Workshops & Programs

CHRISTIANITY AND THE PRACTICE OF ZEN
October 31 - November 2, 2008
Rev. Robert Kennedy, S.J.

This workshop-retreat will involve instruction and practice in the discipline and philosophy of Zen as well as instruction about its usefulness to one seeking to deepen his/her Christian life. Participants may wish to bring a mat for sitting. (Straight backed chairs will also be available.)

Fr. Robert Kennedy, S.J., teaches theology and Japanese at St. Peter’s College, Jersey City, NJ, is a practicing psychotherapist, and the author. He studied Zen in Japan with the Japanese master Yamada Roshi; in 1991, he was made Sensei (teacher) in the White Plum lineage; in 1997, he received Inka, the complete seal of approval and was given the title Roshi or Master. He holds doctorates in theology from the University of Ottawa and from St. Paul in Ottawa, a Masters in Theology from Sophia University in Tokyo, a Doctor of Ministry in Psychology and Clinical Studies from Andover-Newton in Boston.

Encountering Jesus in the Gospel of John
November 7 - 9, 2008
Sandra Schneiders, IHM

Many readers of the New Testament, although attracted to the “spiritual gospel” of John, find this Gospel hard to understand because it is so different from the more familiar Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. In this workshop we will explore the distinctiveness of John and develop some skills for reading John with deeper understanding. The purpose of the workshop is to facilitate encountering the Johannine Jesus in the Gospel text.

Sandra M. Schneiders, is a member of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Sisters of Monroe, Michigan and professor emerita of biblical studies and spirituality at the Jesuit School of Theology and the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California. She is author of books and articles on New Testament, biblical interpretation, Religious Life, women in Church and Scripture, and spirituality, including Written That You May Believe: Encountering Jesus in the Fourth Gospel on which this workshop is based.

GOD’S ALL-EMBRACING LOVE: A Weekend of Prayer forSeparated, Divorced, Re-Married
February 20– 22, 2009
William McGroarty, S.J.

This program offers a weekend of prayer for separated or divorced or re-married men and women who are seeking healing, self-renewal, and an awareness of God’s love. This is a spiritual, ecumenical weekend in which there will be periods of silence, prayer and reflection, as well as opportunities for conversation. Enrollment is limited to fifteen people.

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IGNATIAN DISCERNMENT OF SPIRITS IN DAILY SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCES
February 27-March 1, 2009
Timothy Gallagher, O.M.V.

This weekend will focus on Ignatius’s Rules for the discernment of spirits and how these apply in ordinary, daily spiritual experience. The workshop will begin with the First Set of Rules (SpirEx, 313-327), i.e., the problem of spiritual desolation – how to understand it, and how to overcome it. A more succinct reflection on the Second Set of Rules (SpirEx, 328-336), and the examen prayer, will complete the weekend.

Also, on Sunday afternoon from 2:15 – 3:45, Fr. Gallagher will meet with those participants who are involved in the ministry of spiritual direction. This will provide an opportunity for spiritual directors to engage in discussion and questions directly related to their ministry.

Fr. Gallagher is a popular retreat leader, and has lectured around the world. He holds a doctorate from the Gregorian University and is an Ignatian scholar with a special focus on discernment of spirits. His books on this topic include The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living; The Examen Prayer: Ignatian Wisdom for Our Lives Today; and Spiritual Consolation: An Ignatian Guide for the Greater Discernment of Spirits.

STEWARD LEADERSHIP AND CREATION WOODSTOCK BUSINESS CONFERENCE RETREAT
March 13 – 15, 2009
Rev. John C. Haughey, S.J., and James L. Nolan

As stewards we do not own the resources put at or disposal by God. We hold them in trust for God’s purposes. What difference does it make, individually and as business enterprises in what we do and how we do it, when we know ourselves as stewards? To those we work with? To those we serve? To the community? To the environment? For climate change? To all God’s creatures and creation? These and other questions probing our self-understanding as stewards of the resources given to us will be the subject of this year’s Woodstock Business Conference Retreat --- “Steward Leadership and Creation.”

The retreat will be led by a Woodstock Theological Center team including: Rev. John C. Haughey, S.J., Woodstock Theological Center Senior Fellow, theologian, author, and acclaimed retreat director, James L. Nolan, author of Doing the Right Thing at Work and coordinator of the Woodstock Center’s Arrupe Program in Business Ethics and the Woodstock Business Conference and others. The retreat will help participants gain a deeper and more intimate knowledge of all that God has in mind for us as stewards of His creation and help us to cooperate in that plan.

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“DO YOU LOVE ME?”
March 27 – 29, 2009
George Aschenbrenner, S.J. and Maria McCoy, S.S.J.

All of us in our heart both ask and hear this question! And all our hearts realize that love is the deepest meaning of life. This retreat will look at Jesus as he reveals to various people the beauty of God's heart in a LOVE beyond all other. This retreat is a time of silence with conferences, prayer, liturgy and time alone with God.

George Aschenbrenner, S.J., former Director of the Spiritual Growth staff and Maria McCoy, S.S.J. a staff member for the last fifteen years will be presenting this weekend retreat.

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THE ESSENCE OF PRAYER
June 5-7, 2009
Nina Pension

This weekend will be spent listening to the words of Jesus as he speaks to us, heart to heart, about the essence of prayer … being with him in truth, trust and perseverance. There will be opportunity during this time for prayer and reflection as well as for conversation and focused sharing.

Nina Pension, a spiritual director for individuals as well as groups, has a Masters Degree in Biblical Studies and taught Scripture in the Archdiocese of Boston. She has lectured at many spiritual conferences, and now is involved in full time ministry with her husband, John, serving nineteen families in a small Charlotte Mason school.

The weekend is sponsored in part by the Office of Adult Formation of the Allentown Diocese.

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Last modified: May 5, 2008