parresia

Very cool. I've done several retreats at various monastaries and have found it quite helpful. Are you just visiting or is there some kind of directed retreat they have available?

Joel, Actually we'd just be visiting along with some others from St. Paul's Greek Orthodox Church. St. Paul's makes approximately two pilgrimages a year, there next one planned for sometime in October.

We just thought it would be a tremendous experience, especially during Lent.

Out of curiousity, what monasteries have you visited?

Joel, That's St. Paul's Greek Orthodox Church.

Well, besides hanging out at the brothers' residence on campus here at La Salle, I've been several places.

I've visited Holy Trinity (Russian Orthodox) Monastery in Jordanville, NY, mostly just to browse their bookstore, talk to a priest there, and attend vespers.

I've also been on a group retreat at the Franciscan Retreat House about an hour north of Philadelphia, which is run (of course) by Franciscans.

A lot of folks around here go to Daylesford Abbey, which is run by the Norbertines and is nice for retreats whether silent or directed, individual or group. I've been there for a private, directed retreat. The liturgy of the hours there is great.

While I've never been there, a good friend of mine (and former student) is now a postulant with the Maronite Monks at Our Lady of Grace monastery in Nova Scotia. I'd love to go visit him sometime, though it's a bit of a distance.

By the way, has anyone warned you about Orthodox monasteries, in terms of manners and customs? I don't know what the one you are going to is like, but from my one visit and what I've heard, Orthodox monastics have a very developed (one might even say "strict") sense of propriety. Hopefully you're going with others who have been there before. Order is comforting, I think, but possibly a bit off-putting at first.

The pastoral assistant is heading up the trip and knows all the ins and outs of maintaining proper conduct; he already clued us in on some of the dos and don'ts.... if we go, that is. It doesn't look very promising as of now, though. We can't seem to find cheap airfare since we're doing this on such short notice.

There's always October, though....

Pray.

to long to tell except by phone ,i prayed 10 mo,s to 12 st,s of impossiable i want to believe ,jesus said all you ask the father in my name my precious patron is the miracolous medal my daughter,s is st. theresa the little flower but all to the father in jesus name i,m trying to reach heaven and knock on the door tof god i,m trying to find godi am stubborn i need the miracle to a hopeless case all honor to god in jesus name amen