Villa St. Joseph Ecology Centre

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Rest, Reflect, Refresh: The Gift Of Retreat

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In the middle of your busy day, imagine for a moment a time of quiet on the banks of the beautiful Madawaska River not far from Ottawa or on the lovely shores of Lake Ontario in Cobourg just a short distance from Toronto. The Sisters of St. Joseph in Canada operate two beautiful retreat centres in these locations.

A retreat offers an opportunity to step away for a short time from the “humdrum” pace of everyday life and constant distractions – not as a “running away” but as a time of rest, inner reflection, care and renewal. Retreats provide silence, solitude, clarity in life and spiritual accompaniment. A welcoming space allows us to listen – to listen to God and/or the sacred in life, to our own hearts in joy and in struggle, to the pulse of nature and the world and to ask, “What really matters?”

Corrien Coker, Administrator of Stillpoint House of Prayer says, “For thirty-seven, years, Stillpoint has welcomed retreatants of all faiths. Stillpoint is located along the picturesque shores of the Madawaska River in Burnstown, Ontario. Here retreatants can embrace the silence designed for spiritual renewal and reflection, receive spiritual direction while nourishing the body with simple, meals and refreshment. Stillpoint has five comfortable rooms with private ensuites, along with two apartments situated in an ancient barn equipped with mini kitchens for additional privacy. The main house has a beautiful river view chapel, restful grounds and a well-stocked library for spiritual minds.” Stillpoint House of Prayer, pictured below.

Set on 10 beautiful acres along the shores of Lake Ontario, Villa St. Joseph Ecology and Spirituality Centre in Cobourg (pictured below) , similarly offers a welcome, inclusive of all faith traditions and those too who are more generally spiritual seekers. Retreat opportunities are varied, some completely silent and others with input to help deepen faith and/or life experience. In addition to retreats, the Villa provides workshops in ecological awareness and practice, evening prayers for special feast days of the church, and spiritual and ecological reading groups among other diverse events. Compassionate, non-judgmental spiritual accompaniment is offered. Rooms are comfortable, there is a peaceful chapel and library, and home-cooked meals have been described by retreatants as “love on a plate”.

We invite you to consider a retreat in one of these lovely centres. Come and know deep hospitality, belonging, peace, rest and renewal in these turbulent times. To view or register for our retreats and/or events visit:

- Sister Mary Rowell, CSJ and Corrien Coker, Stillpoint Administrator

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Faith and Ecology Retreat

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“Discipleship for the 21st Century: Living in the Spirit of Laudato Si’”

The retreat will begin on May 28, 2018 at 7:00 p.m. and end Sunday, June 3, 2018, at 1:00 p.m.

Combining spirituality and ecology, this retreat invites us to explore prayerfully and in a practical way, the integral relationship between faith, care for the Earth and for most vulnerable persons. The experience incorporating the beautiful natural setting at Villa St Joseph in Cobourg ON, silent times for reflection, Scripture, the letter of Pope Francis (Laudato Si’) and writings from a wide range of faith traditions will enable us to see these interwoven elements as essential for our call to discipleship in the world today. The retreat will be facilitated by Sisters from across the Canadian Federation of the Sisters of St. Joseph.

All welcome: For further information or to register please contact Sr. Loretta Manzera at the Federation office p: 519-642-7029 or e: can.csj-fed@bellnet.ca

The cost of the retreat is $425 (a deposit of $50 would be required at time of registration. Space is limited.

Federation of Sisters of St. Joseph of Canada
Federation Ecology Committee

 

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When we take the time to look, the more we see

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First the crocuses peeked through the bare earth, then the daffodils began to toss their yellow manes joyfully in the warm breezes. Spring has been arriving in these last weeks at Villa St. Joseph with a determined yet gentle presence telling the good news of the resurrection upon all the earth. Last week we had Dana, a freelance journalist from NCR’s Global Sisters Report, come to visit. She was eager to hear how this integrated vision of ecology and spirituality had come to be one of the key and vital ministries of a Sister of St. Joseph in the world today. After chatting with her for a time we led her on a tour of our land, first through St. Joseph’s Community Gardens where she chatted with and videoed some of the gardeners. Although the gardens were just coming to life, she was surprised to find how much was already beginning to flourish, little onions, tiny lettuce, and early peas poking their way through the crusts of earth.

As often happens when you are touring someone around on our land here, an unexpected lesson presented itself to me. As we walked over the front lawn leading down to the lake, I spied a few of the tiny wild violets that were blooming in their small but largely unnoticed way. I had missed seeing them this spring, had been too busy. As I crouched down Dana followed with her camera. When I was kneeling admiring the few wonderful, intricate wild violets I had chanced to notice, my gaze looked up a touch and there I saw more and more of the precious violets revealing their tiny but wondrous unfolding of God’s beauty. I said to Dana, “When we take the time to look, the more we see.”

As we had shared with her our project to grow milkweed for the Monarchs, she mentioned to me again how she’d like to see a milkweed growing, she’d never seen one before. Well, really it was too early. But as we walked through the east field, sure enough there were a few milkweed seedlings just coming up. She crouched down in wonder with her camera, then I could see the camera lifting up a little across the field. I followed her gaze and then she turned to me smiling and said, “the more you look the more you see- amazing to see how many more little milkweeds there are!”

That simple lesson has stayed with me all week, there is so much beauty and hope just nearby, if only we look and see.

Linda Gregg, CSJ

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Wing Beats of Hope

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Monarchs ~ our Fragile Prophets

At Villa St. Joseph Retreat & Ecology Centre in Cobourg we would always look forward to the arrival of the Monarchs in late summer and early fall. Their orange and black wings, exquisitely patterned, would be everywhere. If you walked near the Mountain Ash tree by the verandah the branches would suddenly flutter alive in a breathtaking dance of winged beauty and dazzling life.  Each year their numbers have been dwindling and we have had the sense something was deeply out of balance

The recent Mexican postings reveal that the forest hibernation colonies have once again sharply decreased. There remain only nine hibernating colonies. Last year there was a total area of 7.4 acres and this year it dropped to 2.94 acres. This is a 59% decrease in population in one year. In 1997 there was 44 acres of colonies.

Why does it matter?

Monarchs lead the most spectacular and incredible migration journey of any species, traversing thousands of kilometres navigating territory they have never seen. These iconic butterflies are key pollinators for many species besides milkweeds. And as the same habitats for monarchs, are essential for other pollinators, they are fragile prophets we need to heed. Without pollinators our own food sources will come under risk. What can we do?

What Can We Do?

There is a day of Action and Contemplation for the Monarchs and Other Imperilled Pollinators from dusk on Sunday, April 13th (Palm Sunday) to dusk on Monday April 14th (Rachel Carson’s death anniversary). See: http://www.makewayformonarchs.org

Monarch Waystations:   At Villa St. Joseph Ecology Centre we have left significant parts of our fields uncut to preserve the milkweeds for the nurture of monarchs .We are now a designated Monarch Waystation with signage, bearing witness. But anyone can create a designated Waystation, in a backyard, a congregational home, a church. There are lots of other plants that provide sustenance for monarchs. Check out: http://monarchwatch.org

Let us make wing beats of hope this Easter and heed our fragile prophets. Rachel Carson will surely bless us and the monarchs!

Linda Gregg, CSJ

Photo: Margaret Magee