Our June directed retreat consists of six days of spiritual direction. Retreatants will meet with a spiritual director daily (or less if you desire) to reflect on God’s Presence and movement in your life as revealed in prayer. You may also review the events and relationships in your life and the response to God that is being made. The spiritual director may make suggestions (prayer forms, Scripture, reading materials, etc…) to support and deepen your awareness of and response to God. You will have this week of quiet and peace for personal reflection at our Center and around our beautiful grounds. Mass will also be offered daily throughout your stay.
This is a silent retreat. Check-in begins at 4pm, the retreat will begin after dinner. Silence will begin at that time also. The retreat will end before lunch on Saturday.
Spiritual Directors for this retreat will be Joy Aker, Sr. Bernie Claps, Fr. Phil Cover and Rev. Mary Ka Kanahan. If you have a preference, please indicate it within the ‘special needs’ section of the registration form.
Joy Aker, MA, is a spiritual director and Labyrinth facilitator as well as a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist. Her focus in on helping people to develop a holistic spirituality which looks to wholeness in body, mind and spirit. She also has a great interest in assisting others as they deepen their own relationship with God. Joy has a Master’s Degree in Spirituality and Parish Nursing from Sr. Mary’s Seminary and University in Baltimore.
Sister Bernadette Claps, a Sister of Bon Secours, provides spiritual direction and spiritual companionship at the Bon Secours Retreat and Conference Center. She holds graduate certificates in Spiritual Direction, Spirituality and Aging. She has done graduate studies in theology and received a Master of Social Work from New York University.
Fr. Phillip Cover is an experienced retreat leader, spiritual director, pilgrimage leader and author. He previously served as the Assistant Executive Director in the Department of Religious Education for the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) in Washington, DC. He also served as an adjunct staff member for the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation. He is co-author of Journey with Purpose, Through Exile into the Heart of God and The Inner Work of Lent.
Rev. Mary Ka Kanahan is a lifelong United Methodist and Pastor at Saint John United Church, a multicultural, union congregation of the UMC/PC(USA) Community in Columbia, MD. Her first career in public parks and recreation informs her wholistic understanding of what it means to live an abundant life. She completed her M.Div. degree from Wesley Theological Seminary in May 2009. Mary Ka has served as the Pastor for Spiritual Formation at the historic Asbury UMC in NW Washington, DC; and the Pastor for Community Life at Glen Mar Church in Ellicott City, MD. She was a member of the inaugural class of the Bon Secours Spiritual Direction Institute, and is a trained coach with the International Coaching Federation. Mary Ka offers spiritual direction to individuals in her congregation and combines her coaching skills while leading groups. She worked for several years as an organizer and director of spiritual retreats for women with the group known now as Lumunos.