The Jesuit Spirituality Center

at St. Charles College

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Weekend Programs For 2017

Most weekend programs begin with 6:00pm supper on the first day and end before lunch on the last day. PLEASE arrive at the Center between
4:00 and 5:30 p.m. on the afternoon the program begins.

All programs require pre-registration. Programs of more than one day also require a non-refundable $75 registration fee.

Please note that reservations are not taken by phone. Reservations can be made by mail by including a check or your credit card information for the deposit, by fax (with credit card info on registration form), or, you can register online with a credit card to pay the deposit. This should be done as early as possible as some retreats fill quickly. A registration form for making a reservation by mail or fax is included on the last page of our brochure or it can be printed from our website in the “Registration” link. A RETREAT OR SPECIAL PROGRAM WILL NOT BE CONFIRMED UNTIL THE RESERVATION FORM WITH THE PROPER DEPOSIT IS RECEIVED. After receiving your registration form and deposit, you will receive a confirmation which will list articles that you should bring with you for the retreat or program.

For more retreat details, please also go to “About” and then “General Info”.

A Hands-on Guide to Dreamwork
(THIS RETREAT HAS BEEN CANCELLED)

Deedy Young, Jungian analyst, L.C.S.W.
Saturday, January 28, 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Fee: $60.00 (Includes Lunch)

Faced with life’s challenges, we human beings have turned to dreams ever since our earliest beginnings. Evidence of recorded dreams dates as far back as 3000-4000 B.C. Because dreams are a response to the dreamer’s current life situation, they are able to provide valuable guidance to the individual. Dream images can shed light on unconscious psychological patterns that are causing difficulties in the dreamer’s life, and they can point to needed changes and potential future development.

Following a brief orientation to the dream and its key elements, we will spend the remainder of our time working hands-on with these key elements in actual dreams. Since dreams do not use the language of rational, linear thinking with which we are all familiar, the aim of this workshop is to assist the participant in developing a “feel” for the language of the dream, that is, for images, symbols, feelings, and emotions that make up the dream’s language.

Deedy Young, Jungian analyst, L.C.S.W., completed training with the Inter-regional Society of Jungian Analysts in 2010. Her training involved extensive work with dreams. Deedy lives in Lafayette, LA where she has a private practice.

Early Christian Iconography: An Icon Writing Workshop/Retreat
[WAITING LIST ONLY AT THIS TIME]

An Instructor from the Prosopon School of Iconology
Monday, Jan., 30 – Sunday, February 5
Fees: Beginner and Intermediate $1,230 (includes 36 hours studio instruction, all art supplies), Advanced $1,075 (does not included supplies and board). A non-refundable, non-transferrable deposit of $200 is required to reserve a space in the class. Deadline for registration is December 30, 2016. Class size is limited. Deposits will be refunded in case of workshop cancellation.

Icons have long played a central role in the worship of the Eastern Church. Western Christians are rediscovering the transcendent beauty of these sacred images of the early Church. In this intensive six-day painting workshop, students will learn both the practical and theoretical aspects of the iconographic tradition: the multi-step process of writing (painting) an icon, the theological basis of each step, and the iconic symbolism of the work. In an atmosphere of prayerful silence, each participant will complete an icon in egg tempera, using the same natural materials and ancient techniques that have been used by iconographers throughout the centuries. Previous painting experience is helpful but is not necessary.

World-renowned master iconographer Valdislav Andreyev and his 2 sons founded the Prosopon School of Iconology in upstate New York to promote the study of the Byzantine-Russian tradition of icon writing. The School has a branch in Russia. Instructors from the Prosopon School conduct icon workshops throughout the U. S. and Canada.

An Introduction to the Directed Retreat
(AT CAPACITY - WAITING LIST ONLY AT THIS TIME)

Mrs. Nelda Turner and Center Staff
Friday, February 24 – Sunday, February 26
Fee: $160.00; pre-registration and a non-refundable $75 registration fee is required.

An Introduction to the Directed Retreat is designed for someone making a silent directed retreat for the first time. Group and individual sessions will focus on how to pray, to journal, and to communicate prayer experiences with one’s director. This retreat will also prepare participants for a longer 3, 5, 8 or 30-day retreat.

Mrs. Nelda Turner, a retreat director on the staff of the Spirituality Center is an accredited full-time retreat director trained in the Internship Program in the Archdiocese of New Orleans. She is certified in spiritual direction through the Spiritual Director training program in the Diocese of Lake Charles. Mrs. Turner holds a certificate in Theology with a focus in Pastoral Studies from Loyola University, New Orleans. She has been a retreat director for 11 years and a spiritual director for 16 years. She and her husband, Bendal, have been married 37 years. They have two children and 9 grandchildren.

In Your Presence is Fullness of Joy: Yoga and Contemplative Prayer

Andrea “Ani” Vidrine
Thursday, March 2 – Sunday, March 5
Fee: $270.00 (commuters $200.00)
pre-registration and a non-refundable $75 deposit required

Come and experience a weekend of prayer, joy, and fellowship! In this 3-night retreat we will practice contemplative awareness through Christian chanting, centering prayer, conscious breathing, lectio divina, body prayer, art as prayer, and drumming as prayer. Our intent for the weekend is to open to the grace-filled awareness of union with the Beloved. Included in the retreat is one full day of silence which may be extended throughout the retreat according to the desire of the retreatant. No prior experience with yoga is necessary.

Andrea “Ani” Vidrine is a spiritual director, licensed clinical social worker, and 13-year veteran presenter at the Jesuit Spirituality Center. She is the author of Jesus, Yoga, & the Way of Happiness: A Christian Yoga Daily Devotional and the audio CD Christian Yoga: A Meditative Class.

Called by Name: A Mind, Body, Spirit Retreat for Young Women, ages 20's through early 40's

Jane L. Hebert & Yvonne C. Hymel
Friday March 17 at 5 pm to Sunday, March 19 at 1:00 pm (after lunch)
Fee: $180 before February 24th, $195 after February 24th
A non-refundable deposit of $75 is required.
For more information: retreatsforyoungwomen.com or yhymel09@gmail.com or 504-481-4319

This retreat is an invitation to come to a quiet place where you can awaken to God’s whisper around and within you. It is designed to help you open to an experience of God through: silence, group interaction, guided meditation, music, art, nature and body prayer.

Jane L. Hebert is a psychotherapist who has worked in the New Orleans area for over 30 years and is a spiritual director.
Yvonne Hymel offers ongoing spiritual direction. She is a registered nurse and educator.
Both facilitators are the founders of Retreats for Young Women and give retreats in New Orleans and in Grand Coteau.

Finding God in All Things: Encountering the Living God in our Everyday Lives

Robin Hebert
Thursday, May 25 – Sunday, May 28
Fee: $270 (commuters $200.00)
A non-refundable deposit of $75 is required.

Saint Ignatius of Loyola believed that we encounter God at every moment of our existence. His Spiritual Exercises provide a means to help us to become more and more aware of the tender gaze of this ever-present God, a gentle Shepherd who longs to lead us along the sacred paths of our life. Join author and spiritual director Robin Hebert as we journey through the Exercises and encounter this living God who invites us to follow Him with trust wherever He leads.

Robin Hebert is a spiritual director, retreat leader, and the co-author with Lyn Holley Doucet of When Women Pray and When Wisdom Speaks. She serves Our Lady of Wisdom Church and Catholic Student Center at U. L. Lafayette as marriage ministry coordinator and is a spiritual mentor to many.

A Day of Renewal for Women: Abide in Me

Andrea “Ani” Vidrine
Saturday, July 15, 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Fee: $60.00 (Includes Lunch)

Jesus said, “I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5) In this day of renewal, we will consciously connect to the Vine through intuitive yoga, praying an Ignatian-style examen, and using collage as prayer. Come expecting to be refreshed and renewed!

Praying with St. Peter: A Day of Reflection and Prayer

Fr. Mark E. Thibodeaux, SJ
Saturday, September 16, 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Fee: $60 (Includes Lunch)

We will spend the day reflecting on the life of St. Peter and the ways in which all of us share in his ups and downs, his joys and sorrows. With St. Peter beside us as our model and friend, we turn to Christ for forgiveness, for companionship and for our mission to serve His people.

Fr. Mark E. Thibodeaux, SJ, holds degrees from Loyola University of New Orleans and Weston School of Theology of Cambridge, MA. He is the author of four books on prayer including: Armchair Mystic; Discerning God’s Will; and Reimagining the Ignatian Examen. Fr. Thibodeaux is the novice director in Grand Coteau, for the Jesuits of the Central and Southern Province.

Zen Practices for Christian Living
(AT CAPACITY / PLEASE CALL 337-662-5251 Ext. 222 BEFORE SCHEDULING)

Fr. Robert Kennedy, S.J.
Thursday, November 9 – Sunday, November 12
Fee: $270 (commuters $200) pre-registration and a non-refundable $75 deposit is required

Zen practices integrating Christian life, prayer and liturgy. Come develop a deeper cnotemplative prayer life. Zazen or sitting meditation is the practice of stilling the mind through whole hearted attentiveness to the breath. Together with stillness of the body, this frees the mind from its ordinary activities of thinking, daydreaming and speculating. This is a silent retreat and is open to persons of all faiths. It includes instruction, talks and one-on-one interviews.

Fr Robert Kennedy, S.J. teaches Catholic Theology and Buddhism at St. Peter’s College, Jersey City. He is a practicing psychotherapist and the author of Zen Gifts to Christians and Zen Spirit, Christian Spirit.

AA Weekend: Staying Sober with the 12-Steps
(AT CAPACITY - WAITING LIST ONLY AT THIS TIME)

Fr. Tom Weston, S.J.
Wednesday, November 29 – Sunday, December 3
Fee: $335 (commuters $255) pre-registration and a non-refundable $75 deposit is required

The 12 Steps help us live a better life. This is a weekend for women and men in recovery. Addicts, alcoholics, and family and friends are welcome. We will go through the 12 Steps and focus on the practical tools of recovery from this tragic illness. There will be time for quiet, for reflection, for conversation, and for meetings – for some refreshment and renewal.

Fr. Tom Weston, S.J., a counselor and retreat director, is a specialist in giving 12-Step and AA retreats. He is known nationwide for the wise and practical insights he shares with retreatants.

Jesuit Discernment Retreats

The Jesuit Vocation Office for the USA Central and Southern Province of the Society of Jesus sponsors annually two Discernment Retreats for those considering a vocation to the Society: mid-December and early January. Part of the time is spent with Jesuit novices who are studying here at St. Charles College, and the remainder of the time is spent with a Jesuit director in a silent, individually directed retreat.

If you have been giving some thought to a possible vocation to the Jesuits, you are invited to consider participating in one of these retreats. The retreats are provided free of charge. While it is presumed that participants will cover the cost of their travel, there are funds for those who would need assistance.

In addition, the Jesuit Vocation Office also hosts two Come & See weekends during the school year:

* Late September / early October (St. Louis)

* February (Kansas City).

If you would like to participate in one of these events, please contact Fr. Randy Gibbens, S.J., Coordinator of Vocation Promotion, by email:

* UCSVocationCoordinator@jesuits.org

Thank you for your interest in the Jesuits!

Weekend Programs For 2017

A Hands-on Guide to Dreamwork (THIS RETREAT HAS BEEN CANCELLED)

Early Christian Iconography: An Icon Writing Workshop/Retreat [WAITING LIST ONLY AT THIS TIME]

An Introduction to the Directed Retreat (AT CAPACITY - WAITING LIST ONLY AT THIS TIME)