If you have a piano in your house, you probably know when it goes out of tune. Often, this happens gradually, perhaps with a change of weather. To maintain piano health, it’s essential to have pianos tuned regularly, whether or not they are being played regularly. The piano tuner’s job is to bring everything back into tune and stabilize the overall tuning of the piano. This is a complicated process that requires tuning different notes in different ways so that when many notes are played at once, the piano will be “in tune.” As you are reading this message, I will be returning from a three-day retreat at Holy Cross Monastery in upstate New York. For me, a spiritual retreat once a year is like a spiritual retuning.
As I approach the date to begin a retreat, I’m always aware of how much I’m in need of one. My heart, body, and soul feel slightly out of tune. If I look back on the past year since my last retreat, I see much joy and also many challenges. I have navigated periods of intense work, losses of parishioners, farewells to beloved people, and numerous joys. And all of this combines to put my soul in need of a retuning. But here the analogy must cease, because my spiritual state is retuned largely through silence and slowing down.
If you haven’t visited Holy Cross Monastery, I encourage you to do so. It’s located on a beautiful parcel of land on the banks of the Hudson River north of New York City. It is an Episcopal monastery (yes, we have a number of them!) of men in the Benedictine tradition. These monks take vows of celibacy and poverty and agree to live in community together until their deaths. Each day, they chant the rhythm of the Daily Office and celebrate Mass. They eat together, and those of us who are their guests do the same.
When I’m on retreat, I spend time in contemplative prayer, and I read, take naps, and enjoy the beautiful scenery of the peaceful monastery grounds. I unplug, which means that I avoid technology other than checking in with family. I prefer not to talk to others much, and periods of silence are mandated in the monastery, although there is usually conversation at meals. Rooms are simple; they still have no air conditioning. And after a few days of settling into this rhythm, I find that my body and soul have been recalibrated. I have slowed down. I have begun to enter into the first language of God, which is silence.
I don’t need to tell you that our world is too noisy. Smartphones have made it incredibly difficult to find silence, either audibly or mentally. But spiritual retreats are not just for clergy. Many laypersons make regular retreats. For your own spiritual wellbeing, I would encourage you to consider making a spiritual retreat once a year. Obviously, our Rosemont Community Retreat House is based on the ministry of hospitality, and we offer a place for others to find spiritual solace. But you and I will need to find other places, where we can have a change of scenery. Vacations are wonderful and necessary. But spiritual retreats are something different.
If you are looking for an Episcopal/Anglican community within reasonable traveling distance, consider Holy Cross Monastery, the Community of St. John Baptist (Episcopal nuns) in Mendham, New Jersey, or the Society of St. John the Evangelist (Episcopal monks) in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Retune your body and soul by making an annual spiritual retreat part of your own rule of life.
I pray for Good Shepherd on my retreats, and making my own annual retreat enables me to care for myself so that I can care for you and be a faithful priest and pastor. I’m looking forward to being with you this Sunday for Mass and for our farewell sendoff to Matthew Glandorf.
Yours in Christ,
Father Kyle