Contemplative Outreach, Ltd.

Centering Prayer Introductory Workshop
2023-04-29 10:00 - 14:00 (America/New_York) | Sisters of Charity Motherhouse, 5900 Delhi Road, Cincinnati, OH, 45233, United States
For those new to Centering Prayer/meditation this workshop familiarizes participants with the method of Centering Prayer and its practical application. The workshop offers an opportunity to experience this ancient prayer/meditation practice in a quiet, reflective atmosphere. Each workshop is led by an experienced facilitator, commissioned by Contemplative Outreach, LTD.
“Contemplative prayer is the world in which God can do anything. To move into that realm is the greatest adventure. It is to be open to the Infinite and hence to infinite possibilities.”
– Thomas Keating

Spring Centering Prayer Silent Retreat
2023-04-28 16:00 - 2023-04-30 16:00 UTC | Saint Benedict Center, 1123 Road I, Schuyler, NE, 68661, United States
Saint Benedict Center
Schuyler, Nebraska
“We must seek God more and more in the present moment, which is in fact the only place where God can be found. Since God is eternal, God is not to be found in the future but in the present.”
~Thomas Keating, Intimacy With God, p.28
Contemplative retreats are one of the most wonderful ways to experience time with God in the present moment. No hurry, no concerns, just time spent being aware of God and enjoying his presence.
You are invited to gather with us for our Spring retreat giving time to be present in the beauty of nature, prayer and solitude. We begin Friday, April 28th at dinner and conclude Sunday after the noon meal.
Registration includes: 2 nights in a private room, all meals, and programming. $240.00
Please register by April 10, 2023 at www.nebraskacontemplativeoutreach.org
Saint Benedict Center is a beautiful location (5 miles north of Schuyler NE) that provides walking paths, Stations of the Cross, a labyrinth, hotel-like accommodations and delicious food service. Schuyler is 1 hour and 15 minutes east if Omaha, Nebraska.

EASTER 2023 6 DAY (5 NIGHT) SILENT CENTERING PRAYER RETREAT
2023-04-23 16:00 - 2023-04-28 13:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | St. Andrew’s Retreat House, WA, 98592, United States
Continue your Easter journey by deepening your Centering Prayer practice in an atmosphere of silence and community, away from the busyness of daily life, and allow your mind, body and spirit to surrender to God’s presence and action within.
This Contemplative Outreach post-intensive retreat is designed to deepen your established Centering Prayer practice. It will focus on deep silence and simplicity and will not include any videos or other learning material. Each day will feature five prayer sessions that will last from half an hour to an hour and a half (including short contemplative walks). Except for opening and closing times, retreatants will observe Grand Silence throughout the retreat with no conversation and no eye contact.
Before attending the retreat, you should have an established practice of daily Centering Prayer for at least one year and have attended a Centering Prayer Intensive retreat. For more information about the retreat, contact Pam Wilder, Retreats Coordinator and registrar, pwilder@blarg.net.
Flyer and registration form: https://contemplativeoutreachnorthwest.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Easter-Retreat.pdf

Lectio Divina Presenter Enrichment Gathering -- via Zoom
2023-04-22 12:00 - 13:30 (America/New_York) | Internet – Online
Save the date!
Saturday April 22, 2023
This will be a 90 minute gathering beginning at 12 midday Eastern Standard Time.
Commissioned presenters of Lectio Divina and Lectio Divina Presenters in Training are warmly invited to attend this event.
Enquiries: lesleywaterford@gmail.com

Fear, Freedom and Levels of the Mind: Cultivating Interior Freedom in Fierce Times
2023-04-15 09:00 - 16:30 (America/New_York) | Holy Family Passionist Retreat Center, 303 Tunxis Road, West Hartford, CT, 6107, United States
Contemplative Enrichment Day with Mark Kutolowski
Fear blocks our ability to hear God’s presence and action in our midst. How do we live from a place of spiritual freedom in an era of upheaval and fear? In this workshop, we will seek to cultivate awareness of fear as it relates to the Primitive, Rational, and Spiritual levels of mind. Much of the day will be spent practicing exercises to strengthen the nervous system, enhance interior awareness, and build our ability to remain spiritually present in the face of fear.
This program will be offered both in-person and online via Zoom. Information on how to access the program on Zoom will be sent to participants in advance.
This program will include a morning and an afternoon session of Centering Prayer.
Mark Kutolowski is an Oblate of Saint Benedict, a contemplative retreat leader, Centering Prayer teacher, wilderness guide, and instructor in the Slavic martial art and health practice, Systema. He has spent the past 20 years exploring the integration of Christian contemplation with physical transformation and our relationship with the natural world. Mark and his wife Lisa live a lay contemplative life and offer hospitality at their homestead, Metanoia of Vermont (http://www.metanoiavt.com).

How Contemplation Can Heal a Violent World: Going Deeper - via Zoom
2023-04-15 09:00 - 12:00 UTC | Internet – Online
Our April Half-Day Retreat will feature three recorded excerpts from the Rt. Rev. Eugene Taylor Sutton’s presentation on contemplation and nonviolence given during COMW’s 25th Anniversary Retreat in September 2022.
The excerpts will focus on the different faces of violence, the spirituality of nonviolence and nonviolence in action. Before each video, we will prepare ourselves to listen deeply by sitting together in Centering Prayer. We will listen to each video as though engaging in Lectio Divina, noting any word or phrase that especially resonates as God speaking to us personally. After each video, we will be invited to share the word or phrase that resonated with us as the Spirit’s call to non-violent action in our personal and communal lives. We will conclude our retreat with a final prayer and blessing.

Presenter Formation for Centering Prayer
2023-04-14 10:30 - 2023-04-16 16:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Mercy Center Auburn, 535 Sacramento Street, Auburn, CA, 95603, United States
Presenter Formation to become a commissioned presenter of Centering Prayer is being offered at Mercy Centers beautiful Auburn California retreat center April 14 – 16th and is led by Susan Turpin.
Please contact Chuck Schaller if interested: chuckschaller2@gmail.com or phone 916-390-3465

Contemplative Outreach Pittsburgh Presents A Two-Day-Retreat: "Triple Way to Transformation"
2023-04-14 - 2023-04-15 | Villa Maria Education and Spirituality Center, 2067 Evergreen St., Villa Maria, PA, 16155, United States
Location: Villa Marie Education and Spirituality Center in Contemplative Outreach Pittsburgh.
Susan Muto, PhD., Dean of the Epiphany Academy of Formative Spirituality, and Executive Director of the Epiphany Association, a renowned speaker and author, will present a mystical guide to the soul’s quest for God aimed at our understanding of how to live the threefold path of purgation, illumination, and union with God.
“Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I
shall be whiter than snow”
– Ps 51:7
Three conferences will focus on the triple way to transformation highlighted in Scripture brought to light by such spiritual masters as St. Bernard of Clairvaux, St. Teresa of Avila, and Thomas Merton; all of whom in both style and content convey the goodness, truth, and beauty of living with the sacred. These conferences will reveal that our thoughts, images, and hopes must be rooted in a stance of calm, courageous peace, expressed daily in our care and concern for one another. Only then can we live to the fullest the virtues of silence, simplicity, solitude, and solidarity.
For more information see https://www.pghcenteringprayer.org/newsletter/

Holy Saturday Retreat: Accompanying Jesus and Mary Magdalene - online or in-person
2023-04-08 10:00 - 16:00 (America/Vancouver) | Centre for Spiritaul Renewal at St. Andrew’s Church, Langley, BC, Canada
Holy Saturday marks Jesus’ journeys into the heart of the earth in which he not only encounters the most constricted, cut off and hurt states of human consciousness in the collective false self but allows love to reach them and weave them into the whole. Meanwhile Mary Magdalene, the Tower, keeps vigil with a heart open in love as Jesus enters this pivotal point in the passion events, the outcome of which is still unknown to her. We are invited to enter this day from a wisdom point of view opening ourselves to the possibility of embodying the postures of Jesus and Mary Magdalene in the context of our very own lives.
Join us ONLINE or at the Centre for Spiritual Renewal in Langley, B.C. for a contemplative wisdom event led by Heather Ruce, in which we engage this sacred day with our minds, feelings, and body through teaching, reflection and shared wisdom practices.
Retreat Leader: Heather Ruce, M.A., is a wisdom spiritual director companioning individuals and facilitating wisdom practice circles, groups, retreats, and wisdom schools focused on learning and practicing the Christian Wisdom Tradition. She offers teaching and guidance in various wisdom and mindfulness practices including Centering Prayer, Christian meditation, sacred chanting, lectio divina, conscious work and embodiment in service of waking up and putting on the mind of Christ. Find out more at heatherruce.com.

4-Day Holy Week Silent Wisdom Retreat: Accompanying Jesus and Mary Magdalene through the Paschal Mystery - in-person or online
2023-04-03 19:00 - 2023-04-06 12:30 (America/Vancouver) | Bethlehem Centre, Nanaimo, BC, Canada
Holy Week is more than a series of events surrounding the final days of Jesus’s earthy life that we are to commemorate. We can enter this sacred week from the inside as a way of mutual accompaniment in which we are concurrently embodying the postures of Jesus and Mary Magdalene through this timeless passage through death. Under the conditions of deep silence—weaving in the transformative currents of surrender, three centered presence, attention, and recollection—we will open ourselves to the intense life giving energy of the Paschal Mystery available to us that we might emerge with the steadfast knowing that ‘Love is as strong as death’ and we too are called to be bearers of that Love.
Join us ONLINE or at the Bethlehem Centre in Nanaimo BC, Canada for a silent experiential retreat. There will be an immersion into a ‘wisdom way of knowing’ through a daily rhythm of mindful walking, Centering Prayer, teaching, reflection, ritual, Gurdjieff Exercises and Movements, chanting, and contemplative free time embedded in the Great Silence. In person registration https://bethlehemcentre.com/program/1264/holy-week-silent-wisdom-retreat-in-person/
Retreat Leader: Heather Ruce, M.A., is a wisdom spiritual director companioning individuals and facilitating wisdom practice circles, groups, retreats, and wisdom schools focused on learning and practicing the Christian Wisdom Tradition. She offers teaching and guidance in various wisdom and mindfulness practices including Centering Prayer, Christian meditation, sacred chanting, lectio divina, conscious work and embodiment in service of waking up and putting on the mind of Christ. Find out more at heatherruce.com.

Resurrection - Transformation Big Sit - via Zoom
2023-04-01 10:00 - 12:00 (America/New_York) | Internet – Online
Join us for a meaningful morning exploring the Resurrection-Transformation theme. This Big Sit incorporates two 20-minute silent Centering Prayer sessions with Lectio Divina (sacred reading four times), Taizé chant, and stories about transformation for our reflection.
Please see the link below to register.

Introduction to Centering Prayer – Online Workshop
2023-04-01 09:00 - 12:00 (America/Anchorage) | Internet – Online
St. Mary’s Sewanee is hosting an online workshop via Zoom, “Introduction to Centering Prayer”, Saturday, April 1st, 9am to 3pm Central Time, led by The Rev. Tom Ward.
The Rev. Tom Ward is the retired university chaplain at the University of the South and now spends his days focusing on the contemplative dimension of the gospel, teaching Centering Prayer, and leading retreats.
Please register using the link below. This program is FREE. Donations to St. Mary’s Sewanee are appreciated.

11th-Step Centering Prayer Retreat
2023-03-31 - 2023-04-02 | Bethany Retreat Center, 1031 Germania Rd, Frenchville, PA, 16836, United States
This retreat will offer an environment of solitude and silence in community with time for reflection, fellowship and 12-Step Meetings. We will be presenting Centering Prayer as an 11th-Step Practice. Centering Prayer is an ancient meditation practice that is different from what we may think of as prayer. It is simply moving deep within ourselves in silence, saying nothing, asking for nothing, just being by letting go of our thoughts and resting in our Higher Power. Retreat staff have been active in 12-Step programs for many years and are longtime practitioners of Centering Prayer. They are commissioned presenters for Centering Prayer through Contemplative Outreach and 12 step Outreach.
If you are starting a meditation practice, seeking a new path or are interested in deepening your current practice, come and join. Please see the link below to register.

Father Sheehan 6-Day Centering Prayer Retreat at Holy Cross Abbey
2023-03-27 - 2023-04-02 | Holy Cross Abbey, 901 Cool Spring Ln, VA, 22611, United States
Silence and Solitude
FORGIVENESS
Centering Prayer Retreat with Father Bill Sheehan
Monday, March 27 – Palm Sunday, April 2, 2023
Holy Cross Abbey (HCA)
www.virginiatrappists.org
Berryville, VA
5 Full Days & 2 Half Days of silence and solitude in a peaceful rural setting 3 plus hours per day of group Centering Prayer
Daily morning Centering Prayer begins at 5:30am
Palm Sunday morning Centering Prayer begins at 6:30am
Comfortable single room with private bathroom/shower
Opportunity to attend any or all of the daily Liturgy of the Hour prayers with the Trappist monks
Eucharist celebrated with the Monks in the Abbey Monastery Chapel weekdays and Saturday morning after 7:00am Lauds
Sunday morning Eucharist celebrated with Father Sheehan in the Retreat House Chapel
Daily group conference Tuesday – Saturday offered by Father Sheehan
Opportunity for two private individual conferences with Father Sheehan
Here is the event/registration URL: https://conta.cc/3jp91oK
martha@marthajohnston.com

Introduction to the Forgiveness Prayer - via Zoom
2023-03-25 09:00 - 12:00 (America/Denver) | Internet – Online
Is there someone in your life whom you find difficult to forgive? The Prayer of Forgiveness is a powerful prayer that can help you forgive at the deepest level of your being. During this class, you will receive instruction on this prayer, developed by Contemplative Outreach founding member Mary Mrozowski. You will also have an opportunity for Centering Prayer as well as practice of the Prayer of Forgiveness.
This class will include a session of Centering Prayer.
Time listed is Mountain Time (Denver, Colorado)
Click the link below to register.

Introduction to Centering Prayer
2023-03-25 08:30 - 12:30 (America/New_York) | Messiah Luthern Church, 305 West Magnetic Street, Marquette, MI, 49855, United States
“Be still and know that I am God.”
– Psalm 46:10
Centering Prayer is a receptive, deep method of silent prayer that prepares us to receive the gift of the experience of God’s presence within us. It presents ancient Christian teachings in an updated form. Centering Prayer is not meant to replace other kinds of prayer; rather it casts new light on them. This method of prayer is a movement beyond conversation with Christ to communion with Christ. Through the regular practice of Centering Prayer, many people discover the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, self-control.
The workshop will introduce the four guidelines of Centering Prayer and will include two 20 minute silent Centering Prayer sessions. The teachings are based on Father Thomas Keating’s book, Open Mind, Open Heart. Follow up materials and resources will be provided. A donation is suggested for the presenters traveling expenses.
The co-presenters are the Reverends Jackie Falk and John Keller.
For more information and to RSVP contact, Laura Petrie at petriedish57@gmail.com
Please note there is also a Centering Prayer group in person on Sundays @ 5:00 p.m. Eastern time – same location, Messiah Lutheran Church. Please email Laura Petrie if interested in attending, petriedish57@gmail.com

Centering Prayer Introductory Workshop
2023-03-25 08:30 - 12:30 (America/New_York) | Holy Family Passionist Retreat Center, 303 Tunxis Road, West Hartford, CT, 6107, United States
In this introductory workshop, you will learn the ancient method and principles of Centering Prayer practice in a quiet, reflective atmosphere. We will cover the history, psychology, and theology of the practice. Two prayer sessions and a question and answer session are included.
This program will be offered both in-person and online via Zoom. Information on how to access the program on Zoom will be sent to participants in advance.

Lenten Day Retreat: Preparing to Accompany Jesus and Mary Magdalene through Holy Week - online or in-person
2023-03-22 08:00 - 17:00 UTC | Multifaith Centre, Victoria, BC, Canada
On this Lenten Day, we will prepare ourselves to enter Holy week from the inside by embodying the postures of Jesus and Mary Magdalene through this timeless passage. Let’s join together in community to learn and practice Wisdom, weaving in the transformative currents of surrender, three centered presence, attention, and recollection. May we open more fully to encounter the transformative life-giving energy of Holy Week.
Join us ONLINE or at the Multifaith Centre in Victoria, B.C. for a contemplative wisdom event led by Heather Ruce, in which we engage this sacred day with our minds, feelings, and body through teaching, reflection and shared wisdom practices.
Retreat Leader: Heather Ruce, M.A., is a wisdom spiritual director companioning individuals and facilitating wisdom practice circles, groups, retreats, and wisdom schools focused on learning and practicing the Christian Wisdom Tradition. She offers teaching and guidance in various wisdom and mindfulness practices including Centering Prayer, Christian meditation, sacred chanting, lectio divina, conscious work and embodiment in service of waking up and putting on the mind of Christ. Find out more at heatherruce.com.

Christian Mystical Poetry and the Contemplative Path - via Zoom
2023-03-18 09:30 - 12:00 UTC | Internet – Online
Led by the Rt. Rev. G. Porter Taylor
If silence is the first language of God, as Thomas Keating writes, mystical poetry is a language by which we mortals may share our experience of God. What can we learn about spiritual practice, growth, and vitality from devout mystics who step beyond the limits of prose into poetry? This workshop offers an opportunity to study and react to a sampling of such poetry from the early Middle Ages into our current century.
Registrants will receive copies of the poems to be discussed in advance of the program, and following the program, a brief bibliography of references.
Program Facilitator: Dick Hall (COMW Coordinating Team member): dh0621@gmail.com
Please see the link below to register.

The Mystical Experience of Everyday Living
2023-03-18 09:00 - 16:30 (America/New_York) | Holy Family Passionist Retreat Center, 303 Tunxis Road, West Hartford, CT, 6107, United States
Contemplative Enrichment Day with Sophfronia Scott, M.F.A.
Mysticism is often viewed as the privileged experience of a few chosen, holy individuals. But German Jesuit, Karl Rahner, wrote about “everyday mysticism,” and Carmelite Sister Ruth Burrows described the mystical life simply as “God touching the depths of our being.” God is closer than we think–to all of us. We’ll explore everyday mysticism as life events filled with God’s unmistakable presence. Sharing Thomas Merton’s experiences and her own, Sophfronia will help attendees notice, identify, and appreciate mystical encounters in their everyday lives.
This program will be offered both in-person and online via Zoom. Information on how to access the program on Zoom will be sent to participants in advance.
This program will include a morning and an afternoon session of Centering Prayer.
Sophfronia Scott, M.F.A., is director of Alma College’s Master’s program in Creative Writing and holds degrees from Harvard and the Vermont College of Fine Arts. A novelist, essayist, and contemplative thinker, her books include the newly-released The Seeker and the Monk: Everyday Conversations with Thomas Merton, as well as All I Need to Get By, Unforgivable Love, Love’s Long Line, and This Child of Faith. Her work has appeared in Time, People and O, The Oprah Magazine.

Deepening Spiritual Practice through Three-Centered Awareness - via Zoom
2023-03-18 09:00 - 12:00 UTC | Internet – Online
Presented by Phileena Nikole
Three-centered awareness is crucial for experiencing Divine Presence; mind, heart, and body coming on-line and cooperating together. But too often, we experience shutdown in one or more of these centers. This limits our capacity for opening to Presence and receiving the integration and wholeness we long for.
Are you curious about the deeper, subtle, life-changing dynamics of contemplative prayer? Do you feel stuck in your practice and desire to progress? Are you wondering how to more regularly bring the gifts of your sitting practice into your daily experiences of life and relationships?
If so, join Phileena for this online contemplative experience. During our time together, Phileena will offer a mix of foundational teaching, guided group contemplation, and three-centered awareness practice. This event will include a session of Centering Prayer
Time listed is Mountain Time (Denver, Colorado)
Click the link below to register.

Deeper Mind, Deeper Heart
2023-03-18 08:30 - 13:30 UTC | Internet – Online
This half day online retreat will explore the similarities and differences between the Buddhist practice of Insight Meditation and the Christian practice of Centering Prayer.
The unifying theme will be the emphasis in both traditions on intention, receptivity and interior silence. The goal will be to explore how these two traditions can be approached as complementary, affording a deepening spiritual journey when practiced together.
The retreat will include:
-Meditation instruction
-Periods of silent meditation in both practices
-Time for questions and discussion
Date and Time: Saturday, March 18th, 8:45am-1:30pm Eastern Standard Time
Please register using the link below.

Peace in Troubled Times Weekend Centering Prayer Retreat - via Zoom
2023-03-17 - 2023-03-19 | Internet – Online
Delve into a deeply spiritual experience growing closer to God on a two-night Centering Prayer Retreat on Zoom. Transform and deepen your relationship with God through Centering Prayer. Renew your mind by absorbing the wisdom of mystics. We will be able to maintain an atmosphere of silence during the retreat in our own homes by accessing our Zoom connection. Our time schedule is from 4 pm Eastern Time (ET) Friday to 12 noon ET Sunday.
Please see the link below to register.

9-day Intensive and Post-Intensive Retreat
2023-03-15 15:00 - 2023-03-23 11:00 UTC | Mercy Center Auburn, 535 Sacramento Street, Auburn, CA, 95603, United States
This retreat offers two tracks simultaneously: Intensive I and Post Intensive. You choose the track that works best for you. For everyone, there will be three sets of two 30 minute periods of Centering Prayer daily. The Intensive I retreat will watch video talks from Fr. Thomas Keating’s Spiritual Journey, focusing on “The Human Condition and the Spiritual Journey”. The Post Intensive retreat has no videos and an additional hour of Centering Prayer each day.
Lectio Divina and a contemplative Eucharist will be offered daily, as well as optional soul-friending with the staff. Throughout the retreat, we will be in silence.
Pre-requisite: A daily practice of Centering Prayer for six months or longer.
The retreat will be facilitated by Susan Turpin, Fr. Bill Sheehan, OMI, and Marty Badgett. Susan, Marty, and Fr. Bill have served within the Contemplative Outreach community for many years and led many Centering Prayer retreats and workshops.
The retreat begins Wednesday, March 15 with registration from 3:00 to 5:00, an opening session at 5:00pm, and dinner at 6:00pm. We end on Thursday, March 23 at 11:00am (lunch optional).
The fee includes all meals and lodging. Rooms are single with a sink in the room; bathrooms are shared.
Please see the link below for more information and to register.

It's All About Love Big Sit - via Zoom
2023-03-11 10:00 - 12:00 (America/New_York) | Internet – Online
Saturday, March 11th – 10:00 – 12:00 Eastern Time
Join us for a meaningful morning exploring the theme “It’s All About Love.” This Big Sit incorporates two 20-minute silent Centering Prayer sessions with Lectio Divina (sacred reading four times), Taizé chant, and a story about Love for our reflection.
See the link below to register.

The Being You Are is the Being I AM
2023-03-04 10:00 - 11:30 (Asia/Karachi) | Internet – Online
We all have stories about who we are based on our history, relationships, the roles we play in life, our personality, race, gender and identity at large.
This is who we think we are.
But beyond this storied self is our True Self — the vast, pure awareness known as the Divine Indwelling, or I AM — God’s Being within us.
Join this 90-minute guided retreat to learn how contemplation and Centering Prayer help us shift from who we think we are to who we truly are.
We’ll explore how centering prayer & contemplation shift us from
-our storied self to our True Self
-our ego to our Essence
-our small mind to our Big Mind
And why we need all of these parts to be our Whole (and holy) Self.
Please register using the link below.

Lenten Silent Saturday
2023-03-04 09:00 - 12:00 UTC | Holy Spirit Retreat Center, 4316 Lanai Road, Encino, CA, 91436, United States
As the season of Lent approaches, this quiet morning, free from daily activities, gives participants time for a communal gathering in silence and Centering Prayer. Along with scheduled prayers and a contemplative walk is unstructured time for private journaling or reflection, and enjoyment of the beautiful grounds of Holy Spirit Retreat Center. The day is open to beginners as well as those experienced in contemplative prayer or silent meditation. All are welcome. A brief introduction to Centering Prayer will be offered for those new to the practice.
Free-will offering
Register online at hsrcenter.com by February 28th
For more information contact Marilyn Nobori at cpcoordinator@hsrcenter.com or (818) 815-4480.

Online Half Day Centering Prayer/Welcoming Prayer mini-retreat via Hawaiʻi (1st Saturday of every month)
2023-03-04 09:00 - 11:30 (Pacific/Honolulu) | Internet – Online
First Saturdays
9-11:30am Hawaiʻi time (UTC-10)
Half day online retreats
First Saturdays online retreats are a special time where we explore our centering prayer practice. We are looking forward to sharing Physio-Divina (Moving) practices, Visio-Divina (visual-Art) practices. Lectio-Divina (Sacred Text) practices in addition to the Centering Prayer and Welcoming prayer practice that are our foundation. Pulelehua, Liedeke, and Margie have stepped into leadership and welcome others if you are called to join us.
Here is a preview of the first part of 2023: January 7th we celebrated Epiphany, February 4 we embraced Love, March 4th we will be entering into the Lenten Season, and April 4 we will be reflecting on Holy week.
Let the Light grow in us,
Visio Divina,
Centering Prayer and Welcoming Prayer
January 7, 2023, 9:11:30 am Hawai’i time (UTC-10)
We hope you will join us from wherever & whenever you are!
Schedule in Hawai’i Time (UTC -10)
8:45am Room open to for early connections
9:00 Welcome and introductions
9:15 Centering prayer
9:45 Welcoming prayer
10:00 Centering prayer
10:20 Break
10:30 Visio Divina
10:45 Reflections
11:00 Body Prayer with Lectio Divina
11:15-11:30 Closing Prayer
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/92185854158?pwd=[REDACTED]
Zoom Meeting ID: 921 8585 4158
Passcode: [REDACTED]
Dates 2023 ( the zoom link is the same for all these dates)
March 4
April 1
May 6
June 3
July 1
August 5
September 2
October 7
November 4
December 2

Silent Saturday with Fr. Bill Sheehan: Finding the Place of the Heart
2023-03-04 08:30 - 14:30 (Asia/Karachi) | Internet – Online
Virtual Silent Saturday with Fr. Bill Sheehan
Finding the Place of the Heart March 4
Contemplative Outreach of Columbus is offering a Silent Saturday. A Silent Saturday provides a few hours that are set aside for Centering Prayer, Lectio Divina, spiritual teaching and reflection. “Come rest awhile with the Lord” in preparation for Holy Week.
Fr Bill will discuss “Finding the Place of the Heart…Encouragement to go Deeper” so that we may listen to the Spirit praying in us, enlivening, enlightening and guiding us. How can we deepen our awareness that we are all mystics? God has pitched a tent on the fertile soil of our hearts.
Fr. Bill is a priest and member of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. He was present at the Lama retreat convened by Fr. Thomas Keating OCSO which founded Contemplative Outreach. He has led countless Centering Prayer workshops and retreats. He is an enthusiastic follower of the Red Sox and Patriots, but he is first all a disciple of Jesus Christ.
Expect that the day will begin at 8:30am and last until 2:30pm. EST
Register by sending an email to Bob Gorman at rbrtgorman@gmail.com and a zoom link will be sent to you a few days in advance.
The event is free. Nondeductible donations to Contemplative Outreach of Columbus to cover costs are welcome. They can be sent to the care of Tom Davis at 844 Franklin Ave, Columbus, OH 43205.

Introduction to Centering Prayer – via Zoom
2023-02-27 18:00 - 20:00 (America/Chicago) | Internet – Online
Two Session Event: February 27th and 28th, 2023 from 6 PM to 8 PM (Central) each day.
The Introduction to Centering Prayer explores the place of contemplative prayer in the Christian tradition. As Jesus said, “But when you pray, go to your private room and, when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in that secret place, and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.” (Matthew 6:6)
The Introduction will guide you through the method of Centering Prayer and let you experience this prayer of silence. Centering Prayer’s purpose is to foster a deeper intimacy with Christ through silence and stillness. The presentation will include the conceptual background of Centering Prayer, psychological processes, and insights into establishing Centering Prayer as a way of life. There will be opportunities for discussion as well as invitations into prayerful presence.
This workshop is divided into four conferences across two days. Conferences 1 & 2 are on February 27 and conferences 3 & 4 on February 28. We plan to continue with 4 Follow-Up sessions at later dates.
To join us online, please email Sandra at: sandyandkali@sbcglobal.net.
Free will donation: $20 suggested. Click in the Event Website at the bottom of the page to donate to Contemplative Outreach Chicago.
Presenters:
Alan Krema is a commissioned Contemplative Outreach presenter of Centering Prayer and Welcoming Prayer. He is a Wisdom student of Cynthia Bourgeault and facilitates groups based on the Wisdom Way of Knowing. He has completed the Living School program at the Center for Action and Contemplation. Alan served from 2016-2022 as chapter coordinator for Contemplative Outreach Chicago and is enrolled in the Shalem Institute program for Group Spiritual Leadership.
Sandra Janowski is a retired Social Worker, Addiction Counselor and Community College Adjunct Instructor. In 2009 she completed a two year program in Spiritual Companionship and was commissioned by the Institute of Spiritual Companionship. Starting in 2016 Sandra became a member of the Chicago Chapter “Circle of Service” and has served as the Coordinator of Facilitators since 2018. In 2021 she was commissioned by Contemplative Outreach as a Centering Prayer Presenter. Currently she hosts a weekly Centering Prayer group on Meditation Chapel and co hosts a group at St Simon’s Episcopal Church. Sandra will be co-leading a seven day Silent Retreat at Sienna Center July 23 to July 29, 2023. She has 3 children, 4 granddaughters and 3 great-granddaughters.
