In-Person Retreats

Bible Storytelling & the Anti-Hero: The Search for Identity in the Bible Retreat

“Everybody in the Old Testament is an anti-hero,” asserts the Rev. Judy Fentress-Williams, PhD. Using the tools of narrative and biblical performance criticism, this retreat will consider ways in which certain biblical characters (with all their humanness, flaws, and gifts)—especially the ones in Genesis—function in biblical narrative, then and now. By engaging the literary artistry of the text, we aim to uncover theological meanings and implications for our lives of faith today. Bring your Bibles and your questions! Come for a time of engaging study, as well as opportunities for prayer, nature walks, and meditation on the scenic grounds of Trinity Retreat Center.

Led by the Rev. Dr. Judy Fentress-Williams.

This retreat has limited availability. Please call the retreat center for more information at 917.594.5800.

Trees as Contemplative Teachers Daylong Retreat

A Retreat with Rev. Eileen Mahoney

How might we get more in touch with our own tree-like nature: grounded in the Divine and yet flexible? With trees as our guides—and informed by recent research and the poetry of Mary Oliver, Wendell Berry, and John O’Donohue—we’ll practice silence, mindfulness, walking meditation, and journaling.

Led by Rev. Eileen Mahoney, Interfaith/Interspiritual minister and 2021 graduate of OneSpirit Seminary in New York City. Rev. Eileen draws on her rich Roman Catholic heritage, as well as practices of Buddhism and Sufism. A member of Thich Nhat Hanh’s Order of Engaged Buddhism and an initiate of the Sufi Order Inayatiyya, she is also a certified trauma-informed expressive arts therapist and mindfulness teacher.

For more information or to reserve your spot, email Samantha Trolice or call 917-816-6316.

HeartSong: Building Communities of Practice Retreat

Whether you belong to a small church with limited resources or a larger parish looking to help your community find its collective voice, HeartSong is the workshop that will enable you to deepen your community of practice. We will listen deeply to the spirit within and reclaim the joy of simple chants and global songs. There will be singing, drumming, movement, and group improvisation, all providing you with more tools to build community. Teams welcome!

Led by Ana Hernandez.

Thomas Merton and the Transformative Power of Love Retreat

"To say that I am made in the image of God is to say that love is the reason for my existence, for God is love. Love is my true identity. Selflessness is my true self. Love is my true character: Love is my name. " —Thomas Merton

Thomas Merton lived as a contemplative monk, studying, writing, and praying. He could be impatient, rambunctious, charming, deceptive, and could experience both pain and love. In other words, he was completely human. It was in the vulnerability of that messy humanity where he most felt the grace of God. How do we make that same connection and sense God’s love for us? How do earthly and spiritual love fit together? We will consider these questions through reading, journaling, and exploring images of ourselves in which we look and feel beloved, using Merton’s work as a lens of grace through which we access love for ourselves, for others, and the world.

Led by Sophfronia Scott.

Parables, Spirituals, and Our Own Stories Retreat

Like all beloved stories, old and new, the parables of Jesus reveal deepening layers of complexity and wisdom. This retreat focuses on the parables in the Gospel according to Luke, and how they resonate with our own stories of resistance, faith, and hope. Bring your own sacred stories and consider them in light of God’s desire for our flourishing.

Led by the Rev. Dr. Mark Francisco Bozzuti-Jones.

Rest, Reconnect, and Listen: Discernment for Deeper Living Silent Retreat

This is a silent retreat and is ideal for clergy and lay professionals seeking to deepen their spiritual practice. 

Are you going through a major life change? Looking for a new path? Need time for quiet contemplation? Come spend time in silence — praying, reading, writing, and walking in nature. Using poetry, scripture, prayer, and journaling, participants will engage in intentional reflections on life and vocation. Space is limited to six individuals.

Led by the Rev. Dr. Mark Francisco Bozzuti-Jones.

Wade in the Water: Celebrating Blackness Retreat

Come away by yourselves and rest awhile.—Mark 6: 31

This retreat offers an opportunity for lay and ordained people from across the African diaspora to come together for prayer, rest, walks, and sharing stories. It’s a time of healing and reflection, enjoying nature, gathering for farm-to-table meals, and participating in the retreat center’s rhythm of daily prayer. Come away and rest; leave energized to love and serve, reconnected to who you are and to whose you are.

Led by the Rev. Adriene Thorne.

Ethiopian Art and Spirit: Bridging Centuries and Cultures Retreat

Guardian angels have long been used by the Christian faithful in Ethiopia and other religious traditions. The sacred work of liturgical artist Laura James employs the ancient Ethiopian Christian way of icon-making and expands on the collection of stories traditionally painted in this style. James is pleased to help Black people see themselves in their sacred texts, a place from which racialized people have curiously been excluded in the West. Participants will be guided to paint their own guardian angels.

Led by Laura James.

Jesus, Buddha, and the Shared Ground of Contemplation Retreat

A scholar of world religions, Huston Smith says that Jesus and the Buddha were the only two individuals in history who caused people to ask “What are you?” rather than “Who are you?” On this retreat, we will examine how the religions that have emerged from the teachings of these two spiritual giants can mutually enrich one another. With both conceptual learning and contemplative practice, this retreat will explore how interfaith dialogue moves beyond an exchange of ideas to practice and compassionate action.

Led by Clay Williams.

Holy in the Ordinary: A Day of Contemplative Photography & Practice Daylong Retreat

Experience the quiet joy of contemplative photography as a spiritual practice. Using a camera or cell phone, participate in creative exercises designed to develop an eye for recognizing the holy in the ordinary. No prior experience necessary. Emphasis will be on seeing with “the eyes of the heart,” rather than on developing photography skills.

Led by Dr. Kathy Bozzuti-Jones, formation specialist, spiritual director, interfaith minister, and avid practitioner of contemplative photography at Trinity Retreat Center.

For more information or to reserve your spot, email Samantha Trolice or call 917-816-6316.