With the world and millions of people in crisis, is there anything to be learnt from the way Jesus dealt with his own personal struggles in the Garden of Gethsemane to help us get through it?
A six-week online retreat starting on 25 September and conducted by the Benedictine nuns at Jamberoo Abbey, will explore the journey made by Jesus in one of the most crucial times in his life and how we can mirror that in our own lives.
Titled Christ and Crisis and led by Sr Antonia Curtis osb, the retreat will gently explore questions including how we define crisis, how we perceive it in our own personal lives and if there is meaning to be found in crisis?
Sr Antonia said she hopes participants will gain some insights at a spiritual level when dealing with times of suffering in their own lives.
“People really are doing it tough and looking for ways of dealing with it,” she said.
“Throughout the six-week retreat, we will look at the conscious and unconscious steps Jesus took at the deadliest time in his life in the Garden of Gethsemane and then try to follow what he did to get to a deeper spiritual level in our own lives.
“We will ponder the mystery of Jesus Christ’s last crisis, looking at it in relation to the crisis in our own lives.
“If understanding crisis, and how to journey through it is important for you, then this retreat could be of help …”
“With the help of the Holy Spirit we will seek to find new ways of perception, ways that perhaps turn our present concept of reality upside down. And we will consider practical steps for moving forward.
“If understanding crisis, and how to journey through it is important for you, then this retreat could be of help as it’s practically oriented but with a spiritual core that journeys into the depths of the mystery of our human existence with all its exigencies.
“If anybody knows someone going through their own personal crisis I would ask that you share this opportunity with them.”
The retreat will feature six sessions every Sunday as well as suggestions for prayers and reflections.
Each Friday there will also be a session of “respite care” which will take the form of a Holy reading conducted by Sr. Maureen Therese for you to listen to and enjoy.
The retreat costs $250 however concessions will be made for those experiencing financial difficulties.
For more details or to enrol go to the retreat section on the Jamberoo Abbey website https://www.jamberooabbey.org.au/retreats/online-retreats/