Retreat for Busy Students
October 22, 2009 by Fr John SJ
Filed under Week of Guided Prayer Latest
The Retreat For Busy Students will begin on Sunday 1st November at 7:00 pm and run until 8:00 on Thursday, 12th November.
What is it?
This is an opportunity to explore different ways of praying in the middle of a busy life. The prayer exercises offered are in many cases drawn from St. Ignatius’ of Loyola’s ‘Spiritual Exercises’, which present the essence of prayer as a dialogue between Creator and created. A focused period of time, with the accompaniment of a prayer-guide, can help us to build moments of contemplation into our daily lives and to become more aware of how God speaks to us and leads us in our personal history.
How does it work?
Before the week begins you will be assigned a prayer guide and given a contact email address. Your prayer guide will also be given your contact details, but we ask you to make first contact and to arrange with your guide times during the retreat when you would be able to meet from 3 – 5 times for half an hour (or perhaps a little longer).
At 8:00 on Sunday 1st November, we all meet together at the Chaplaincy for the opening of the retreat. There will be an introduction and some general advice on how to begin, and we will do a couple of prayer exercises together. You will be asked to find some time during each day to pray perhaps twice for between 15 and 30 minutes and you are recommended to have a regular place for this. During the period of the retreat you will meet your prayer guide to talk through matters arising from your prayer experience and discern where you might turn to next. At the end, on Thursday, 12th November we will have a shared reflection and conclude the week.
What now?
If you would like to participate in this week, email Fr John on moffsj@yahoo.com and I will send you the contact details of your Prayer Guide in the week before the retreat begins. You arrange times with them and then just show up to the first meeting on Sunday 1st November.
