Thursday, June 18, 2009

The Living Waters



(article about Christine Center summer retreat for 6/27/09 “Community Life” -- Marshfield)



The Living Waters

By Kris Rued-Clark

Symbolism runs deep at the Christine Center. The 14 guest hermitages carry names such as Earth, Sun, and Freedom. The recently completed Siloe (pronounced sil’-o-way) is named after the pond in Jerusalem where Jesus healed a man who had been blind since birth. Many people on a spiritual journey feel as if their eyes have been opened for the first time in their lives. Located across the road from the Center’s well, Siloe contains the laundry and guest showers, in addition to two meeting rooms.
Founded in 1980, the Christine Center is a unique sanctuary for spiritual deepening, leading to individual and global transformation. With respect for all faith traditions, the Center bears the Franciscan hallmarks of simplicity, welcoming hospitality, and love for nature.
Cecelia Corcoran, or Cecy as she prefers to be called, shows guests around the Christine Center. She strides vigorously as if there are not enough hours in the day. A Franciscan nun, Cecy now lives in “Peace” at the Christine Center. She directs the day-to-day operations and also leads tours that have taken her from South America to Eastern Europe.
Describing the 1st Annual Interfaith Summer Retreat, July 10th through the 12th, Cecy says, “Various faith traditions are coming together for a weekend of very deep sharing, learning, and meditating together.” Jean Feraca, author and 25-year veteran of public talk radio, will facilitate dialogue between the participants and the three featured presenters: Venerable Thubten Chodron, a Buddhist nun; Joseph Kilikevice, O.P., Founder and Director of Shem Center for Interfaith Spirituality in Chicago; and Physicist Chuck Pfeifer.
Cecy explains, “On Friday night they will lay out for retreatants their own stories, telling where they encountered healing through spiritual deepening and why this important work affects global transformation.” She explains that as we find inner peace, we can have a significant impact on the world in which we live. “The barriers and walls that surround us cause personal suffering and illness and maladies that beset our time. With inner peace, we can release the energy for others to be healed. We can be a reconciling presence in the world.”
Because the Interfaith Retreat is a fund-raiser for the Christine Center, it is more expensive than many of the weekend retreats. “To afford this quality of group, we have to charge more, but we don’t want to leave people out. We now have three large hermitages for shared space. We welcome people to explore sharing a larger cabin with groups of friends, or if they are open to share with others.” Another option is to bring a tent. “We have plenty of room for tenting, and that really reduces the prices,” adds Cecy. Three of the hermitages have kitchenettes. Bringing some of your own meals can also help with costs.
Visitors to the Christine Center will find many improvements this summer. The addition of Siloe has created more space for bathing for campers and for those in the rustic hermitages. Cecy: “It’s so much nicer! People are delighted since we opened Siloe in early April. It’s been used a lot.” The two rooms give additional meeting space for small groups. “Siloe is in a secluded area, a very quiet and beautifully wooded area of the grounds.”
Much other work has also been completed. “We rehabbed the hermitages and added an additional log cabin, Guadalupe.” Gardens have been expanded significantly. Cecy: “We have a work study person who has been in the garden business for 13 years. He is gardening this summer, and other volunteers work with him. He has really taken hold of the gardens in a remarkable way. He’s been a real help. We’ve tripled our vegetable garden. We also have plans for long-range production to raise more of our food.”
Cecy adds that volunteers are welcome all summer to help with gardening and assist in improving the trails. “We do have openings July 10th through the 12th for volunteers. The first priority is food preparation. If they could come Friday evening they could possibly attend the first session and may be able to take in some sessions on Saturday.”
Summing up the 1st Annual Interfaith Summer Retreat, July 10th through the 12th, Cecy adds, “It is such an incredible offering, to have this inspiring panel right here in central Wisconsin. They have really lived the life and seen the incredible power you can access when you are open to contact with the Divine through prayer and meditation.”
The Christine Center is also beginning a second three-year certificate program, “Spiritual Deepening for Global Transformation.” This intensive program meets four times per year and provides participants with a unique opportunity to cultivate a deep inner life. “This is for people who are at that point in their life when they are beginning to get in touch with a spiritual hunger. Maybe they’ve been here for other programs and they’ve seen the dynamic community here and been nourished by what we have.”
Emphasizing that the three-year program is a commitment, Cecy adds, “It requires an application and recommendations – one can’t take it lightly.” She explains that many people make a commitment to meditation, to healthy living, to being more compassionate in their responses to other people. “We all make New Year’s resolutions, and most of them last about six weeks. With this program, people journey together and discover the power in doing the work as a group, sharing each other’s support.”
Located just south of Willard, the Christine Center brings together spiritual seekers from all faiths to quench their thirst, to drink deeply from the living well of prayer and meditation. For more information, go to www.christinecenter.org, or call 715-267-7507 or toll-free, 866-333-7507.

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Greening the Soul



"The soul is a breath of living spirit that
with excellent sensitivity
permeates the entire body to give it life.
Just so,
The breath of the air makes the earth fruitful.
Thus the air is the soul of the earth,
Moistening it; greening it."

--Hildegard von Bingen

We are in our greening time here at the Christine Center. Spring is lush, verdant, alive, soothing and inspiring. New turtles have arrived and are mixing with their older family in the pond, along with pollywogs, frogs and ducks. The Oriolles and Red-winged blackbirds are singing the morning into the sweet song of day. The deer are nibbling at all things green! The rabbits are hopping about. The owls at night fill the air with the echoes of thought, unspoken during day. Oh, and don't forget the ticks! We've got plenty of those! Nonetheless, we are blessed this time of year, to be filled with the soul of the earth, to be ensconced in a green canopy of delicate, strong, beautiful green life. Oak, Willow, Birch and Pine, iris, lily of the valley, cattail and wild ramps, these and many other greening things grace the Christine Center with their abundance. The soul is greening too, and how! Morning and afternoon and evening walks beneath and within the green does a strange a wonderful thing!