Lay Ecclesial Ministry Retreat

Registration for the 2024 Lay Ecclesial Ministry Retreat at Saint John’s University is open!

Register here!

Befriending Our Belovedness

Sometimes it is necessary

to reteach a thing its loveliness,

—Galway Kinnell, Saint Francis and the Sow

It’s easy to forget who we are and who we were created to be. We live in a wounded world that keeps telling us who we should be rather than imploring us to remember who we are.

We are God’s beloved.

Our vision is blurred by all the distorted images and messages coming at us, coupled with the heartbreak we hold within us. We need accompaniment—befriending—to help us regain sight of our belovedness.

During our retreat, we will explore practices for reclaiming who we are and who we are called to become for one another.

The retreat will begin on July 31 at 9:30 a.m. and end August 2 at 3:30 p.m. The cost is $75 and includes room and board.

To register, please sign up at https://www.csbsju.edu/forms/26I2DPZ7WL.

Our Facilitators:

Diane M. Millis, PhD, is an educator, author, and retreat facilitator. She currently serves as a spiritual director, trainer, and supervisor of spiritual directors. Diane shares her life with her husband Mark and their son Ryan. She and Mark live in Minneapolis and are members of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Community. To learn more about her ministry, visit www.dianemillis.com.

Barbara Sutton, DMin, is the director of Bridge Builders for a Thriving Mission and former adjunct pastoral theology faculty and director of field education and ministerial formation at Saint John’s School of Theology. Barbara served as editor for the Seeing the Word project with The Saint John’s Bible. With Victor Klimoski, she co-authored the forthcoming book, Sustaining a Healthy Ministerial Workplace (Paulist Press, 2024).

The retreat is provided through the Victor Klimoski Endowment for Lifelong Learning. 

Please direct any questions to Lauren Murphy (llmurphy@csbsju.edu) or Barbara Sutton (bsutton@csbsju.edu).