Events & Retreats – 5.24.23

“Being Human in an Emerging Universe”

Niamh Brennan, PhD

Thursday, June 29, 2023

Siena Auditorium, Racine, Wisconsin

Please join us for a day to contemplate and reflect on what it means to be a ‘human being’ in light of the Universe story, as articulated through contemporary science. Click here for more information. 

Ritual Celebration of Summer Solstice

Sister Esther Kennedy, OP, a Dominican Sister of Adrian, offers an in-person Ritual Celebration of the Summer Solstice from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Sunday, June 18, 2023, at Weber Retreat and Conference Center.

At the very height and warmth of the summer sun, Summer Solstice gives us the opportunity to delight in the abundance of Earth; to light the solstice fire; and to speak our visions, hopes, and gratitude. Come with a song, poem, story, or treats to share.

Sister Esther, a retreat leader and spiritual director, conducts a monthly Day of Mindfulness at Weber Center.

The event is free and open to all. Registration is not required.

Weber Center is on the campus of the Adrian Dominican Sisters’ Motherhouse, Adrian, Michigan. Traveling east on Siena Heights Drive, pass the Adrian Rea Literacy Center and turn left just before the solar panel-covered parking lot. Follow the signs to Weber Center. For information, call the Weber Center at 517-266-4000.

Reflection Day Focuses on Mother Teresa

“Do something beautiful for God.”

Those words by St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta present both a challenge and an invitation to each of us. Sister Joy Barker, OSF, offers an in-person day of prayer, reflection, and sharing on Mother Teresa’s life from 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Wednesday, June 14, 2023, at Weber Retreat and Conference Center.

A Sister of St. Francis from Sylvania, Ohio, Sister Joy offers retreats, spiritual direction, and days of reflection.

The cost for the day is $30, including lunch. Registration is required and is available at www.webercenter.org; click on “programs.” Registrations may also be made by calling 517-266-4000 or emailing webercenter@adriandominicans.org. Limited scholarships are available.

Weber Center is on the campus of the Adrian Dominican Sisters’ Motherhouse, Adrian, Michigan. Traveling east on Siena Heights Drive, pass the Adrian Rea Literacy Center and turn left just before the solar panel-covered parking lot. Follow the signs to Weber Center. For information, call the Weber Center at 517-266-4000.

Forest Therapy Days

The Siena grounds (Racine) are an ideal place to enjoy a day of Forest Therapy, which is based on the principle that we humans are a part of nature. Two days are offered: Sunday, June 25, and Saturday, August 5.


Registration link:  https://www.sienaretreatcenter.org/retreats/forest-therapy-series-june-session/

SoulCollage® Workshop (In Person)

Friday, June 2, 2023 • 6:00 – 8:30 pm

Are you looking for a new way to express yourself? Time to develop a vision for a new idea? SoulCollage® is an intuitive process that helps us tap into creativity and give voice to words with images. It can also offer a soft entry point into growth and healing. Come explore with curiosity the layers of meaning revealed with each card. Join us to create your own cards and explore aspects of your soul. The cards are fascinating vehicles to uncover hidden layers of fertile and supportive ground. Whether you create one card or a whole deck, the process is sure to bring insight and encouragement to your life. No book is required, and all supplies are included. If you can use scissors and a glue stick, you are all set! You don’t have to be an artist. Anyone can create and enjoy this powerful practice.

Details & Registration: https://dominicancenter.com/programs-and-retreats/soulcollage-workshop-in-person/

Journey into Silence Retreat ~ Summer Peace (In-Person)

6-Day Retreat in Conway, MI • Sunday, June 18 – Friday, June 23, 2023

Silence the world around you. Silence the world within you. Silence the thoughts that shout out to you. In the stillness hear God’s voice. In the quiet, sense the Divine’s presence and the spiritual love that is waiting to embrace you. Gently enter into silence during this retreat experience. A spiritual director will be here to companion with you on this silent retreat. Held at the Augustine Center Retreat House in Conway, Michigan, near Petoskey, the Journey Into Silence retreat begins with dinner at 5:30 pm on Sunday, June 18, and concludes around 2:30 pm on Friday, June 23.
Details & Registrationhttps://dominicancenter.com/programs-and-retreats/journey-into-silence-retreat-summer-peace/

Renew Retreat ~ Schedule Yourself or a Group for an In-Person Retreat

Available for Individuals and Small Groups by Appointment

The Renew Retreat is an individual or group retreat that is a self-guided contemplative pilgrimage. The gentle Christian practice of using scripture and prayerful prompts aligned with the four elements — fire, water, earth, and air — will help guide your journey into and beyond the garden in ways that strengthen your awareness of creation as a renewable resource, energizing your beingness, and the world around you. We will begin at Dominican Center Marywood at Aquinas College, transition to the St. Francis of Assisi Sculpture Garden, and return to Dominican Center. As you walk the paths along the wooded trails, you are led into the pace and rhythms of the natural world. Water, earth, fire, and air greet you — each element of nature a reminder of the peaceful relationship between living organisms and their physical environment.

Details & Registration: https://dominicancenter.com/programs-and-retreats/renew-retreat/

Centering Prayer (Online)

Tuesdays • Noon

Centering Prayer is a modernized prayer method based on the intuitive prayer rooted in Lectio Divina. It is a method of silent prayer that prepares us to receive the gift of contemplative prayer, prayer in which we experience the Divine’s immanent presence with us. Centering Prayer is grounded in relationship with God, through Christ, and is a practice to nurture that relationship. This method of prayer complements and supports other modes of prayer — verbal, mental, or affective prayer — and facilitates resting in the Divine Presence. Centering Prayer offers a way to grow in intimacy with God, moving beyond conversation to communion

Details & Registration: https://dominicancenter.com/programs-and-retreats/centering-prayer/

Wild Church: Summer Solstice

SINSINAWA, Wis.—On Wednesday, June 21, from 7 to 8:30 p.m., Eric Anglada, Sinsinawa’s Ecological Programming Coordinator, will be leading Wild Church: Summer Solstice at Sinsinawa Mound. Fire and song, ritual and community, prayer and quiet: this inclusive, outdoor gathering is centered on honoring the longest day of the year. In a time of planetary upheaval, it is crucial to recover our elemental sense of connection and kinship with Creator and Creation. We are inspired by Celtic tradition and the Wild Church movement. We will meet inside the main entrance and proceed outdoors. No registration is required and a free will offering is welcome. Contact Arrangements at 608-748-4411 or visit our website at www.sinsinawa.org/moundcenter for more information. Sinsinawa Mound, the motherhouse for the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa, is located in southwest Wisconsin on County Road Z, off Highway 11, about five miles northeast of Dubuque.