| Register Now for the 2008 Contemplative Outreach Annual Conference |
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Contemplative Outreach News The Wedding Feast
at Cana ||
From the President
|| Contemplative Life Program In the NewsAnnual Conference || 12 Step Outreach || The Cuba Retreat Annual Conference/
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The Annual Conference this year will be held at The
Crossings near Austin, Texas beginning Wednesday afternoon,
September 28th and concluding Sunday, October 2nd, after lunch. Mark your
calendars as you won’t want to miss this exciting conference, which will be
held in a very beautiful, prayerful and healthy surrounding. The Theme, “Celebrating
the Year of Practice” based on the materials from the Contemplative Life
Program (CLP), will include a special retreat from Wednesday evening until noon
Friday. Friday afternoon through Saturday evening will be a time to share with
one another our experiences of participation in the CLP, having been connected
through prayer and study of the designated practices during the year.
On Sunday morning the Annual Business Meeting of the voting membership and a closing Liturgy, with Centering Prayer, Lectio Divina and Homily by Fr. Thomas, will conclude the Conference. |
This year, the schedule will be more “contemplative” in pace and in content. You will have time to explore the grounds and partake in the offerings of this beautiful retreat/wellness center.
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Complete information regarding schedule, cost, registration information and directions to The Crossings is available on our website www.contemplativeoutreach.org . If you do not have Internet access please contact the International Office by emailing office@coutreach.org and ask for the Annual Conference information. Timothy Koock is the Board Chair for this conference. Feel free to contact Tim or me if you have any questions. We are very excited about the new “design” for this year’s Conference and we know you will enjoy time for Centering Prayer, renewing friendships, meeting new friends on the Journey, and integrating the CLP. You will have an opportunity to provide input for the continuation of this wonderful program. We are looking forward to seeing you in Texas in the fall. Marie Howard, Special Events Coordinator. |
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| Marie Howard | MRHfamlife@aol.com | “This year, the schedule will be more ‘contemplative’ in pace and in content. You will have time to explore the grounds and partake in the offerings of this beautiful Retreat/Wellness Center.” |
| Timothy Koock | woolsacks@beecreek.net |
Annual Conference || 12 Step Outreach || The Cuba Retreat
| In January a Formation Retreat and Workshop was held at St. Benedict's Retreat Center, in Snowmass, to refine the Introductory Workshop for "Centering Prayer as an 11th Step Practice". Fifteen women and men from all over the US and UK came and shared their commitment to using Centering Prayer as a tool in their recovery and how it could be offered to the 12 Step communities. All were Commissioned Presenters with an established prayer practice in addition to long-term adherence to their respective 12 Step Programs. If you are a member of a 12 Step Group or are part of a faith community that would like to host an Introductory Workshop or a Weekend Retreat for 12 Step groups, there is a dedicated team from a variety of fellowships that are willing to bring this precious contemplative practice to those you love. For information, or to set up a workshop or retreat, please contact : Beth Berkeley,bethsanders2000@yahoo.com or Jay Stinnett jaays@earthlink.net or call 310-874-2341(PST) |
Invitation
to give |
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“Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.” Step 11 of the 12 Step Programs |
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Upcoming "Centering Prayer as an 11th Step Practice" Workshops |
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One-day Workshops |
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| Boerne, TX | August 6 | contact: Myrna T. | Contemplative Outreach Center | (210) 710 5602 |
| Atlanta, GA | August 13 | contact: Roberta O. | St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church | (404) 299-2670 |
| New Westminister, BC | September 10 | contact: Kathleen S. | Holy Trinity Cathedral | (604) 254-9969 |
| Encino, CA | October 29 | contact: Sally F. | Holy Spirit Retreat Center | (310) 390-9722 |
Weekend Workshop/Retreat |
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| Omaha, NE | September 23-25 | contact: Deb Fortina | St. Benedict Center | (402) 280-4774 |
| Eureka, MO | November 4-6 | contact: Jim M. | Marionist Retreat Center | (314) 725-7944 |
| Sinsinwa,WI | November 18-20 | contact: Jenny A. | Sinsinwa Mound Center | (319) 266 8225 |
Annual Conference || 12 Step Outreach || The Cuba Retreat
"Welcome and God bless you." Those were the first words I heard from an immigration officer at the airport in Havana. The message was simple yet stunning, especially when one brings to mind Cuba's long standing history of attempting to suppress religious expression. I was returning to my native land after an absence of 44 years, and I was coming back to share my Centering Prayer practice. At that initial moment I sensed that both God and Cuba were extending their welcome.
Together with Adalberto and Margarita Henriquez, I had been invited by Father Gilberto Walker, Contemplative Outreach Coordinator in Cuba, to give a Centering Prayer retreat from January 13 to the 16th . Frank Maruri, of Contemplative Outreach in Miami Beach, traveled with us and participated as a retreatant. The Havana CP group has a membership of approximately 35 people. They have been meeting weekly—despite transportation problems and other hardships—for a year and a half.
The retreat was held in Madruga, a rural town southeast of Havana. The house, run by the Sisters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, offers simple accommodations and excellent food. The lack of running water on a few occasions gave rise to creative washing solutions. Cubans, of course, take all this in their stride. The pampered U.S. team members felt blessed by the privilege of sharing, in a very small way, their everyday experience. Frank expressed it best at the end when he said: "I felt better here than in a five-star hotel."
Adal gave a presentation on the human condition and I on the welcoming prayer. We also scheduled three and a half hours of Centering Prayer per day and a daily contemplative mass. A rather heavy program for such a young group. To our delight, many of the participants had already "discovered," through the help of the Spirit, practices akin to the welcoming prayer, as they tried to cope with the difficulties of their daily lives. In the evaluations, most retreatants named silence and the extended periods of Centering Prayer as most helpful. They also requested a monthly contemplative mass.
Father Gilberto is blessed to have such a group and the group is blessed to have Father Gilberto, a true servant-leader if there ever was one. One of the many challenges that the Cuban church faces is a sense of being isolated from the rest of the world. Participants in the retreat celebrated joyfully being part of a spiritual network such as Contemplative Outreach. They spoke in familiar terms of Father Thomas and of Carmen Sanchez, whom they never met in this life but whose presence they sensed throughout the retreat. Adal said it best when he wrote in an email: "We came to give a retreat and we were the ones receiving it."
Afterwards, Frank, another friend and I spent a total of 17 days visiting various communities throughout the island. In most places we found a simple, basic, committed faith; a faith unencumbered by the trappings of prosperity, bureaucracy, and privilege; a faith that is growing and vital. At one point, Bishop Carlos Baladron, of the Guantanamo-Baracoa diocese, asked us: "Please tell others that despite everything we are alive!" Indeed they are ... and we will all be enriched if we listen to their quiet testimony of faith.
For Information in Spanish |
Para
Informes en Español ...Resources Translated in Spanish |
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| San Francisco, CA | Cristóbal Padrón | 415-759-0943 | ||
| San Diego, CA | Cherie Herrera | 858-453-8662 | cherieherrera@SoftHome.net | |
| San Diego, CA | Cristina Romero | 858-457-4120 | cgr@san.rr.com | |
| San Dimas | Acelia Ledesma | 909-592-2428 | ||
| Merritt Island, FL | Adalberto Henriquez | 321-453-8040 | adahenri@msn.com | |
| Altamonte Springs | Ilse Reissner | 407-767-8271 | ireissner@juno.com | |
| Miami | Ricardo Lopez | 305-223-7329 | ricardol@camilo.com | |
| Miami | Isabel Castellanos | 305-673-6206 | castella@fiu.edu | |
| Atlanta, GA | Teri Gagnier | 404-321-7385 | t-t@mindspring.com | |
| Portland, OR | Hilda Smith | 503-639-6664 | ||
| San Antonio, TX | Homer A. Bain | 210-492-1306 | hbain@satx.rr.com | |
| Milwaukee, WI | Fr. D. Shields | 414-224-7565 | dshieldssj@hotmail.com | |
Annual Conference || 12 Step Outreach || The Cuba Retreat
The Wedding Feast
at Cana ||From the President
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