Jerome Parish Hall
Facilitator: Sr. Pat Carter, CSJ
Register by phone: 705-254-4690, email: [email protected] or by completing the contact form by December 7th.
COVID precautions will be in place.
Suggested Offering: $40 (includes lunch, coffee breaks) or whatever you are able to pay.
E-transfer: [email protected]
Cheques in person that day or mail to:
Shalom Place,
c/o 59 Glen Ave.
Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 5V1
Your offering allows the ministry of Shalom Place to continue.
Thank you for your generosity!
Shalom Place presents an on-line mini-retreat!
"The Story of the Rock: Turning the Pages"
Join us for a Zoom retreat day!
The rock provides a visual image for a journey with God into change. Suitable for all ages who are on different pages of their Spiritual Journey.
Date & Time: October 22, 2022
9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Facilitator: Karen Sherry
Location: From the comfort of your own home - via zoom!
Register by phone: 705-254-4690, email: [email protected] or by completing the contact form by October 12th.
Suggested Offering: Your gift allows the ministry of Shalom Place to continue.
Thank you for your generosity!
E-transfer: [email protected]
Cheques: Shalom Place,
c/o 59 Glen Ave.
Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 5V1
Creator God, thank you that there is nowhere I can go that is beyond your presence. In your presence, I am blessed beyond measure. You have said that you will never leave me or forsake me, you are always with me. May I live a life of thanksgiving in your presence. Hear my prayer and fill my heart and my mouth with praise to you for your good gifts. May your love be the passion in my heart. May your joy be my strength when times are hard. May your presence be my peace that overflows. Amen.
Bridges to Contemplative Living
with Thomas Merton
Entering the School
of
Your Experience
Bridges to Contemplative Living
with Thomas Merton
Entering the School
of
Your Experience
Eight sessions beginning Thursday, October 20, 2022
For a preview and sampler, go to:
www.avemariapress.com/products/entering-the-school-of-your-experience
Dates & Times: Thursdays beginning October 20, 2022
7:00 - 9:00 PM
Facilitator: Burnie Thorp
Location: Shalom Place (in the Mount St. Joseph Education Centre)
Register by phone: 705-254-4690, email: [email protected] or by completing the contact form by October 6th.
Suggested Offering: Your gift allows the ministry of Shalom Place to continue.
Thank you for your generosity!
E-transfer: [email protected]
Cheques: Shalom Place,
c/o 59 Glen Ave.
Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 5V1
In person
program!
In person
program!
Journey
Journey
Many of us occupy lives of continuous struggle. These situations/relationships/struggles can leave you tired, lonely, fearful, angry, hopeless and shamed.
WHERE TO TURN?
For people of faith, there is a path to peace, healing and rest.
With stories, Scripture, prayer, music, sharing and journaling we will experience anew our total BELOVEDNESS,
for it is there that we will find rest for our souls and
the courage and strength to sustain us.
Dates & Times: Oct. 18, Nov. 1, 15, 29, Dec. 13 2022
4:00 - 6:00 PM
Facilitator: Susan Febbraro, retired family doctor
Location: Shalom Place (in the Mount St. Joseph Education Centre)
Register by phone: 705-254-4690, email: [email protected] or by completing the contact form by October 12th.
Note: Space will be limited!
Suggested Offering: Your gift allows the ministry of Shalom Place to continue.
Thank you for your generosity!
E-transfer: [email protected]
Cheques: Shalom Place,
c/o 59 Glen Ave.
Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 5V1
In person
program!
In person
program!
Unfortunately, the "Celebrating the Saints" program
(listed below)
has been cancelled at this time!
Unfortunately, the "Celebrating the Saints" program
(listed below)
has been cancelled at this time!
Shalom Place presents (once more...!!!)
"CELEBRATING THE SAINTS"
The four-week series is back - and "IN PERSON!"
Join us to experience that joy that is part of the COMMUNION OF SAINTS, that "great cloud of witnesses" who can help to inspire us and help us to live with new eyes and a renewed heart!
These sessions will be an interactive exchange of ideas, talent and joy!!
- no materials are necessary
- no contribution is too small
- no prior knowledge of the Lives of the Saints is required
Dates & Times: October 14, 21, 28 & November 4
4:30 - 6:30 PM
Facilitator: Sr. Mary Jo Radey, CSJ
Location: Shalom Place (in the Mount St. Joseph Education Centre)
Register by phone: 705-254-4690, email: [email protected] or by completing the contact form by October 12th.
Suggested Offering: Your gift allows the ministry of Shalom Place to continue.
Thank you for your generosity!
E-transfer: [email protected]
Cheques: Shalom Place,
c/o 59 Glen Ave.
Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 5V1
Want to know more about the Saints?
If so, check out this ad from Franciscan Media
(Note: This is not a Shalom Place offering.)
The saints are an important part of our faith. Now you can learn more about them and their stories with this free resource.
Sometimes when we think of saints, we view them as distant or unrelatable. The truth is, though, they can be more relatable than we think. Each has a unique story with which we can probably connect on some level. For instance, the recently beatified 15-year-old Carlo Acutis enjoyed films, comics, soccer, and playing popular video games. And St. Elizabeth Ann Seton was faced with raising her five children alone after her husband died.
To help you learn these stories, Franciscan Media offers Saint of the Day, which features a new saint every day of the year. This free resource can help you learn more about the Church’s holiest—yet still relatable—members.
Sign up today to receive a daily email that will help you get to
know the saints and their stories.
Click below for more information and to sign up:
September is often a time for new beginning, even for those who do not follow a school year calendar. You might wish to pray the following prayer to mark the start of the new year, new month, or even to mark the beginning of each new day:
Dear God,
Give me the courage to begin again — to overlook the difficulties, to overcome the obstacles and to stay open to the moment as best I can. Help me be patient enough to know it takes time to start over, and wise enough to ask for help from friends and family when I need it. As I look to the future, may I reflect on the past and remember the lessons it’s taught me. And God, may I always look to you for strength and guidance.
By Abbey Caskets (source Google)
"Retreat in Everyday Life"
NOTE: This will be offered by zoom!
"Retreat in Everyday Life"
NOTE: This will be offered by zoom!
This “Retreat in Everyday Life” (aka, the 19th Annotation - don’t worry if you don’t know what that means! ☺) offers the complete experience of the Spiritual Exercises over a nine-month period. St. Ignatius recognized that most people – even back in the 1500s – needed a way to deepen their prayer amid the busyness of their lives! Using contemporary resources, the wisdom Ignatius received from God is still pertinent today.
Who might benefit:
- Those who desire to grow in their relationship with God
- Those who desire to live life more fully
- Those who seek to understand more clearly God’s presence in their lives
- Those who want to discern the next step in their lives, or who are already in transition
- Those open to meeting regularly with a Spiritual Director who will guide them through the retreat.
Directors: Patricia Frederick and Stephanie Romiti
Free Opening Session: Wednesday, September 21, 2022, 7:00 – 8:30 p.m. (ET) All subsequent appointments are scheduled
individually.
Click here for more information.
PRAYER FOR SUMMERTIME
Loving God, Creator of all times and places, we thank you for the gift of summertime, the days of light, warmth and leisure.
Thank you for the beauty that surrounds us everywhere we look: the multi-colored flowers, the deep blue of the sky, the tranquil surface of lakes, the laughter of children at play, people strolling in parks, families gathered around picnic tables and the more time to spend with family and friends.
As we open our eyes and ears to the landscape of nature and people, open our hearts to receive all as gift. Give us that insight to see you as the Divine Artist. Help us to realize and appreciate that you are laboring to keep all in existence. Warm our souls with the awareness of your presence.
Let all the gifts we enjoy this summer deepen our awareness of your love so that we may share this with others and enjoy a summertime of re-creation.
AMEN
Source: Marquette University website
We here at Shalom Place hope that all of you are safe and well. In-person retreats through Shalom Place are on hold for the time being. We continue to monitor all the COVID-19 situation and are adhering to guidance from health professionals. We are now offering several online opportunities - check out the Spiritual Direction and Small Group Program pages for more information! In the meantime, please enjoy the reflections posted on our home page as well as some of the additional resources made available there. Until we can gather again in person, please wear a mask, honour distancing recommendations, get vaccinated and stay home whenever necessary.
Blessings,
The Shalom Place Team
We here at Shalom Place hope that all of you are safe and well. In-person retreats through Shalom Place are on hold for the time being. We continue to monitor all the COVID-19 situation and are adhering to guidance from health professionals. We are now offering several online opportunities - check out the Spiritual Direction and Small Group Program pages for more information! In the meantime, please enjoy the reflections posted on our home page as well as some of the additional resources made available there. Until we can gather again in person, please wear a mask, honour distancing recommendations, get vaccinated and stay home whenever necessary.
Blessings,
The Shalom Place Team
In the meantime, check out the Archives page for a sampling of the types of retreats we've offered in the past!
A Hollowed Space to Be Filled
A cup must be empty before it can be filled.
If it is already full, it can't be filled again except by emptying it out.
In order to fill anything, there must be a hollowed out space.
Otherwise it can't receive.
This is especially true of God's word.
In order to receive it, we must be hollowed out.
We must be capable of receiving it,
emptied of the false self and its endless demands.
When Christ came, there was no room in the inn.
It was full. The inn is a symbol of the heart.
God's word, Christ, can take root only in a hollow.
- William Breault, SJ
A Summer Blessing
May you walk with God
This summer
In whatever you do
Wherever you go
Walking with God means...
Walking with honesty
And with courage,
Walking with love
And respect
And concern for the feelings of others
May you talk to God
This summer
And every day and
In every situation
Talking with God means...
Praying words of praise
For the beauty of creation
Saying prayers of thanks
For friends and good times,
Asking God's help
In all your decisions
Expressing sorrow
When you have failed
May you talk with God
Every day. Amen.
- Author unknown
https://www.xavier.edu/jesuitresource/
Spring Prayer Journey 2022
Spring Prayer Journey 2022
Are you ... Wondering what personal prayer is all about?
Looking to deepen the prayer life you already have?
Curious about Spiritual Direction?
Consider joining Patricia Frederick and Stephanie Romiti on an online prayer journey! Participants will be encouraged to spend time in daily prayer, using a resource from well-known author Joyce Rupp. Each participant will meet individually with one of the directors on a weekly basis. Whether you are new to the spiritual life or a seasoned pray-er, you are welcome to join us on this journey of faith. Participants will be asked to obtain a copy of the book Open the Door by Joyce Rupp (cover image may vary).
Dates: Opening session together on Thursday, May 12, 2022
10:30 a.m. - Noon (ET) via zoom
Closing session together on Thursday, June 23, 2022
10:30 a.m. - Noon (ET) via zoom
Weekly appointments will be determined individually.
Directors: Patricia Frederick and Stephanie Romiti
Location: From the comfort of your home on zoom!
Register by phone: 705-254-4690, email: [email protected] or by completing the contact form by May 10th.
Space is limited so register early!
Cost: Your free-will offering supports the ministry of Shalom Place. Thank you for your generosity!
E-transfer: [email protected]
Cheques: Shalom Place,
c/o 59 Glen Ave.
Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 5V1
Summer Retreat Opportunity
(online or in person)
While Shalom Place will not be offering a retreat this summer, we wish to pass on information about a summer retreat featuring Fr Ron Rolheiser facilitated by Queen's House in Saskatoon. Travelling to do this retreat in person may not be an option but they are also offering it via Zoom. Check out the link below:
https://www.queenshouse.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Rolheiser-Retreat-July-2022-brochure.pdf
"Come to the Living Water"
"Come to the Living Water"
A Quiet Reflective Prayer Time in Nature
IN PERSON!! OUTDOORS!!
8 week prayerful meditation series
From "Walking the Sacred Path"
Dates: Wednesdays: April 13th to June 1st, 2022
Time: 4:00 - 6:00 p.m.
Location: Outdoors in Sault Ste. Marie - specifics will be given
Facilitator: Patty Boucher
Register by email [email protected] or by completing the contact form by April 8th. Limited to 6 people!
Cost: Your free-will offering supports the ministry of Shalom Place. Thank you for your generosity!
E-transfer: [email protected]
Cheques: Shalom Place,
c/o 59 Glen Ave.
Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 5V1
Easter Retreat
Easter Retreat
Shalom Place invites you to a Post Easter half-day celebration retreat. We will pause and reflect on the beautiful post resurrection stories and grow into a deeper awareness of God's loving presence and action in our lives.
Bring your bible, journal,
open heart and mind,
your hunger and your need,
your gratitude and concerns,
and explore what the Good News of resurrection means for you this year.
Facilitator: Janet Norman
Dates: Saturday, April 23, 2022
Time: 9:30 a.m. - Noon
Location: From the comfort of your home on zoom!
Register by email [email protected] or by completing the contact form
Cost: Your free-will offering supports the ministry of Shalom Place. Thank you for your generosity!
E-transfer: [email protected]
Cheques: Shalom Place,
c/o 59 Glen Ave.
Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 5V1
Why Does Jesus Ask Peter Three Times, "Do you love Me?"
This is a common question on this Third Sunday of Easter when we hear the Gospel story of Jesus' "breakfast on the beach" with his disciples. There are countless theories and articles about why Jesus asks Peter this question three times. Check out this short reflection from "Busted Halo" with a reflection and some questions for our own consideration:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKkGTuflEZI
Easter Retreat
Easter Retreat
Shalom Place invites you to a Post Easter half-day celebration retreat. We will pause and reflect on the beautiful post resurrection stories and grow into a deeper awareness of God's loving presence and action in our lives.
Bring your bible, journal,
open heart and mind,
your hunger and your need,
your gratitude and concerns,
and explore what the Good News of resurrection means for you this year.
Facilitator: Janet Norman
Dates: Saturday, April 23, 2022
Time: 9:30 a.m. - Noon
Location: From the comfort of your home on zoom!
Register by email [email protected] or by completing the contact form
Cost: Your free-will offering supports the ministry of Shalom Place. Thank you for your generosity!
E-transfer: [email protected]
Cheques: Shalom Place,
c/o 59 Glen Ave.
Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 5V1
Newness
The joy of Easter wells up inside of us
ready to erupt into a world in need of new life.
God of life,
the signs of Easter are real:
water flowing freely,
fire burning brightly,
water, light, and life.
May we dance and sing for you,
rising out of the rubble
of all that keeps us in darkness.
Transform us, O God of mercy!
Pierce the darkness of our souls with your light.
Turn our sorrow into joy
and our grief into dancing.
Clean up all the messes of our lives.
God of all that is new,
form and reform our lives this Easter.
Open our hearts to all that is new,
so that we can experience fully your power to renew our lives.
Pour your Easter energy into us.
Energize us with your light and free us with your love.
O God of eternal life,
move in us and well up inside of us,
course through us, breathing joy into our souls.
Let your Easter joy surround us, enfold us and make us new.
Amen.
Carmen L. Caltagirone
Ponderings on Peter’s Denial of Jesus
“[Peter] said to him, “Lord, I am prepared to go to prison and to die with you.” But he replied, “I tell you, Peter, before the cock crows this day, you will deny three times that you know me.” (Lk 22:33-34)
As a part of my prayer during these holy days, I decided to watch the movie, “Son of God.” Watching this familiar portrayal of Jesus’ life, and particularly his suffering and death, I was drawn to reflect on Peter’s denial of Jesus. I have, admittedly, been judgmental of how arrogant Peter is to boldly profess that he will die with Jesus only to deny him, not once but three times in the hours that follow. However, in my reflection today, I found myself feeling greater compassion for Peter. I believe he was totally sincere in his promise to be faithful to Jesus. After all, he was a strong man and well prepared to defend his friend whom he loves. This is evident in the garden during Jesus’ arrest. Peter steps forward, draws his sword and cuts off the ear of the high priest’s servant to show that he is not afraid to fight. However, Jesus puts an immediate stop to this violence, saying, “Put your sword back in its sheath, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.” It’s as if Peter has suddenly been stripped of his defenses. He is left vulnerable and overtaken by fear. He withdraws, not knowing how else to respond. Stripped of the weapons his strength was depending on, he feels weak and helpless to act. It’s no wonder he falls back and becomes verbally defensive when anyone tries to identify him with Jesus.
I can’t help but wonder, what are the “weapons” I depend upon to cover my weakness and vulnerability? Pride? Intellect? Talent? Prestige? Fear? One thing I know, having had this insight into Peter’s words and actions, I pray I will be less judgmental and more compassionate toward him – and others – in the future.
Stephanie Romiti
"Come to the Living Water"
"Come to the Living Water"
A Quiet Reflective Prayer Time in Nature
IN PERSON!! OUTDOORS!!
8 week prayerful meditation series
From "Walking the Sacred Path"
Dates: Wednesdays: April 13th to June 1st, 2022
Time: 4:00 - 6:00 p.m.
Location: Outdoors in Sault Ste. Marie - specifics will be given
Facilitator: Patty Boucher
Register by email [email protected] or by completing the contact form by April 8th. Limited to 6 people!
Cost: Your free-will offering supports the ministry of Shalom Place. Thank you for your generosity!
E-transfer: [email protected]
Cheques: Shalom Place,
c/o 59 Glen Ave.
Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 5V1
Annunciation
We know the scene: the room, variously furnished,
almost always a lectern, a book; always the tall lily.
Arrived on solemn grandeur of great wings,
the angelic ambassador, standing or hovering, whom she acknowledges, a guest.
But we are told of meek obedience. No one mentions courage.
The engendering Spirit did not enter her without consent.
God waited.
She was free to accept or to refuse, choice integral to humanness.
____________________________
Aren’t there annunciations of one sort or another in most lives?
Some unwillingly undertake great destinies, enact them in sullen pride, uncomprehending.
More often those moments when roads of light and storm
open from darkness in a man or woman, are turned away from
in dread, in a wave of weakness, in despair and with relief.
Ordinary lives continue. God does not smite them.
But the gates close, the pathway vanishes.
______________________________
She had been a child who played, ate, slept like any other child
– but unlike others, wept only for pity, laughed in joy not triumph.
Compassion and intelligence fused in her, indivisible.
Called to a destiny more momentous than any in all of Time,
she did not quail, only asked a simple, ‘How can this be?’
and gravely, courteously, took to heart the angel’s reply,
perceiving instantly the astounding ministry she was offered:
to bear in her womb infinite weight and lightness; to carry
in hidden, finite inwardness, nine months of Eternity;
to contain in slender vase of being, the sum of power – in narrow flesh, the sum of light.
Then bring to birth, push out into air, a Man-child
needing, like any other, milk and love – but who was God.
This was the moment no one speaks of,
when she could still refuse.
A breath unbreathed,
Spirit, suspended, waiting.
______________________________
She did not cry, ‘I cannot. I am not worthy,’
Nor, ‘I have not the strength.’
She did not submit with gritted teeth, raging, coerced.
Bravest of all humans, consent illumined her.
The room filled with its light, the lily glowed in it,
and the iridescent wings.
Consent, courage unparalleled, opened her utterly.
by Denise Levertov
(edited for formatting purposes)
Lenten Reflection
"Help Me Listen"
(From Guerrillas of Grace by Ted Loder)
Lenten Reflection
"Help Me Listen"
(From Guerrillas of Grace by Ted Loder)
O Holy One,
I hear and say so many words,
yet yours is the word I need.
Speak now,
and help me listen;
and, if what I hear is silence,
let it quiet me,
let it disturb me,
let it touch my need,
let it break my pride,
let it shrink my certainties,
let it enlarge my wonder.
3-part Online Lenten Retreat
3-part Online Lenten Retreat
"Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves..."
Rainer Maria Rilke
The Season of Lent is a time of withdrawal and of preparation. We withdraw from ordinary life to pause and reflect on the last days and death of Jesus and we prepare our hearts to joyfully greet the Risen Christ on Easter morning.
During this virtual silent retreat via Zoom, scripture, journalling, silence and prayer will guide us into a deeper meaning of Lent and Easter.
Dates: Friday, March 4 - 5, 2022
Times: Friday, March 4 @ 7:00-7:45 p.m. , Saturday, March 5 @ 9:15 - 10:00 a.m., and 1:15 - 2:00 p.m.
Facilitator: Janet Norman
Location: From the comfort of your home on zoom
Cost: Your free will offering helps support our ministry!
Register by email [email protected] or by completing the contact form before March 2, 2022
"Celebrating the Saints"
Small Group program offered on zoom!
"Celebrating the Saints"
Small Group program offered on zoom!
Join us to experience that joy that is part of the COMMUNION OF SAINTS, that "great cloud of witnesses" who can help to inspire us and help us to live with new eyes and a renewed heart!
These sessions will be an interactive exchange of
ideas, talent and joy!!
No materials necessary to join!
No contribution is too small!
No prior knowledge of the Lives of the Saints is required!
Dates: January 17, 31, February 14, 21, 2022
Time: 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Location: From the comfort of your home on zoom
Cost: Free will offering
Facilitator: Sr. Mary Jo Radey, CSJ
Register by email [email protected] or by completing the contact form before Jan. 14, 2022
"Celebrating the Saints"
Small Group program offered on zoom!
"Celebrating the Saints"
Small Group program offered on zoom!
Join us to experience that joy that is part of the COMMUNION OF SAINTS, that "great cloud of witnesses" who can help to inspire us and help us to live with new eyes and a renewed heart!
These sessions will be an interactive exchange of
ideas, talent and joy!!
No materials necessary to join!
No contribution is too small!
No prior knowledge of the Lives of the Saints is required!
Dates: January 17, 31, February 14, 21, 2022
Time: 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Location: From the comfort of your home on zoom
Cost: Free will offering
Facilitator: Sr. Mary Jo Radey, CSJ
Register by email [email protected] or by completing the contact form before Jan. 14, 2022
December 23: O Emmanuel
December 23: O Emmanuel
December 22: O King of Nations
December 22: O King of Nations
December 21: O Rising Sun
December 21: O Rising Sun
December 20: O Key of David
December 20: O Key of David
December 19: O Root of Jesse
December 19: O Root of Jesse
December 18: O Lord
December 18: O Lord
December 17: O Wisdom
December 17: O Wisdom
Spend a few moments each day of Advent on a Journey with St. Joseph. This special e-mail series will explore Joseph as a man of courage, love, and acceptance. The messages also include suggestions for further exploration of Advent themes through additional online articles and prayers.
In addition, Shalom Place will be providing the opportunity for those praying with the "Journey with St. Joseph" meditations to come together once a week to share their reflections. An open Zoom link will be placed on our website for anyone who wishes to participate in one or more of these sessions. During the sessions, we will reflect and share on that day’s meditation, but you are welcome to share on any other meditation from the week. There is no need to register for these sessions, though it is strongly recommended that you sign up for the daily meditations here.
Wednesdays: December 1, 8, 15, 22.
7:00 PM (Eastern Time)
Each session will be no more than one hour.
Facilitator: Burnie Thorp
Your free will offering helps us continue the ministry of Shalom Place!
Thank you for your generosity!
Thursday of the Third Week of Advent
Thursday of the Third Week of Advent
The unfathomable mystery of God is that God is a Lover who wants to be loved. The one who created us is waiting for our response to the love that gave us our being. God not only says, "You are my beloved." God also asks: "Do you love me" and offers us countless chances to say "Yes." That is the spiritual life: the chance to say "Yes" to our inner truth. The spiritual life, thus understood, radically changes everything...at every point in the journey there is the choice to say "Yes" and the choice to say "No."
Am I drifting in my spiritual life?
What do I need to do to revive my commitment to say "Yes" to God daily?
(Adapted from Henri Nouwen)
Wednesday of the Third Week of Advent
Wednesday of the Third Week of Advent
In order to hear God, we must first slow down and listen. This is not easy, for we live in a culture that emphasizes speed and efficiency. It takes a certain amount of awareness not to be swept away by the busyness surrounding us. Advent is more than half over, Christmas is fast approaching. Today might be a good day to pause amid the Christmas rush and listen for God's voice. Who knows? It may come in an unexpected way.
Slow me down, God, so I may hear your voice.
(Adapted from Melannie Svoboda, SND)
Tuesday of the Third Week of Advent
Tuesday of the Third Week of Advent
We are all called to be like John the Baptist in some way. If not by the words we speak or by dramatically prophetic actions, then certainly by the way we live and approach others. Our kindness, our care, our love, our concern, our integrity: these are all quiet but effective messages pointing to a power at work in our lives. That is a very attractive power that others will want to get in touch with.
Lord, may the way I live, the way I am to others, be an effective proclamation to your presence in my life.
(Adapted from Basil Pennington, O.C.S.O.)
Third Sunday of Advent
Third Sunday of Advent
Joy has always been a characteristic of our Christian faith.
Go and play! What a joyful command!
Today might be a good day to assess the level of joy and play in our lives.
Do we look like someone who believes God is near?
Do our words reflect the "good news" of the gospel?
Do we regularly take time to play?
Let us be bearers of joyful hope today,
beginning with a simple smile, kind word, or sincere "thank you."
Jesus, help me to be a bearer of joyful hope today.
(Adapted from Melannie Svoboda, SND)
Saturday of the Second Week of Advent
Saturday of the Second Week of Advent
"For the mountains may depart and the hills disappear, but my kindness shall not leave you.
My promise of peace will never be broken, says Creator God,
who has mercy on you."
Isaiah 54:10
It is the promise of peace that will never be broken. It is the kindness of the Divine that will not leave us. Responsibility for creating peace lies with each one of us. I am the one who must act and react with kindness. Action by action, kindness by kindness I promote this promise of peace.
I will do at least one act of kindness each day from now until Christmas
in the hope that this will become a habit for me.
(Adapted from Gina Webb, csj)
Friday of the Second Week of Advent
Friday of the Second Week of Advent
Most of us appreciate the sense of sight. To see the faces of our loved ones, to gaze at a sunset, to watch a flock of geese flying in formation, to read a book - all of these are precious gifts that use our physical sight.
What is spiritual sight?
Spiritual sight enables us to see the truth that matters in life. It helps us to keep things in perspective. Spiritual sight does not overlook legitimate fears, but it always views them against the backdrop of God's great love for us. it enables us to hope for tomorrow too...because God's grace churning within us can do marvellous things.
Take an "eye test" today of your spiritual sight by reflecting on these questions:
Am I good at keeping things in perspective or do I blow things out of proportion?
Do my fears rule me or do I view them against the backdrop of God's love?
In whom does my hope lie?
(Adapted from Melannie Svoboda, SND)
Thursday of the Second Week of Advent
Thursday of the Second Week of Advent
As a child do you remember the feeling of someone you loved reaching down to you and you reaching up to have your hand held? Whatever fear you may have felt was gone, replaced by trust and confidence. Love moves through both of your hands.
What a wonderful image of "God with us" as we wait with expectancy. The hand of God is full of kindness, comfort, and support. It is also a hand that is powerful, creating, transforming, redeeming, bringing about change. In God's hand is might, majesty and glory.
Which of these images of God's hand touches you today?
(Adapted from M. Schneider)
Wednesday of the Second Week of Advent
Wednesday of the Second Week of Advent
Be alert, be alert, so that you will be able to recognize your Lord in your husband, your wife, your parents, your children, your friends, your teachers, but also in all that you read in the daily papers. The Lord is coming, always coming. Be alert to that coming. When you have ears to hear and eyes to see, you will recognize him at any moment of your life. Life is Advent; life is recognizing the coming of the Lord.
(Adapted from Henri Nouwen)
Tuesday of the Second Week of Advent
Tuesday of the Second Week of Advent
"True Peace"
(Adapted from Henri Nouwen)
Keep your eyes on the prince of peace, the one who doesn't cling to his divine power; the one who refuses to turn stones into bread, jump from great heights, and rule with great power...; the one who touches the lame, the crippled, the blind, the one who speaks words of forgiveness and encouragement...Keep your eyes on him who becomes poor with the poor, weak with the weak. He is the source of all peace.
Second Sunday of Advent
Second Sunday of Advent
"Advent Longing"
By Larry J. Peacock
In the darkness of the season, in the silence of Mary's womb,
new life waits and grows.
hope is shaped in hidden places,
on the edges, in the depths
far from the blinding lights and deafening sounds of consumer frenzy.
In the darkness and silence of my own life,
I wait,
listening for the whisper of angel wings,
longing for a genuine experience of mystery,
hoping for a rekindling of joy and the establishment of peace.
I lean into the darkness
and silence.
Expectant.
Saturday of the First Week of Advent
(Adapted from Paula D'Arcy)
Saturday of the First Week of Advent
(Adapted from Paula D'Arcy)
Anticipation
I wonder if any of those who lived in and near Jerusalem and Bethlehem at the time of the birth - ordinary persons like you and me - had a sense of anticipation. Did they feel the earth was about to bear a great light? Did anyone dream, ahead of time, the revolutionary words he would speak: "Come to me...and I will give you rest" (Matt. 11:28)? If so, I doubt they were able to put their sense of anticipation into words. But what hope must have accompanied that inner knowledge!
From the time you awaken, look upon everything as sheer gift!
Friday of the First Week of Advent
(Adapted from Henri Nouwen)
Friday of the First Week of Advent
(Adapted from Henri Nouwen)
Patience
How do we wait for God? We wait with patience. But patience does not mean passivity. Waiting patiently is not like waiting for the bus to come, the rain to stop, or the sun to rise. It is an active waiting in which we live the present moment to the full in oder to find there the signs of the One we are waiting for.
Waiting patiently always means paying attention to what is happening right before our eyes and seeing there the first rays of God's glorious coming.
What are some practical steps I can take this Advent
to help me become more patient,
to live more fully the grace of each moment?
Thursday of the First Week of Advent
(Adapted from Melannie Svoboda)
Thursday of the First Week of Advent
(Adapted from Melannie Svoboda)
Extravagance
Psalm 23 says that God sets a table before us. What kind of meal would God serve? Not a cold sandwich and stale chips! No, God would set before us an extravagant feast of many delicious courses. How do we know God is so extravagant? Because Advent tells us so. Advent proclaims the extravagance of a God who became one of us (what a lavish gesture!) in order to show us how to live and love more divinely.
Today, let us reflect on the place of extravagance in our life. Start with these questions: How have I experienced the extravagance of God? How do I imitate God's extravagance in my relationships with others? Do I hold back my love, parceling it out in little pieces?
Celebrate the specialness of today by performing one extravagant gesture of love.
Extravagant God, thank you for your bountiful love for me.
Teach me to love others more lavishly.
Amen.
Wednesday of the First Week of Advent
(Adapted from Paula D'Arcy)
Wednesday of the First Week of Advent
(Adapted from Paula D'Arcy)
New Images for the Journey
All journeys cause us to leave something behind as we move toward something new. I experienced this with such power during the period of grief following the loss of my husband and child. To accept their absence and build a new future, I had to let go of the way I wanted my life to be. I also let go of many illusions, like the illusion that life was really within my control. I let go of my belief that life had guarantees. I let go of the idea that without those two people I couldn't be happy. I faced the fact that clinging to such beliefs produced suffering... I wanted a God who removed pain and created a world of fairness and justice. But grief forced me to grow up.
My black and white, right and wrong version of faith shattered into a million pieces. It was a narrow faith that wasn't leading me to fullness or joy. Once I gave up my old ways of looking at things, something began to shift. Being willing to experience God in a new way created an opening. I became no different from Mary, Joseph, or the shepherds. Nothing but an inner guidance would show me the way..
Are we willing to experience God in a new way?
Tuesday of the First Week of Advent
(Adapted from Joan Whittemore, csj)
Tuesday of the First Week of Advent
(Adapted from Joan Whittemore, csj)
We are hungry. We hunger for loving relationships, peace, good health, freedom, joy, adventure, success, and happiness. The media bombards us daily with promises to fill our hunger with thirty day free trials or money back guarantees to attain fulfillment with no questions asked. Still we are hungry. Peace is a fragile infant needing constant vigilance and care. In moments of stillness, the psalmist's words reassure us: Kindness and faithful love pursue me every day of my life.
When did you first come to recognize that kind of love in your life?
The Child of peace and love comes daily to make his home in you that you might make your home in him. Everlasting peace is guaranteed.
Jesus, make your home in me.
Amen.
Monday of the First Week of Advent
(Adapted from Henri Nouwen)
Monday of the First Week of Advent
(Adapted from Henri Nouwen)
"Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my savior.
For you I wait all the long day,
because of your goodness, Lord."
Psalm 25:5
Waiting is essential to the spiritual life. But waiting as a disciple of Jesus is not an empty waiting. It is a waiting with a promise in our hearts that makes already present what we are waiting for...We are always waiting, but it is a waiting in the conviction that we have already seen God's footsteps.
Waiting for God is an active, alert - yes, joyful - waiting. As we wait we remember him for whom we are waiting, and as we remember him we create a community ready to welcome him when he comes.
Lord, by your grace may I learn the art of waiting
for you and your gifts
with an eager and joyful heart. Amen.
First Sunday of Advent
(Adapted from Melannie Svoboda)
First Sunday of Advent
(Adapted from Melannie Svoboda)
As we embark on our Advent journey, we might want to ask ourselves two questions. First, what gifts or talents have I received from God? Maybe I am good with my hands, work well with children, have great organizational skills, or possess a wonderful sense of humour. Today might be a good day to list some of my gifts and give thanks to God for them.
Then we might want to reflect on something we need more practice with, something we consciously need to work on - for example, patience, fidelity to daily prayer, slowing down, attentiveness to others, courage, hope, basic human kindness.
Divine Gift Giver,
help me to use the talents you have given me,
and to practice what I need to practice in order to
bring more light into our world.
Amen.
"A Time for Listening"
SHALOM PLACE is offering a Silent Autumn Retreat in the comfort of your own home!
The theme of the retreat is -- "A Time for Listening" Facilitator: Janet Norman
(Note: new facilitator!)
The retreat begins on October 22 starting at 7 pm & ends on October 23, at 7 pm.
Four 45-min. contemplative Zoom presentations
will inspire and guide your personal reflection
and quiet prayer times during the retreat.
Those Zoom sessions will be as follows:
Friday @ 7:00 p.m.
Saturday @ 9:15 a.m., 1:15 p.m., & 6:15 p.m.
Please note, all times are given in the
Eastern Time zone.
Suggested Offering: $40
(or whatever you can afford)
Please register by October 20th.
Phone: 705-254-4690
Email: [email protected]
Or use our contact form found here.
"A Time for Listening"
SHALOM PLACE is offering a Silent Autumn Retreat in the comfort of your own home!
The theme of the retreat is -- "A Time for Listening" Facilitator: Janet Norman
(Note: new facilitator!)
The retreat begins on October 22 starting at 7 pm & ends on October 23, at 7 pm.
Four 45-min. contemplative Zoom presentations
will inspire and guide your personal reflection
and quiet prayer times during the retreat.
Those Zoom sessions will be as follows:
Friday @ 7:00 p.m.
Saturday @ 9:15 a.m., 1:15 p.m., & 6:15 p.m.
Please note, all times are given in the
Eastern Time zone.
Suggested Offering: $40
(or whatever you can afford)
Please register by October 20th.
Phone: 705-254-4690
Email: [email protected]
Or use our contact form found here.
In the meantime, check out the Archives page for a sampling of the types of retreats we've offered in the past!
Walking the Sacred Path
Awakening in Christ and Prayerful Meditation
based on Scriptures
to awaken your Divine truth.
Join us for a six week program starting September 15, 2021
Wednesdays: 4 pm to 6 pm
Meeting places are parks and outside spaces.
Weekly meditation and meeting information will be provided by facilitator.
Based on Roots and Wings by Margaret Silf
(The book is optional, and the responsibility of the participants
to order for themselves, if they wish.)
Facilitator: Patty Boucher
Topic areas:
Rebirth in Christ in the Wilderness
Forgive self and others
Letting go of the past and walking in the presence of Christ
Give yourself time to be in nature away from distractions of daily life.
Mini retreat time to rediscover your Divine purpose and faith sharing.
Experience prayerful meditation practices that are scripture based.
Create time for relationship with Divine presence with Yahweh,
Jesus, Mary the mother of Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
To register:
Phone: 705-254-4690
Email: [email protected]
Or use the contact form found here.
Everything Is A Gift
by Richard Rohr
Everything Is A Gift
by Richard Rohr
The following video reflection is about 50 minutes long and is well worth taking the time, if you can.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6wbcoU5S8o
I rarely drink tea. I choose coffee every time — multiple times a day and well into the waning hours of the afternoon. I don’t dislike tea. I have nothing against it. In fact, we have a well-stocked supply of it in our cupboard. But tea doesn’t bring me the comfort and warmth and can-do attitude that a good cup of coffee does. There’s a depth and richness I find there, buried in those bags of unground beans.
So, I rarely drink tea.
There is an exception to that rule. Occasionally, I look at the coffee maker in the morning and grimace. The smell of the beans makes me wrinkle my nose. And something about turning on the kettle, pulling out a jar of honey and seeping a bag of herbs and spices in hot water suddenly seems very appealing.
When this happens, I know I’m sick – or getting sick. That sudden, unexpected desire for a cup of tea – and rejection of the very notion of coffee – is often one of the first symptoms.
My wife is a therapist well-versed in somatic practices. As I’ve learned second-hand through her reading and research, somatic therapy assumes a body-centric approach to mental and emotional healing. There is wisdom present within our bodies helping us negotiate our lives – moments of both trauma and triumph. Of course, I believe that wisdom to be the Holy Spirit and those desires to be the quiet urging of God – as St. Ignatius taught.
But too often, we look outside ourselves for answers to our daily questions, our spiritual needs. We imagine that our struggles are too small for God. Or, we assume God only works through lightning-bolt, knock-a-saint-off-their-horse moments.
It’s a tired metaphor, forever trapped in high school morality classes, but our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit. Christ dwells within each of us. In respecting our bodies, we are called to respect the Holy Wisdom dwelling therein. We are called to listen to God, speaking to us through our body in all its desires and emotions and sensory experiences.
I believe God to be intimately concerned with the nitty-gritty reality of our daily lives, ever present in all that we are and do. So, does that mean the Holy Spirit uses my indifference to tea to warn me when I’m sick?
Yes – I believe it does. And so much more.
Adapted from a reflection by Eric Clayton, posted on www.jesuits.org
Check out their other resources by clicking on the link above.
I rarely drink tea. I choose coffee every time — multiple times a day and well into the waning hours of the afternoon. I don’t dislike tea. I have nothing against it. In fact, we have a well-stocked supply of it in our cupboard. But tea doesn’t bring me the comfort and warmth and can-do attitude that a good cup of coffee does. There’s a depth and richness I find there, buried in those bags of unground beans.
So, I rarely drink tea.
There is an exception to that rule. Occasionally, I look at the coffee maker in the morning and grimace. The smell of the beans makes me wrinkle my nose. And something about turning on the kettle, pulling out a jar of honey and seeping a bag of herbs and spices in hot water suddenly seems very appealing.
When this happens, I know I’m sick – or getting sick. That sudden, unexpected desire for a cup of tea – and rejection of the very notion of coffee – is often one of the first symptoms.
My wife is a therapist well-versed in somatic practices. As I’ve learned second-hand through her reading and research, somatic therapy assumes a body-centric approach to mental and emotional healing. There is wisdom present within our bodies helping us negotiate our lives – moments of both trauma and triumph. Of course, I believe that wisdom to be the Holy Spirit and those desires to be the quiet urging of God – as St. Ignatius taught.
But too often, we look outside ourselves for answers to our daily questions, our spiritual needs. We imagine that our struggles are too small for God. Or, we assume God only works through lightning-bolt, knock-a-saint-off-their-horse moments.
It’s a tired metaphor, forever trapped in high school morality classes, but our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit. Christ dwells within each of us. In respecting our bodies, we are called to respect the Holy Wisdom dwelling therein. We are called to listen to God, speaking to us through our body in all its desires and emotions and sensory experiences.
I believe God to be intimately concerned with the nitty-gritty reality of our daily lives, ever present in all that we are and do. So, does that mean the Holy Spirit uses my indifference to tea to warn me when I’m sick?
Yes – I believe it does. And so much more.
Adapted from a reflection by Eric Clayton, posted on www.jesuits.org
Check out their other resources by clicking on the link above.
Hedgehogs are Huggable!
Hedgehogs make excellent pets. They’re easy to care for, don’t take up much space, are super cute and always make for a good story.
For all the diversity in hedgehog things available to the general public, there seem to be only a handful of hedgehog plotlines in children’s books. They tend to go like this:
Hedgehogs are not huggable – just look at those spikes! No one wants to hug this hedgehog, and she’s really sad about it. There are varied solutions: tuck the hedgehog into something soft to muffle the sting of the spikes; pair her up with a more durable critter — say, an armadillo or a turtle. The outcome is always cute. But the basic premise is the same: Just look at that spiky creature; no one wants to get near it.
Here’s the problem: Hedgehogs are entirely huggable. We used to cuddle with ours all the time. It’s really not that hard or novel. But people see nothing beyond those prickly quills and assume the worst.
We all can be a bit prickly at times. Grumpy, scared, angry. Those are the times, in fact, when hedgehogs ball up, quills out – and you shouldn’t touch them. But that isn’t their permanent state; just be patient and they’ll unwind. Too often, I think, we see nothing but the prickly quills on the people around us: family, friends, colleagues, strangers. We catch them in stressful moments and freeze them that way in our minds. We assume they’re always prickly – and we shouldn’t get too close.
Perhaps we see ourselves that way: prickly, unforgiveable, better left alone.
Consider how God sees each of us, our full selves. Whole human beings. Prickly, sure, but so much more. God sees us beyond a single moment; God is patient in God’s desire to accompany us through life’s challenges and joys and moments of frustration. God waits for the hedgehog to unwind, to lower her quills.
God knows how huggable a hedgehog can be.
Adapted from a reflection by Eric Clayton, posted on www.jesuits.org
Check out their other resources by clicking on the link above.

Half Bird
Sweet, un-tetherable bird,
half a mile up from solid ground,
half a world away from home,
do not fear getting lost.
You will always find me
infinitely close to yourself,
in the half-light,
in the still gap between the flapping of wings,
in the impossible shadows we cast on the ground, unknowingly.
Lose yourself in flying,
Sweet un-tetherable half-bird,
forget all imagined limits of flight.
Thether yourself to me,
And let us swoop in silence.
~ Jeff Foster ~
The following is for informational purposes
and not a program being offered through Shalom Place at this time.
The following is for informational purposes
and not a program being offered through Shalom Place at this time.
I, Janet Norman, recently took a course from the Shalem Institute in Washington DC called an Introduction to Group Spiritual Direction (GSD) . I had never heard of it before.
GSD is an opportunity for 4 - 5 people to listen with compassion, reverence and openness to others as they share their lived experience of God’s presence in their life.
The process involves
- silent prayer for the person who will be sharing 2 minutes
- focused active listening while the person shares 5 minutes
- silent prayer asking God how God wants us to respond 2 minutes
- a time of sharing observations, insights from God 10 minutes
- silent prayer as we let go of presenter and prepare for the next 2 minutes
Thus each person is held in prayer for 20 minutes. At no time do we offer good books to read, topping a story with our own experience, criticism or strategies. At all times we operate from the belief that no one is broken or in need of fixing and deep trust that God is present, active and loving in each person’s life.
Sharing stories free of concern of being corrected, challenged, advised or fixed was liberating and we each found God speaking to our life as we listened to the other. I found the whole experience healing and humbling.
The lectures were brief, well presented and informative, sharing with a partner was gentle and affirming and the Group Spiritual Direction with a facilitator was powerful, full of the Spirit and healing.
This course is being offered again Sept 10 - 12 2021 and I highly recommend it. I found it to be a life changing experience, deepening my relationship with God, opening me to the journey of others and allowing me to witness to the loving action of God in the life of others.
Janet Norman
https://shalem.org/programs/shortterm/group-spiritual-direction-workshop/
Transfiguration Prayer
On the mountain you were transfigured, O Christ God,
And your disciples beheld your glory as far as they were able
So that when they would behold You crucified,
They would understand that Your suffering was voluntary,
And would proclaim to the world,
That You are truly the radiance of the Father.
AMEN
As we begin this summer season, we pray you will have time to slow down and reflect on God's presence and action in your life!
Trust in the Slow Work of God
By Pierre Chardin
Above all, trust in the slow work of God.
We are quite naturally impatient in everything To reach the end without delay.
We should like to skip the intermediate stages. We are impatient of being on the way
to something unknown, something new.
Yet it is the law of all progress that it is made by passing through some stages of instability and that may take a very long time.
And so I think it is with you.
Your ideas mature gradually. Let them grow. Let them shape themselves without undue haste. Do not try to force them on
as though you could be today what time
--that is to say, grace—
and circumstances
--acting on your own good will—
will make you tomorrow.
Only God could say what this new Spirit gradually forming in you will be.
Give our Lord the benefit of believing that his hand is leading you,
and accept the anxiety of feeling yourself in suspense and incomplete.
Above all, trust in the slow work of God, our loving vine-dresser. Amen.
GROWING IN WISDOM:
Seeking Deeper Generativity
In Hinduism the stages of life are described as:
childhood;
student;
householder;
forest dweller;
sannyasin (“holy beggar”).
Another way of looking at these phases from the perspective of our spiritual journeys is:
youth – the struggle to get our lives together;
generativity – the struggle to give our lives away;
late life – the struggle to give our deaths away.
We spend most of our lives in the householder / generativity stages. As we enter our later years it is time to reflect on our lives and to impart the wisdom we have gained through experience, to become an elder, to be a forest dweller and ultimately a holy beggar (or holy old fool).
Based on these phases of our lives, Fr Ron Rolheiser and the faculty of the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio developed a program called “Forest Dwelling: Spirituality for our Wisdom Years.”
Realizing that not every one has the time or resources to go to San Antonio, some of the Canadian “graduates” of the Forest Dwelling program through association with Queen’s House Retreat and Renewal Centre in Saskatoon and with the blessing of Fr Rolheiser have developed a program inspired by and drawing on the resources of the Forest Dwelling program that will be offered virtually (via Zoom).
This is a two-year program that will feature four one week “intensive” sessions plus ongoing spiritual practice and is called “Growing in Wisdom: Seeking Deeper Generativity.” This program is intended for people who are 60 years of age and older.
Queen’s House has reached out to retreat and spirituality centres across Canada to determine interest in becoming “hubs” to facilitate the programs in various locations. Shalom Place is willing to act as a “hub” and we are reaching out to you to determine if there is enough interest to do this.
We are holding a 2-hour version of the two-day Zoom presentation given in early June by Queen’s House that will provide more information.
DATE: Tuesday July 6, 2021
TIME: 10:00 AM to Noon.
PLACE: via ZOOM from the comfort of your own home
REGISTRATION: [email protected], call us at 705-254-4690 or use the contact form here
This is a “Come and See” session. Please register by Monday July 5 so that we can get the Zoom link to you.
"Finding Friends with Francis!!"
"Finding Friends with Francis!!"
Join us to explore how Pope Francis' latest encyclical could change the world! This experience will be a dynamic exchange of experience and possibility...
When: June 9, 16, 23, 30, 2021 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. (ET) via zoom
Facilitator: Sr. Mary Jo Radey, CSJ
Cost: Your free-will offering helps support Shalom Place ministries.
Text: Available online at no cost.
Registration: Use the contact form on this website - click here
Or email us at [email protected]
Or call us at 705-254-4690
BEFORE JUNE 7, 2021
NOTE: Participants must be familiar with the Zoom platform!
Lay Yourself Open
When you want to lay yourself open for the divine,
like a snare that is hollowed out to its depth,
like a canopy that projects a shadow
from the divine heat and light
into your soul,
then go into your inner place physically,
or to that story or symbol that reminds you of the sacred.
Close the door of your awareness to
the public person you think yourself to be.
Pray to the parent of creation, with your inner sense,
the outer senses turned within.
Veiling yourself, the mystery may be unveiled through you.
By opening yourself to the flow of the sacred,
somewhere, resounding in some inner form,
the swell of the divine ocean can move through you.
The breathing life of all reveals itself
in the way you live your life.
~ Neil Douglas-Klotz ~
New!
Outdoor small group program!
"Walking the Sacred Path"
New!
Outdoor small group program!
"Walking the Sacred Path"
This program will have you outside in our lush forested areas. It involves weekly and daily reflection and scripture readings with a meeting once a week in an outdoor setting in nature...rain or shine!!! This program runs for four weeks.
DATE & TIME:
Thursdays 4:00 - 6:00 p.m.
Beginning April 22, 2021
FACILITATOR: Patty Boucher
LOCATION: TBD
SUGGESTED OFFERING: Free-will offering helps continue this ministry and is greatly appreciated.
REGISTER: [email protected] or 705-254-4690 or complete the contact form on this website
Third Week of Easter
Third Week of Easter
Humming in the Darkness
Hope means to keep living
amid desperation
and to keep humming in the darkness.
Hoping is knowing that there is love,
it is trust in tomorrow,
it is falling asleep
and waking again
when the sun rises.
In the midst of a gale at sea,
it is to discover land.
In the eyes of another
it is to see that you are understood...
As long as there is still hope
there will also be prayer...
And you will be held
in God's hands.
From With Open Hands by Henri Nouwen
Second Sunday of Easter
Second Sunday of Easter
"The doors were closed, but Jesus came in and stood among them. 'Peace be with you,' he said. Then he spoke to Thomas, 'Put your finger here; look, here are my hands. Give me your hand; put it into my side. Doubt no longer, but believe.'" (John 20:19-20,27-28)
I remember closed doors along my own life's journey, and I remember moments when you were suddenly there, in spite of all my defences; moments when you took my hand and brought me face to face with my wounded Healer and left me no more room for doubt.
~ Margaret Silf ~
Awaken Me
Awaken Me
Risen One, come, meet me in the garden of my life.
Lure me into elation.
Revive my silent hope.
Coax my dormant dreams.
Raise up my neglected gratitude.
Entice my tired enthusiasm.
Give life to my faltering relationships.
Roll back the stone of my indifference.
Unwrap the deadness in my spiritual life.
Impart heartiness in my work.
Risen One,
send me forth as a disciple of your unwavering love,
a messenger of your unlimited joy.
Resurrected One,
may I become
ever more convinced that your presence lives on,
and on, and on, and on.
Awaken me! Awaken me!
~ Joyce Rupp ~
Lent Retreat Morning
"Accepting God's Invitation...
to journey through Lament to Hope"
Lent Retreat Morning
"Accepting God's Invitation...
to journey through Lament to Hope"
Through the experience of scripture, journalling, reflection, sharing and prayer we will name and acknowledge our laments and losses and open ourselves to hearing God’s invitation to move to hope with trust and confidence. Come prepared to have time, space and quiet to journal and share in small groups as you are comfortable.
DATE & TIME: March 17, 2021 10:00 a.m. - Noon
FACILITATOR: Janet Norman - Check out her info on our team page!
SUGGESTED OFFERING: Free will offering
LOCATION: ZOOM
(All participants must be familiar with the ZOOM platform in order to register.)
REGISTRATION by March 15: Three ways to register:
- Call us at 705-254-4690
- Email us at: [email protected]
- Contact form found here
Lent 2021: What to give up, when you feel like giving up
by Sr. Colleen Gibson
On the eve of Ash Wednesday, a comic strip appeared in my inbox under the subject line “The Lent-iest Lent Ever.” In it, a man, coffee cup in hand, casually asks her, “Did you decide what you’re giving up for Lent?” With a look of mild uncertainty on her face and eyes fixed on the list unfurled before her, the woman remarks, "First I need to check the list of things I gave up for the pandemic."
The person who sent me the comic jotted one simple line below the comic: "With a year like this, what's forty more days?"
Dripping with sarcasm, that wisecrack made me smile in the face of the larger point the comic was hammering home. After the year we've had, what more could we give up?
Last year, after all, was supposed to have been the "Lent-iest" Lent ever. From the declaration of the pandemic by the World Health Organization in March, only a few weeks into the Lenten season, a new reality and understanding of the fragility of life, the loneliness of loss and isolation, the need for attentive engagement, and the call to prayer in the face of uncertainty took hold. The prayer, fasting and almsgiving of that Lenten season overflowed into the year that has been, creating a sense that Lent never fully came to a close.
And so, as I returned my focus to the comic my friend sent, I wondered, "what's the point?"
After a year of grief and loss, isolation and distance, masks and protocols, what more could these 40 days offer? What could I possibly give up or take on this Lent? If that list of sacrifices keeps getting longer, why not just give in and give up?
The temptation to give up is real.
Last Lent, as the pandemic and its accompanying realities began to gain momentum, the season of Lent took on a surreal air. The Lenten promises I had made paled in comparison to the ever-evolving reality of life in a time of pandemic. As a result, I chose to put my Lenten practice aside. At the time, I felt that by not following through for the full 40 days, I had come up short in my Lenten commitment.
Looking back on that choice now, though, I know it was the right choice for me. The consciousness of God's presence that I longed to deepen by giving something up for Lent was heightened by the discernment to once again embrace the comfort of what I was going without. My attention was needed elsewhere and my ability to be fully present to the situations at hand was enhanced by my choice to give up on what I'd given up.
That, of course, leads me to this Lent.
By the time that comic came to my inbox, I still hadn't decided the details of my Lenten practice. There were groups I could take part in, books I could read, prayers I could commit to, and small actions I could take on. All of these practices would be good options, yet with a spirit bleary-eyed from Zoom calls, world news, and other demands, I felt less zealous about making a commitment and more resigned to endure the season as best I could.
Looking at the woman in the comic, I wondered: What do you give up when the thought of doing one more thing is burdensome or the prospect of adding to the growing list of daily sacrifices is daunting? What do you give up when you feel like giving up?
The answers to those questions, surprisingly, emerged rather quickly.
When we feel like giving up, perhaps one of the best things we can give up is the need to control every facet of our lives. The pandemic has made strikingly clear that some things are simply out of our control. We cannot will the world to get back to normal. Uncertainty is more commonplace these days than we might be comfortable with, but what if we companion that uncertainty, rather than trying to correct it by controlling ourselves and others? Relinquishing the need to achieve or to obsess over having everything in order may in fact be the best thing we can give up. In so doing, we give God the space to be in control and free ourselves from the illusion that we are God, remembering instead that God has made us to be human.
If giving up the drive to control is the first step in a liberating Lent, giving up our penchant to negatively judge is a closely linked second. Judgment, of course, is not necessarily a bad thing; it helps us to gain perspective and assess situations. However, when we recognize that our judgments are unkind and uncharitable, undergirded by a need to control or lessen the "other," it's time to give them up. Just as with control, this "giving up" of judgments is easier said than done. Being able to relinquish our negative feelings and lay our judgments aside for the benefit of others and ourselves is a process of self-actualization, which takes both honesty and humility as we grow in self-awareness and face our imperfections. If we can give up the need to pass judgment, we can grow closer to the union to which God calls us and gain new perspective on the loving way God sees all of us, even those we can't stand.
By letting go of the temptation to control and judge in our daily lives, we will hopefully find ourselves freer to face the attachments of our egos and the drive to hold tightly to the power, glory and entitlement the world promises. Indeed, these promises are the falsehoods we confront when we embrace prayer, fasting and almsgiving in the season of Lent. In and through these practices we recognize our reliance on God, raising our consciousness and giving up what stands in the way of a deeper relationship with God.
Deepening our relationship with God, after all, is the aim of whatever we give up or choose to do this Lent. For that reason, perhaps the greatest thing we could give up this Lent is the nagging feeling that we should give up. In this year full of sacrifices, giving up would be a choice to relinquish hope and to dishonor all that we have been through. To give up on this season would be to give in to despair and, in the process, to lose sight of where this Lenten journey ultimately points us — to the hope-filled morning of Easter.
We carry a lot and, during this Lent especially, we need to be attentive to what might lighten our load. Maybe we are being called to let go of anger or hurt, judgement or control, sadness or selfishness, worry or regret, offering in their place love and compassion both for our neighbors and for ourselves.
As we press on like the Israelites wandering in the desert, we cannot lose sight of hope and of the One who walks hopefully with us through this season, and every season, of our lives. With God as our companion, we may have to give up lots of things. Some of those sacrifices will be voluntary, while others will not. Still, we journey forward together, giving all we are and all we hope to be to God and finding that no matter the season, God will never give up on us.
The following reflection recently appeared on the Global Sisters Network website and we are reposting it here with their permission.
A Sister of St. Joseph of Philadelphia,
Colleen Gibson currently serves as coordinator of services at the
Sisters of St. Joseph Neighborhood Center in Camden, New Jersey.
Lent 2021: What to give up, when you feel like giving up
by Sr. Colleen Gibson
On the eve of Ash Wednesday, a comic strip appeared in my inbox under the subject line “The Lent-iest Lent Ever.” In it, a man, coffee cup in hand, casually asks her, “Did you decide what you’re giving up for Lent?” With a look of mild uncertainty on her face and eyes fixed on the list unfurled before her, the woman remarks, "First I need to check the list of things I gave up for the pandemic."
The person who sent me the comic jotted one simple line below the comic: "With a year like this, what's forty more days?"
Dripping with sarcasm, that wisecrack made me smile in the face of the larger point the comic was hammering home. After the year we've had, what more could we give up?
Last year, after all, was supposed to have been the "Lent-iest" Lent ever. From the declaration of the pandemic by the World Health Organization in March, only a few weeks into the Lenten season, a new reality and understanding of the fragility of life, the loneliness of loss and isolation, the need for attentive engagement, and the call to prayer in the face of uncertainty took hold. The prayer, fasting and almsgiving of that Lenten season overflowed into the year that has been, creating a sense that Lent never fully came to a close.
And so, as I returned my focus to the comic my friend sent, I wondered, "what's the point?"
After a year of grief and loss, isolation and distance, masks and protocols, what more could these 40 days offer? What could I possibly give up or take on this Lent? If that list of sacrifices keeps getting longer, why not just give in and give up?
The temptation to give up is real.
Last Lent, as the pandemic and its accompanying realities began to gain momentum, the season of Lent took on a surreal air. The Lenten promises I had made paled in comparison to the ever-evolving reality of life in a time of pandemic. As a result, I chose to put my Lenten practice aside. At the time, I felt that by not following through for the full 40 days, I had come up short in my Lenten commitment.
Looking back on that choice now, though, I know it was the right choice for me. The consciousness of God's presence that I longed to deepen by giving something up for Lent was heightened by the discernment to once again embrace the comfort of what I was going without. My attention was needed elsewhere and my ability to be fully present to the situations at hand was enhanced by my choice to give up on what I'd given up.
That, of course, leads me to this Lent.
By the time that comic came to my inbox, I still hadn't decided the details of my Lenten practice. There were groups I could take part in, books I could read, prayers I could commit to, and small actions I could take on. All of these practices would be good options, yet with a spirit bleary-eyed from Zoom calls, world news, and other demands, I felt less zealous about making a commitment and more resigned to endure the season as best I could.
Looking at the woman in the comic, I wondered: What do you give up when the thought of doing one more thing is burdensome or the prospect of adding to the growing list of daily sacrifices is daunting? What do you give up when you feel like giving up?
The answers to those questions, surprisingly, emerged rather quickly.
When we feel like giving up, perhaps one of the best things we can give up is the need to control every facet of our lives. The pandemic has made strikingly clear that some things are simply out of our control. We cannot will the world to get back to normal. Uncertainty is more commonplace these days than we might be comfortable with, but what if we companion that uncertainty, rather than trying to correct it by controlling ourselves and others? Relinquishing the need to achieve or to obsess over having everything in order may in fact be the best thing we can give up. In so doing, we give God the space to be in control and free ourselves from the illusion that we are God, remembering instead that God has made us to be human.
If giving up the drive to control is the first step in a liberating Lent, giving up our penchant to negatively judge is a closely linked second. Judgment, of course, is not necessarily a bad thing; it helps us to gain perspective and assess situations. However, when we recognize that our judgments are unkind and uncharitable, undergirded by a need to control or lessen the "other," it's time to give them up. Just as with control, this "giving up" of judgments is easier said than done. Being able to relinquish our negative feelings and lay our judgments aside for the benefit of others and ourselves is a process of self-actualization, which takes both honesty and humility as we grow in self-awareness and face our imperfections. If we can give up the need to pass judgment, we can grow closer to the union to which God calls us and gain new perspective on the loving way God sees all of us, even those we can't stand.
By letting go of the temptation to control and judge in our daily lives, we will hopefully find ourselves freer to face the attachments of our egos and the drive to hold tightly to the power, glory and entitlement the world promises. Indeed, these promises are the falsehoods we confront when we embrace prayer, fasting and almsgiving in the season of Lent. In and through these practices we recognize our reliance on God, raising our consciousness and giving up what stands in the way of a deeper relationship with God.
Deepening our relationship with God, after all, is the aim of whatever we give up or choose to do this Lent. For that reason, perhaps the greatest thing we could give up this Lent is the nagging feeling that we should give up. In this year full of sacrifices, giving up would be a choice to relinquish hope and to dishonor all that we have been through. To give up on this season would be to give in to despair and, in the process, to lose sight of where this Lenten journey ultimately points us — to the hope-filled morning of Easter.
We carry a lot and, during this Lent especially, we need to be attentive to what might lighten our load. Maybe we are being called to let go of anger or hurt, judgement or control, sadness or selfishness, worry or regret, offering in their place love and compassion both for our neighbors and for ourselves.
As we press on like the Israelites wandering in the desert, we cannot lose sight of hope and of the One who walks hopefully with us through this season, and every season, of our lives. With God as our companion, we may have to give up lots of things. Some of those sacrifices will be voluntary, while others will not. Still, we journey forward together, giving all we are and all we hope to be to God and finding that no matter the season, God will never give up on us.
The following reflection recently appeared on the Global Sisters Network website and we are reposting it here with their permission.
A Sister of St. Joseph of Philadelphia,
Colleen Gibson currently serves as coordinator of services at the
Sisters of St. Joseph Neighborhood Center in Camden, New Jersey.
Philip Chircop recently posted the following thoughts:
BEST OF TIMES … WORST OF TIMES
February 7 was the birthday of Charles Dickens (February 7, 1812 – June 9, 1870). For your reflection, here are Dickens’ profound first words, from “A Tale of Two Cities” written in March of 1859. I find them to be meaningful words especially these days as the world stands still haunted by a deadly virus.
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us …”.
~Charles Dickens in A Tale of Two Cities
Philip Chircop recently posted the following thoughts:
BEST OF TIMES … WORST OF TIMES
February 7 was the birthday of Charles Dickens (February 7, 1812 – June 9, 1870). For your reflection, here are Dickens’ profound first words, from “A Tale of Two Cities” written in March of 1859. I find them to be meaningful words especially these days as the world stands still haunted by a deadly virus.
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us …”.
~Charles Dickens in A Tale of Two Cities
New!
On-line small group program!
"Dear Heart Come Home"
New!
On-line small group program!
"Dear Heart Come Home"
Midlife … is a summons to grow and a challenge to change. Midlife beckons one inward. It is a move to interiority, a passage to the deeper places where we discover our authenticity, where we realize both our limitations and our grandeur. It is here that we come home to our truest Self. We take our external experiences with us to the inside and look at our life. We evaluate our goals, hopes, dreams, beliefs, behaviours, experiences – all that has marked us and contributed to the person we have become – and we ask ourselves: “Is this the person I want to be in the future?”
We will use Joyce Rupp’s book as the source of input, private journaling and group sharing during our sessions. More information will be provided at the first session.
DATE & TIME:
Wednesdays 4:30 - 6:00 p.m. (Eastern Time zone)
Jan. 20, 27; Feb. 3, 10, 17, 24; Mar. 3, 10
FACILITATOR: Stephanie Romiti, CSJ
LOCATION: Meet from the comfort of your own home! We will use "zoom" to meet - guidance will be offered ahead of time for those needing it!
SUGGESTED OFFERING: Free-will offering appreciated. PARTICIPANTS ARE ASKED TO OBTAIN THEIR OWN COPY OF THE BOOK, from the vendor of their choice. (Note: amazon and chapters/indigo online have limited copies, though it is available as an e-book for Kindle. It is also available through a few U.S. vendors, such as Barnes and Noble.)
REGISTER: [email protected] or 705-254-4690 or complete the contact form on this website
Pope Francis has declared this year to be the Year of St. Joseph! Our current reflection is a video clip of Fr. James Martin, SJ speaking on why St. Joseph is the patron we need at this time.
Pope Francis has declared this year to be the Year of St. Joseph! Our current reflection is a video clip of Fr. James Martin, SJ speaking on why St. Joseph is the patron we need at this time.
As we move into the liturgical season of Ordinary Time, let us pray in gratitude for the gift of sight!
As we move into the liturgical season of Ordinary Time, let us pray in gratitude for the gift of sight!
Prayer of Gratitude for the Gift of Sight
Prayer of Gratitude for the Gift of Sight
Creator God, Holy Parent, I give you thanks for all of your so often unnoticed natural gifts.
I rejoice especially, now, in my eyes, these two tiny but marvelous gifts that add so much
to the fullness of my life.
The gift of sight enlarges the world of my enjoyment and magnifies my appreciation of
nature, of great works of art, of the gifts of books and print, of those persons I love -
and for this I am grateful.
I thank you also for the gift of insight by which my spirit sees and understands.
For the gift of the third eye, the eye of the heart, by which I may stand-under the meaning
of life, I am indeed grateful.
I am especially thankful for your Son, Jesus, star-born prophet, whose very coming was a
healing light to the world, who opened the eyes of the blind and gave to a weary world
new sight.
Blessed be all those who have taught me to see: prophets, poets, writers, and
movie-makers, friends and lovers, all teachers of vision.
May my eyes bless you this day; may they be opened-prayers of gratitude, as I attempt
to overcome any blindness of heart and any dullness of appreciation of the wonder of
sight.
In the fullness of my being, I bless you, incomprehensible Lord, who foresees a heaven
of such splendor, that ear has not heard, nor eye seen, such beauty as you have
prepared.
Blessed are you, Lord my God, for the wondrous gift of sight.
~ Edward Hays ~
January 1, 2021
January 1, 2021
Befriend your 'self'.
See the beauty
within you.
See the light
within you.
Find the still point
within you.
Be in your sacred centre:
It is a place
for conceiving
and giving birth.
It is a place
of gratitude,
a place of light.
~ Mary Southard, csj ~
December 25: Merry Christmas
December 25: Merry Christmas
December 24: Betting on Bethlehem
December 24: Betting on Bethlehem
Christmas survives because of Bethlehem. Had it occurred in Jerusalem (or had a bigger press budget) it would have long ago been forgotten. Instead, Christmas persists, an annual people's revolt showing how much the insignificant and the powerless still matter in a world where big is king.
Christmas has an inescapable bias. Third- and fourth-world people who read the story often hear personal affirmation - it sounds like it was written just for them. First-world people who read it often hear judgment. The reason? Bethlehem, where the weak triumph over the powerful and the nobodies confound the famous, where valleys are exalted and mountains are laid low.
Those who understand Bethlehem are not one bit surprised. We expect the simple to baffle the sophisticated, the plain to triumph over the complex, the small to overturn the large. We actually believe that little countries like East Timor or Puerto Rico have as much right to independence as big countries. We've seen dictators toppled.
So Christmas is our festival, the bizarre story that puts its bets on Bethlehem. The story that lets ragged shepherds under flickering starlight get the first word of the birth of God on earth. It celebrates light overcoming darkness, the small defeating the big, the poor finally having less to fear than the rich, the simple and sincere emerging as ultimately sovereign.
Each Christmas asks us whether we will again bet on Bethlehem. Why would we choose otherwise? It is, in the end, the only story worth whatever we can wager - even our lives.
~ Donna Schaper ~
Throughout the season of Advent, we encourage you to check out the reflections at the following links:
A variety of Advent resources:
https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/Advent/site-index.html
Daily Advent prayers:
https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/Advent/firstweek.html
Advent A to Z:
December 23: O Emmanuel
December 23: O Emmanuel
December 22: O King of Nations
December 22: O King of Nations
December 21: O Rising Sun
December 21: O Rising Sun
December 20: O Key of David
December 20: O Key of David
December 19: O Root of Jesse
December 19: O Root of Jesse
December 18: O Lord
December 18: O Lord
December 17: O Wisdom
December 17: O Wisdom
December 16, 2020
To introduce our O Antiphon reflection series beginning Thursday, we offer the following introduction.
The O Antiphons refer to the seven antiphons that are recited (or chanted) preceding the Magnificat during Vespers of the Liturgy of the Hours during the Octave before Christmas, December 17-23.
Each of the of O Antiphons highlights a title for the Messiah referred to in the prophecy of Isaiah:
O Sapientia (O Wisdom) – December 17
O Adonai (O Lord) – December 18
O Radix Jesse (O Root of Jesse) – December 19
O Clavis David (O Key of David) – December 20
O Oriens (O Rising Sun) – December 21
O Rex Gentium (O King of the Nations) – December 22
O Emmanuel – December 23
According to Professor Robert Greenberg of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, the Benedictine monks arranged these antiphons with a definite purpose. If one starts with the last title and takes the first letter of each one- Emmanuel, Rex, Oriens, Clavis, Radix, Adonai, Sapientia - the Latin words ‘ero cras’ are formed, meaning, ‘Tomorrow, I will come.’ Therefore, the Lord Jesus, whose coming we have prepared for in Advent and whom we have addressed in these seven Messianic titles, now speaks to us, ‘Tomorrow, I will come.’ So the O Antiphons not only bring intensity to our Advent preparation, but bring it to a joyful conclusion.
Please scroll down for more information.
December 15, 2020
“I take delight in you, my God.
I sing a song of joy in my soul.
I proclaim the wonder of your love
through my words and actions.”
~ Joyce Rupp ~
December 14, 2020
“In the twilight of life,
God will not judge us on our earthly possessions
and human successes,
but on how well we have loved.”
~St. John of the Cross~
December 13, 2020
The third candle of Advent is JOY.
Despite her fear and apprehension,
Mary responded to God's call and was filled with joy.
Her whole being sang out:
'My soul rejoices in God, my Saviour.'
~Source unknown~
December 12, 2020
"What matters now is not that Christ was born of Mary,
but that Christ longs to be born in you -
and is born with each compassionate deed."
~Meister Eckhart~
December 11, 2020
The Presence of God
God is with me, but more,
God is within me, giving me existence.
Let me dwell for a moment on God's life-giving presence
in my body, my mind, my heart
and in the whole of my life.
~Source unknown~
December 10, 2020
Advent Longing
In the darkness of the season, in the silence of Mary's womb,
new life waits and grows.
Hope is shaped in hidden places,
on the edges, in the depths
far from the blinding lights and deafening sounds of consumer frenzy.
In the darkness and silence of my own life,
I wait,
listening for the whisper of angel wings,
longing for a genuine experience of mystery,
hoping for a rekindling of joy and the establishment of peace.
I lean into the darkness
and silence.
Expectant.
~Larry J. Peacock~
December 9, 2020
Come, O Gift of heaven's harmony
attune the ear of my heart
so that I may hear
just as Mary, faithful woman of Israel, heard.
Show me, also your highly favoured child,