Upcoming Events
St. Matthew's, Spartanburg, to host Advent quiet day, December 8
On
Saturday, December 8, St. Matthew's in Spartanburg.will
host an Advent quiet day, from 11 a.m. till 4 p.m. The day will
offer readings on the hour and a noon-day prayer service. For
more information, please contact Melinda McDonald, 864.948.9406,
melindamcdonald07@gmail.com.
St. James Center Epiphany event coming up, January 4-6
At the St. James Center for Spiritual Development at St. James,
Greenville, the January 4-6, 2008, Epiphany event will feature
the Rev. Howard Storm, author of My Descent into Death: A
Second Chance at Life, who will speak about his
near-death experience and how it affected him.
The event will begin on Friday night, January 4, at 7:00 in the
church.
Refreshments will be served after this part of the program. On
Saturday, we will come together again at 9:30 for a day of
reflection during which Mr. Storm will continue his story, and participants will be able to gather in small groups to reflect
on what he has shared. Lunch will be provided, and we will
end at 3:00. On Sunday, January 6, Mr. Storm will be the guest preacher at all
three services at St. James.
Cost of this weekend event is $45. Please make
your checks payable to St. James Episcopal Church. Registration
for the Epiphany event can be completed by
calling the church office at 864.244.6358 or by e-mailing
retreats@stjamesgreenville.org.
Questions? Please contact Janet Atkins at St. James, 864-244-6358.
"Arts at the Advent" conference coming, January 11-12
"Arts at the Advent," with a focus on exploring Christian spirituality through music and art, will be held January 11-12, 2008, at Church of the Advent, Spartanburg. This groundbreaking conference will explore how an engagement in and with the arts is a means of encountering the “Holy in the ordinary.” Keynoted by former Upper South Carolinian the Rev. Michael Sullivan, now rector of St. John's Episcopal Church, Lynchburg, Virginia., the conference will feature the 40-member Davidson College Orchestra and Jazz Ensemble, and offer eight workshops led by local artists to include past and present Advent clergy.
For more information, contact the Rev. Roy Cole at Advent, 864.585.2268.
A registration form, including a complete conference schedule, is online: Arts at the Advent Registration. Cost for the entire conference, $60… Saturday only, $40 …Friday night only, $20.
Coming up at Augusta's Convent of St Helena
December 21-January 1—Christmastide:
Join us for a peaceful respite during all or part of the
holidays.
New Year's Eve Celebration—"This Fragile Earth, Our Island Home"
The convent's 5th annual celebration!
Monday, December 31,
10:30 p.m. with refreshments following.
Lessons, music, meditations, dance, stories, and new surprises!
January 11-13—Father/Son Weekend,
with Mark Shaver, Ernest Mensah, and Sr Rosina, OSH.
In January, the sisters are doing a new thing and inviting
fathers of all
ages and their sons of all ages for a guys' get-away. Our
"brother"
facilitators reside in Atlanta, with Ernest Mensah originally
from Ghana, West
Africa. They will be assisted by Mark Shaver's sons, 17-year-old Dan
and
25-year-old Stephen, an Episcopal priest. This interesting group
of men
will share perspectives on father-son relationships from the
points of view
of two cultures and will explore with you ways to create and
strengthen the
bond between a father and son, regardless of their ages. Open to
fathers and
sons, close male friends, and men attending solo.
$160 full weekend program, meals, lodging; $80 commuters, unless
specified.
Pre-registration and deposit required; some scholarship funding
available.
For more
information, contact the Episcopal Convent of St Helena by phone at
706.798.5201, e-mail
augustaconvent@comcast.net. Online at
www.osh.org.
Download the convent schedule through May 2008 here.
"Discovering ‘Thin Places’ During Lent" at Snail's Pace, January 25-26, 2008
An
experiential retreat entitled "Discovering ‘Thin Places’ During
Lent" will be hosted by The Snail’s Pace in Saluda, North
Carolina, January 25-26, 2008.
In Celtic Christian spirituality a “thin place” is when and where the veil between the sacred and the secular is so thin, it often disappears! This overnight retreat will get you “up and running” with the resources of Celtic spirituality for connecting with the Living Christ in daily living.
The format will include brief presentations followed by practice of various pathways for enabling your faith and discipleship to come alive. One key pathway will be lectio divina with scriptures for the upcoming Lenten season. Likewise, in the Celtic perspective we will practice lectio divina with nature as a way of meeting the redemptive Christ through meditation and contemplation with a bird, bush, squirrel, tree and/or landscape that may “seek you out” as an occasion for being in a “thin place”.
The retreat leader, Fred Macon, has made multiple trips and pilgrimages to Christian Celtic areas and with spirituality leaders in Ireland, Wales and Scotland. He is on the Intentional Growth Center’s Adjunct Faculty in Spiritual Direction and Spirituality at Lake Junaluska and has been through the two year Upper Room Academy for Spiritual Formation and the two year Shalem Guidance Program. His retreat leadership has taken him to South Africa, the Netherlands and Maine. In addition to Celtic spirituality, he is especially involved in centering prayer and meeting God in the present moment.
The cost is $95 per person, meals included. This retreat will be limited, so make your reservation by sending $25 to The Snail’s Pace, P. O. Box 593, Saluda, NC 29773. Visit The Snail's Pace at www.thesnailspace.org.
Benedictine Experience offered February 7-10, 2008, in Jacksonville
The Friends of St. Benedict have announced an upcoming
Benedictine Experience, February 7-10, 2008, at the Marywood Center
for Spirituality and Ministry in Jacksonville Florida. This retreat
is co-sponsored by the Friends and The Cathedral Center for
Spirituality of St. John's Cathedral, Jacksonville, Florida.
A Benedictine Experience is a time spent in community designed for
those who wish to nurture and strengthen their daily lives through
prayer and spiritual companionship. Participants follow the
Benedictine practice in an ordered day of prayer, study, work and
holy leisure. For this Experience, Sister Carolyn Gorny-Kopkowski,
OSB, will lead reflections on Sister Joan Chittister's classic book
on following the Rule, Wisdom Distilled from the Daily.
Download the flyer for more information.