In this four-day teaching retreat we will explore a rich and remarkably little known treasury of teaching and practices in the Christian contemplative tradition“It is only with the heart that one sees rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye,” says Antoine de Saint- Exupery in his beloved classic The Little Prince. His wisdom seems more timely than ever as our world slowly emerges from a year of pandemic winnowing and we muster the courage and clarity to rebuild. What is truly essential? What must be let go of or radically refashioned? How do we steer a balanced course between the head and the emotions? In this four day teaching retreat we will explore a rich and remarkably little known treasury of teaching and practices in the Christian contemplative tradition developed to nurture this deeper heart seeing, traditionally known as “vigilance” or “attention of the heart.”
Sheltered in the sturdy rhythms of the Benedictine monastic tradition as it is lived here at Bonnevaux, we will explore how each of the daily components—meditation, silence, conscious practical work, and liturgical prayer, augmented in this retreat by specific exercises to deepen embodiment and expand attention—work to together to open the “eye” of the heart.