For 35 years the associates of the Community of the Holy Spirit have been offering an annual silent retreat to the diocese for themselves and anyone who would like to come. This year’s retreat will be April 11 - 13 at Immaculate Heart Retreat Center in Spokane. Sr. Leslie, an Episcopal sister from the CHS mother house in New York City, will lead the weekend. Entitled “Returning Home,” the meditations will focus on Luke 9:58-59. The Rev. Margaret Fisher of St. John’s Cathedral (formerly rector of Grace Church, Ellensburg) will be the chaplain. The basic cost for the entire weekend is $140.

Sr. Leslie is one of the sisters who works with associates. She is also a member of the Community’s governing council. She was a college chaplain at Columbia University for several years. This is her second visit to Spokane.

What does a silent retreat offer? A lot to the people who return year after year. Ask them and you will hear responses such as: recharging one’s batteries, having a spiritual tune up, or stepping outside the daily routine to get a deeper perspective. A reader board outside a retreat center once read “Retreat in order to advance.”

Patterns for silent retreats vary. The CHS weekend begins with an optional (and speaking) dinner at 6:15. At 7:15 participants gather for introductions. Then silence commences for the first presentation followed by a short evening service like Compline, after which retreatants go quietly to their rooms and begin to settle in to the silence.

Saturday includes meals eaten in silence, several meditations presented by the retreat conductor, and services including a Eucharist. There is ample time for reflection, prayer, journaling, reading, wandering around the spacious grounds, and rest. Participants may also consult with the sister or the priest if they choose.

Sunday concludes the retreat with a final meditation, a Eucharist which ends the silence and a joyful noonday meal after which participants return home.

Many people comment at the depth of community which forms around the shared silence, worship, and listening. Both men and women attend. Participants need not be associates of CHS, i.e., lay and ordained people committed to an ongoing mutual prayer relationship with the sisters and a corresponding rule of life.

The Immaculate Heart Retreat Center offers simply furnished private rooms with private sinks and toilets for individuals. Baths and showers are down the halls. Most dietary needs can be accommodated upon advance request.

To reserve a place or to request more information, contact Carolyn Terry, 509-448-3037 or cfkterry@earthlink.net, or write to CHS Associates, 2012 E. 64th Ave. Spokane, WA 99223-8414.