Spiritual Direction (virtual, one-on-one)
Open Dates
We are currently offering Spiritual Direction via telephone or web only. The recommended donation for one-on-one spiritual direction is $75. Registration for this program is used primarily to log payments.
Explore/Inquire About a Customized Personal Retreat
Open Dates
Benedictine Center
The experienced members of the Benedictine Center staff enjoy helping women and men like you find just the right blend of resources for their unique spiritual journeys. With a better sense of your preferences in terms of timing, special diets, accommodations and more, we will help you plan your retreat and gather any resources you might need, […]
2021-9-13 Quiet Retreat (1 night)
Package Dates
Benedictine Center
A Quiet Retreat gives you one night away from responsibilities. The room and three home-cooked meals are prepared with a personal touch. You are welcome but not obligated to join the Sisters for prayer. Take in the art, read, or walk the labyrinth as you choose. The time is yours. Some guests find it helpful to […]
Sustaining the Practice Retreat (3 nights or more)
Flexible Dates
Benedictine Center
Often people who are feeling called to integrate the disciplines of silence and spiritual practice into their lives choose a retreat of three nights or more. A Sustaining the Practice Retreat invites a person to set aside a significant window of time (between 3 and 7 nights) for renewal and growth. One can explore the riches of […]
Peace Retreat (2 nights)
Package Dates
Benedictine Center
A Peace Retreat helps you settle in to the calm that greets you at the monastery doors. Day 1 helps you familiarize yourself with the beauty and resources. Day 2 allows you the freedom to linger without travel. Day 3 allows you to ease back into normal life. The Peace Retreat helps you begin to feel […]
Quiet Retreat (1 night)
Package Dates
Benedictine Center
A Quiet Retreat gives you one night away from responsibilities. The room and three home-cooked meals are prepared with a personal touch. You are welcome but not obligated to join the Sisters for prayer. Take in the art, read, or walk the labyrinth as you choose. The time is yours. Some guests find it helpful to […]
Guided Retreat for the Emerging Poet
With Victor Klimoski
Package Dates
Benedictine Center
Looking for a chance to spend time with your inner writer? This individualized retreat, guided by an experienced poet, provides space and support to explore ways of enriching your writing practice. Over the course of the 48 hours, you will have the opportunity to meet with writing coach Victor Klimoski to discuss your poems, the […]
Day of Prayer (no overnight)
Package Dates
Benedictine Center
A Day of Prayer is a simple way to step into some quiet. Enjoy a private room and whatever degree of solitude you prefer. Some guests join the Sisters for midday prayer and visit with them at lunch. Others prefer to journal, read, pray and walk the grounds at their leisure. The monastic library, art […]
2024-05-18 Reverencing Earth Writing Retreat
With Kathy Fleming and Victor Klimoski
May 18, 2024
Benedictine Center at St. Paul’s Monastery (Maplewood)
This day of reflection celebrates the mysterious ways the gifts of creation influence our inner lives. Expressing that gratitude has captivated writers and artists for centuries. Drawing on their newly published anthology of poems, essays, and art, Victor Klimoski and Kathy Fleming guide participants in using word and image to describe what they experience on a walk in the forest or as they watch the sun rise over a sleeping world or contemplate birds gathering at the backyard feeder. Creativity blossoms in simple acts of seeing with hearts opened wide. The day begins with an introduction to Reverencing Earth and meditative reflection on sections from it. After a guided morning stroll on the monastic grounds, participants will have the opportunity to capture first impressions from the walk in some artistic form. This will lead to writing about those impressions (in the participant’s preferred genre), interspersed with ideas about nature writing and how writing helps tap into the wisdom of one’s soul. There will be some small group sharing along the way and a concluding “community read” of what the day has offered.
2024-05-31 Sand, Symbol and Source
With Sheryl Lyndes Stowman, M. Div.
May 31 - June 1, 2024
Benedictine Center
SAND, SYMBOL AND SOURCE A Soul Exploration We can come toward our own souls with a curious adventurousness, much like we would if we were traveling in a new country or solving a mystery. What’s here? What haven’t I noticed before? How am I feeling my heart’s desire or sensing my gut instincts as I travel here. What don’t I understand yet? In this retreat, we will take the time for a deeper exploration of your soul, in order to come into contact with what is present and unfolding. The methods we will use invite attunement to your inner experience, as you understand more about what blocks or expresses your soul’s aliveness. You may bring a question or challenge, or just a willingness to enter into the adventure of discovery. We call upon the loving Presence of our Source to support us and guide us, in ways that illuminate and open us to the possibilities we are ready for. We will use contemplative, playful and imaginative methods for our exploration. Beginning with meditation we create a space for listening, sensing and becoming aware. Through the imaginative method of playing with sand and symbol, you can enter into a time of […]
2024-07-14 Poetic Medicine: To Awaken Soulfulness in the Human Voice
With Lisa Mer
July 14 - 28, 2024
Benedictine Center of St. Paul's Monastery
You are invited to dip into a safe and creative circle in which we'll explore themes vital to meaning making in our lives. Over the course of three sessions you'll experience the impact of the poem-making process as a roadmap to enhance and foster insights and wellness. Poetry and poem-making are compelling and effective tools in the journey toward wholeness. It's a language below the surface to view the world through a broader lens. Poetic Medicine is based on 20 years of groundbreaking work, from The Institute for Poetic Medicine and Poetry as a Tool for Wellness, integrating poetry and poem-making into mental health and wellness programs. Sessions will include reflections on quotes/poems, writing prompts, and time to write and share what is speaking to you. No prior experience with poetry or writing is necessary! Bring your curiosity and allow your unique voice to expand in this interactive and respectful circle of learners. "By making us stop for a moment, poetry gives us an opportunity to think about ourselves as human beings on this planet and what we mean to each other." -Rita Dove
2024-11-01 A Time to Remember: A Retreat for Women Whose Mothers Have Died
With S. Joanne Dehmer SSND
November 1 - 2, 2024
Benedictine Center
We mourn the death of our mother all the days of our life. Whether our mother died this year or forty years ago, we grieve. Some of us grieve what we had and some of us grieve what never was in our relationship with our mother. This retreat offers women an opportunity to explore the significance of mother loss. Offered by the Loyola Spirituality Center at the Benedictine Center. Please call S. Joanne before registering at 651-641-0008 ext. 12.