Being with God in Nature at the Campion Centre of Ignatian Spirituality is a ministry that emerged “out of the desire to invite people to experience the presence that is God in Nature in the Australian landscape, in the hope that with their spiritual encounter with the Spirit there, they would begin an ecological conversion and change they live with the Earth,” according to Peter Saunders, who coordinates the ministry and is one of the ministry’s spiritual directors.
“With the rise of the industrial world over the last couple of centuries, more and more men and women have become urbanised and as result, more disconnected from Nature. We have come to see ourselves as the masters of Nature, with the Earth being an object for us to use to make our lives more comfortable. In this process, we have lost our connection with God’s presence in the Universe.” Thus, this ministry responds to Pope Francis’ invitation in Laudato Si’ “to reunite with God in the Earth, in the whole universe.”
A variety of opportunities are provided for people to spend time in a group, at times in silence, listening to God’s presence in nature by taking people out into the Australian wilderness as well as experiencing nature in our urban settings. Peter, who is also a keen bush walker and has great interest in inviting people into the experience of God’s presence in nature, shared the 2018 full list of retreats and walking prayer days, among others.
Tell Me your Story – Journeying with Thomas Berry (Prayer Day), 17 February
Listening to Turning Earth (Prayer Afternoons), 21 March, 13 June, 19 September, 12 December
Walking with God in Nature (Walking Prayer Day at Mt Macedon), 24 March
Walking with God in Nature (Walking Prayer Day at Cape Schanck), 28 April
Walking with God in Nature (Walking Prayer day at Merri Creek), 5 May
Sacred Ground (Weekend Retreat at Campion Centre), 18 to 20 May
Seasons of Creation – Care for our Common Home (4-week reflective seminar), 30 August, 6 September, 13 September, 20 September
Seasons of Creation (Prayer Day), 1 September
The Wilderness Retreat – Walking with God in The Grampians, 23 to 29 September
Walking with Jesus as on the Road to Emmaus, 14 to 21 October
Walking with God in Nature (Walking Prayer Day at Doongalla Forest), 20 October
A Stillness Weekend in Nature (Weekend Retreat at Pallotti College, Millgrove), 9 to 11 November
Walking the Story of the Universe (Prayer Day), 17 November
Walking with God in Nature (Walking Prayer Day at Botanical Gardens, Cranbourne), 25 November
Walking with God in Nature (Walking Prayer Day at Werribee Gorge), 8 December
For more information, please visit Campion Centre of Ignatian Spirituality: Nature 2018 or email Peter at Peter.Saunders(at)campion.asn.au.
I am Sister Kilinganoa Monika Mo’ale. I am a Sister of Mercy in New Zealand. I am interested in your program and would like to hear more about your program.