St. Pauls Almonte

Submitted by Peter Puxley
A moist mid-November weekend at Galilee –
a marvelous refuge in the midst of tall pines, ancient maples and sheltering oak trees, high on a bank overlooking the Ottawa River – was the perfect setting for a retreat about communing with God.

Twenty-four of us from St.Paul’s and neighbouring churches gathered on a Friday evening and overnight into Saturday afternoon to discuss and practice three aspects of worship – talking with God (prayer), listening to God (openness), and experiencing God (meditation). The agenda was well thought out in advance by an able team led by Jennifer Barr, and the success of the event stemmed from that and the leadership of Mary Ellen, Wendy, Deane, Elizabeth with Diane’s musical inspiration. The final key to success was the ideas and enthusiasm of all who took part, ready to share experiences and learn from each other. There was no shortage of material to work with and, to borrow an expression from the broadcast business, no dead air!

Our first evening’s session on prayer, led by Wendy, Deane and Mary Ellen, set the stage, opening the door to the reality of so many different approaches to speaking with God as to make all of us feel at home. We talked of the importance of making time for prayer, and the role of adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication. Our small group discussions were inclusive and lively. The candlelight service at the end of the evening provided an opportunity to reflect and act on our new insights.

On Saturday morning, Mary Ellen introduced us to a number of techniques for opening ourselves to God, dating back to the practices of Christian ascetics, Loyola (St. Ignatius), and others. From Ignatius’ advice on how to overcome our resistance to recognizing the presence of God in our daily lives, we moved to the Desert Fathers’ and Mothers’ practice of lectio divina, “reading scripture with a prayerful purpose” – reading, meditating on the words, reflection and contemplation, allowing God to work within us. In preparation for the afternoon’s session on meditation, we practiced silent breathing – “breathing in all that is of God/Christ/Spirit, and breathing out all that stands in the way of God/Christ/Spirit.” We wrapped up the morning outdoors, in a silent walking meditation, some of us in the prayer labyrinth in the garden, others on the paths among the trees and down along the river.

After a characteristically generous Galilee lunch, Elizabeth introduced us to the deep meditation that has come to mean so much to her and others, and that struck many of us as an exciting new way to communicate with God. The experience of our 20-minute meditation had enthusiasts talking of the possibility of beginning a regular practice of group meditation at St. Paul’s.

Mary Ellen led a service of Holy Communion to bring the retreat to a close – a lovely way to give thanks to God for working so evidently among us.