Finding God in All Things: Ignatian Retreat for Everyone

        Saturday, September 28?9:00am – 12:00pm

A six-week spirituality opportunity will be offered at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church from September 28 to November 9, 2019. In order to deepen your spirituality, the retreat leaders suggest that participants be willing to commit to a daily time (30-45 minutes) of prayer and journaling about that prayer, and a weekly one-on-one check-in (30-45 minutes) with a spiritual companion to talk about God’s presence in their lives and the movement of their spirits during prayer. The title of the program is, “Finding God in All Things: Ignatian Retreat for Everyone.” For those of us who don’t know a lot about the teachings of and practices of St. Ignatius and his depth of spirituality, it is a good way to start developing a daily practice to deepen our relationship with God.  The Ignatian practices are designed to focus on the discernment of God’s call, or desire for one’s life, and are often undertaken at times of transition, change or need for insight. 

Based on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius (1491-1556), the co-founder of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), the retreat will include an opening morning meeting for all participants on September 28th when the leaders will explain the format and guidelines for daily meditation and prayer, and will introduce suggested meditation and prayer practices. For each of the six weeks following the opening session, participants will be provided with scripture passages for daily reading and meditation, and questions related to these scriptures to pursue in prayer and to discuss during their weekly meetings with the companion who will accompany them on this spiritual journey.  At the end of the six-week period, the participants will gather in a morning session to share their experiences, celebrate a closing ritual together and evaluate the program. (November 9) 

The leaders will be the Rev Mary Ann Hoy, Moriah Freeman, and the Rev Ellen Shaver. They will also serve as spiritual companions for weekly meetings.  Participation is limited, so please register early. You may do so by filling out the registration form below and dropping it at St. Paul’s church office or mailing it to:  St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, PO Box 195,  Brunswick, ME 04011