Soul of a Pilgrim Online Retreat in Community

with Christine & John Valters Paintner, and Jamie Marich

Facilitated by Melissa Layer and Amber Andreasen

April 13-June 7, 2020

Join us for an 8-week companion retreat* to Christine Valters Paintner's book The Soul of a Pilgrim: Eight Practices for the Journey Within. Christine takes you on a new kind of pilgrimage: an inner journey to discover the heart of God. Eight stages of the pilgrim's way–from hearing the call to coming home–are accompanied by scripture stories of great biblical journeys and  creative practices of prayer, writing, and photography.

In The Soul of a Pilgrim, Christine identifies eight experiences of the pilgrim's way and shows how to follow these movements to make an intentional, transformative journey to your inner "wild edges." Each phase of the exploration requires a distinct practice such as packing lightly, being uncomfortable, or embracing the unknown. She shows how to cultivate attentiveness to the divine through deep listening, patience, and opening oneself to the gifts that arise in the midst of discomfort.

Each of the eight chapters offers reflections on the themes, a scripture story, an invitation to the practice of lectio divina, and creative exploration through photography, midrash writing, and meditative movement (with Jamie Marich, founder of Dancing Mindfulness).

In the weekly live webinar sessions with Christine, she will lead you through a guided meditation not included in the book, give an opportunity to share responses, and answer questions you might have about the process. Contemplative photography invites you into a deepened way of seeing the world through your lens and receiving the gift of images. Midrash is an ancient practice which originates in Jewish tradition of creative engagement with scripture stories and is similar to Ignatian prayer of the imagination.

There are also weekly videos where Jamie Marich leads you through an exploratory movement practice inspired by the scripture. Using the spirit of dancing mindfulness, or the notion that all movement is an invitation to practice meditation, you will be given a guidance of structure to get you started and then an invitation into more freedom with your movement. Through this process, you can tap into a deeper sense of connection to each scripture and notice what unfolds.

We also have a vibrant community forum lovingly tended by trained spiritual directors where you can share your own noticings, discoveries, and creative process.

The Soul of a Pilgrim was named one of the best spiritual books of 2015 by Spirituality and Practice!

All materials are hosted on a private teaching platform with weekly live webinars and other audio guidance from Christine Valters Paintner to deepen into the materials along with a special guided meditation to begin each week that is not included in the book. All mp3 files can be downloaded and all videos can be streamed.

*Please note: You will need to purchase a copy of The Soul of a Pilgrim to use for this retreat. It is currently on sale in e-book format for 99 cents (on US Amazon) until April 15th.

 

Program Fee: Please discern what you can afford

In an effort to keep this program accessible to everyone, we ask you to prayerfully discern what you can afford. There are several options below.

If you are unable to afford any payment due to loss of job or disability, please get in touch with us.

Please note: You will also need to purchase a copy of The Soul of a Pilgrim. The e-book version is currently on sale on the U.S. Amazon site for 99 cents until April 15th.

ONLINE COURSE TERMS AND CONDITIONS

There are no refunds for online purchases.

You have forever access to the program materials.

For technical issues please contact university@ruzuku.com.

*Those who have registered previously for the Soul of a Pilgrim online retreat in either community or self-study format, and those in the community version of our Jubilee retreat, are welcome to choose the reduced program fee.

Christine Valters Paintner, PhD, REACE is a writer, spiritual director, teacher, and retreat & pilgrimage guide. She is the author of thirteen books on contemplative practice and creative expression including her forthcoming book this spring 2020, Earth, Our Original Monastery: Cultivating Wonder and Gratitude through Intimacy with Nature and her second collection of poems in fall 2020, The Wisdom of Wild Grace. Christine lives in Galway, Ireland with her husband John where together they steward Abbey of the Arts, a global monastery, and lead pilgrimages to the wild edges.

 

John Valters Paintner, MTS is the online prior for Abbey of the Arts, where he assists his wife Christine in ministering to this global community both online and through in-person programs. John was a youth minister and pastoral associate for four years before becoming a high school religion teacher for twelve years, prior to moving to Ireland. He has a Masters of Theological Studies from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley. His love for the Bible, particularly the Hebrew Scriptures, emerged when he taught the "Old Testament" at an all-boys high school. John is also a lover of the art of story-telling and has written dozens of short stories, one-act plays, and short films in a variety of genres.

Jamie Marich, Ph.D., LPCC-S, LICDC-CS, REAT, RMT
(Dr.) Jamie travels internationally speaking on topics related to EMDR, trauma, addiction, expressive arts, LGBTQ issues, spirituality and mindfulness while maintaining a private practice in her home base of Warren, OH. Jamie is also the developer of the Dancing Mindfulness expressive arts practice. Jamie is the author of EMDR Made Simple: 4 Approaches for Using EMDR with Every Client (2011), Trauma and the Twelve Steps: A Complete Guide for Recovery Enhancement (2012), and Trauma Made Simple: Competencies in Assessment, Treatment, and Working with Survivors. Her newest book, Dancing Mindfulness: A Creative Path to Healing and Transformation released in the Fall of 2015 (with foreword by Christine Valters Paintner). She is currently working on her latest book (in collaboration with Dr. Stephen Dansiger) EMDR Therapy and Mindfulness for Trauma Focused Care. Visit Jamie's website here>>

Forum Facilitators and Tenders of the Sanctuary

Amber Andreasen is a contemplative, ever desiring to deepen into and dance the rhythms of monk and artist.  She has trained as a spiritual director, receiving her M.A. in Spiritual Formation and Soul Care from The Institute of Spiritual Formation at Talbot School of Theology. Wherever she finds herself, she desires to nurture a compassionate space where others can be listened and loved into fuller being by the Beloved.  She is continually awed by the body as sacred storyholder and storyteller, and her heart beats loudly for the weaving together of creativity and spirituality in the discovering of what it means to live an embodied, fully human life in all its mystery and wonder.

Melissa Layer, MA honors our unfolding journeys through life's challenges and transitions as compelling invitations for creative, integrative meaning-making in BodyMindSpirit.  Her sacred calling and training as a psychospiritual therapist, hospice grief counselor and interfaith spiritual director have taught her about the potency of the "thin places" in thresholds and dark nights of the soul.  Often utilizing expressive arts for curious exploration of the Great Mystery, Melissa offers her compassionate presence and deep listening to individuals and groups. Like the honeybee for which she is named, she claims her role as "a bee of the invisible… passionately plundering the honey of the visible in order to gather it in the great golden hive of the invisible" (Rilke).  The evergreen forests of Puget Sound in the Pacific Northwest are her sacred sanctuary. Melissa is available for spiritual direction by Skype, phone, email and also in-person for those living near Olympia, WA. You can visit Melissa's website here>>