Events & Retreats – 3.29.23

Wood Painting: Spring Wreath

SINSINAWA, Wis.—On Saturday, April 15, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., join us at Sinsinawa Mound for a morning of painting. Sarah Barnes, an artist from Iowa, will guide you step-by-step on how to paint a spring wreath on wood. All supplies will be provided for you. The fee is $35 per person and registration ends on April 12. 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.

Healing Haunted Histories: Re-Member, Re-Story, & Restore

We live amid a time of great loss and upheaval. The roots of our challenges, as well as the path toward healing, lie in the way we understand our relationships within ourselves, within our families, within our spiritual traditions, within the community of creation and within the ongoing realities of colonialism. This retreat, inspired in part by the efforts of white settlers, Elaine Enns and Ched Myers, will include a presentation, small group discussion and silent reflection on Saturday, April 15, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Sinsinawa Mound. Registration ends April 13 and the fee is $30 per person. 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.

Sisters Livestream Holy Week Services

SINSINAWA, Wis.—The Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa invite the public to worship with them virtually as they pray and celebrate the Paschal Feast by livestreaming the following services: 

  • Palm Sunday, April 2, 11 a.m. (all times are central)
  • Holy Thursday, April 6, 6:30 p.m.
  • Good Friday, April 7, 2 p.m.
  • Easter Vigil, April 8, 6:30 p.m.
  • Easter Sunday, April 9, 11 a.m.

Go to www.sinsinawa.org/live to view the services. Those who are unable to view the livestream can watch an archived video using the same link listed above and clicking on the “on demand” tab.

“Neutral Ground” Native Lands Tour

On this tour of native lands, we’ll travel to a number of sites around Fayette, Iowa, where the Ho-Chunk were forced during the so-called neutral ground period of the 19th century on Saturday, April 29, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. We’ll listen to largely untold stories of the land, traveling to the mission school, burial grounds, campsites, Fort Atkinson and sites connected to the great Ho-Chunk chief, Whirling Thunder. You will need access to a vehicle to join our tour caravan and please bring your own lunch. Registration ends April 27 and the fee is $20 per person. 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.

Arbor Day Hike

Join us and celebrate Arbor Day at Sinsinawa Mound with a lovely hike through our forests and discuss the arboreal giants that live among us on Friday, April 28, from 5 to 6 p.m. This is an outdoor activity and we will be hiking on and off trail so be sure to bring sturdy hiking boots and weather appropriate clothing. Registration ends April 27 and the fee is $10 per person. 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.

Joy of Forgiveness

Come on a healing journey through a practical, personal retreat about forgiveness at Sinsinawa Mound on Saturday, April 29, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sandy Hoenig will be leading this workshop and you’ll identify and process the stages of forgiveness and healing. Along the way, you’ll learn strategies you can use in your personal and/or professional life to avoid or resolve hurtful situations. Registration ends on April 24 and the fee is $75 per person. 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.

Prose, Poetry, and Potpourri

Celebrate National Poetry Month – April 2023 – with an informal and inspirational gathering of friends and neighbors at Weber Retreat and Conference Center. The Prose, Poetry, and Potpourri program is offered in person and via live stream from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Thursday, April 27, 2023.

John MacNaughton headlines the program with the story of his career as Creative Director of the Croswell Opera House and as actor, author, and graphic artist. All attendees are invited to share their own prose, poetry, music, and songs.

The program is free and open to all. Registration is not needed.

Those attending in person are screened for COVID-19 and required to wear masks when not eating. Those attending virtually may view the live stream at https://webercenter.org/poetry. 

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.

Summer Retreats at Siena Retreat Center

Weeklong retreats with daily spiritual direction are offered in-person at Siena Retreat Center (Racine) June 11-17, June 25-July 1, July 9-15, and July 16-22.  For a complete schedule, visit sienaretreatcenter.org/retreats/

Spring Sacred Seed Retreat ~ A Contemplative Journey into Creation (Online & In-Person)

Friday, April 28 – Sunday, April 30, 2023

This soul-soothing retreat will help unearth guidance from nature to enable you to gently quiet everyday distractions and access deep spiritual tranquility. Dominican Center, in collaboration with Plainsong Farm, invites you to let your senses be revitalized by nature. Take part in an experience that will cultivate your ability to become silent and still, as you deeply listen and rest in God’s presence. While you nurture and attend your inner garden it is our hope that you discover solitude in nature as a meaningful spiritual practice. In silence, we learn to listen — to ourselves and to God. In silence, we come to know ourselves and the reality of our lives more deeply. Allow prayerful silence to seed sacred spiritual growth for your journey.

Details & Registration: https://dominicancenter.com/programs-and-retreats/spring-sacred-seed-retreat/

Healing, Wholeness and the Power of Love with Sr. Illia Delio (Online)

Saturday, April 29, 2023 • 10:00 am – Noon

“We have the capacity to wrap the Earth with a new mantle of compassionate love and peace. But do we have the vision?” writes theologian and author Ilia Delio in one of her many books. “Love is the most universal, formidable and mysterious of cosmic energies,” wrote Teilhard de Chardin. His teachings lead us to inquire about how our individual and communal stories shape our lives in the larger order of the universe. Sr. Ilia Delio leads us in studying Teilhard’s vision of a relational, divine view of the world. Dominican Center Marywood at Aquinas College in collaboration with the Center of Mariandale in Ossining, NY is pleased to invite you to join a live stream webinar with Ilia Delio, OSF. How do our individual and communal stories shape our lives in the larger order of things? What holds us together despite our differences? Join a community of seekers to examine the God-world relationship, a deeply relational and unfolding process of Divine-created life. In this world view, a larger story which includes care for the human spirit, diversity and difference allows our local and personal stories to thrive. Learn how the powerful energies of Love help us access healing and wholeness.

Details & Registration: https://dominicancenter.com/programs-and-retreats/we-have-the-capacity-to-wrap-the-earth-in-ompassionate-love-and-peace-but-do-we-have-the-vision/

JOY Retreat ~ A Morning of Rest and Renewal (In-Person)

Saturday, May 6 • 9:00 am – Noon

In this life, there is Just One You (JOY!). You are a co-creator and the subject of your creation is your joyful life experience. We invite you to explore a variety of guided prayerful practices in a gentle in-person retreat that will serve to enliven your unique gifts. The ability to know your gifts and nurture them provides clarity in identifying where God is calling you to live a joy-filled life. Our JOY Retreat offers renewal to those who are feeling isolated and exhausted. We invite healthcare practitioners and healers, emergency responders, teachers, students, and anyone else who feels challenged by these past many months of pandemic. On this morning of renewal, you will find a supportive spiritual space to practice sacred self-care. Take part in prayer-infused offerings to create new opportunities and broaden resources that are certain to encourage self-compassion and reignite the joyful qualities you notice in yourself when you are at your best. Prayerful experiences include: Foundations in Spirituality formation intensive, Centering Prayer, Lectio Divina, Prayer walk, Spiritual Direction led by certified spiritual directors.

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

Spiritual Direction Ministry Blessing (In Person)

Saturday, May 20, 2023 • 4:00 – 6:00 pm

This year’s Spiritual Direction Ministry Blessing is a sacred gathering for all spiritual directors. Please join us to celebrate our collective ministries and to offer a Dominican blessing as we welcome newly certified Spiritual Directors from this year’s Practicum II class. The heart of the practice of spiritual direction is that we deeply believe God is present in all individuals and every experience of life. The heart of our shared ministry is trying to notice, touch, experience, and act out of that shared connection. Be with us as we extend sacred hospitality to our brothers and sisters as they join our faith community. At this celebration, Spiritual Directors certified in May 2023 will receive a special ministry blessing from all practicing directors and Dominican Sisters ~ Grand Rapids.

Details & Registration: https://dominicancenter.com/programs-and-retreats/spiritual-direction-ministry-blessing/

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 & Registration: https://dominicancenter.com/programs-and-retreats/journey-into-silence-retreat-summer-peace/

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/

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/