Care For Creation: A Conversation with Dr. Lisa Dahill
For three decades, Prairiewoods Franciscan Spirituality Center has embraced a deep commitment to caring for creation—integrating eco-spirituality into every aspect of our community and mission. A spirit of reverence for Earth infuses all we do—from sustainably designed facilities and organic gardens to programming that reflects our interconnectedness with all life, the Source of All Being, […]
Write So Far: Giving Voice to Your Spiritual Journey
Note: This is a past program held at Prairiewoods in August 2025. For a complete list of our current program and retreat offerings, click here. To paraphrase author and teacher Natalie Goldberg: In knowing who we are and writing from that knowledge, we have a chance to bring the reader deeper into our own heart. […]
The Path of Transformation: A Weekend of Change and Renewal
Note: This is a past program held at Prairiewoods. For a complete list of our current program and retreat offerings, click here. As summer moves toward its close, the world shifts. The light begins to change, the gardens, once green and blooming, begin their surrender and offer their final fruits. The buzz of high summer […]
Dear Younger Me
Note: This is a past program held at Prairiewoods. For a complete list of our current program and retreat offerings, click here. Dear Younger Me by Mercy Me Dear younger me Where do I start If I could tell you everything that I have learned so far Then you could be One step ahead Of […]
Swimming
The other day I was walking near the woods and the birds were so vocal, all together, that it reminded me of the holidays back home when I was growing up. And the poem Swimming appeared. I love this season as the murmurations start back into full swing. This is something I was able to see growing up. […]
Carrying the Torch: Reflections on The Awakened Brain Event
Note: This is a past program held at Prairiewoods. For a complete list of our current program and retreat offerings, click here. In early May, we gathered in Cedar Rapids for Spirituality in the 21st Century: The Awakened Brain—a powerful event centered on the vital connection between spirituality and mental health. Together, we explored what […]
Nature, Science & Resilience, Oh My!
Note: This is a past program held at Prairiewoods. For a complete list of our current program and retreat offerings, click here. Interconnectedness is one of the underpinnings of ecological spirituality. For many of us, it is something we innately know or feel. For others, the concept remains abstract. Dr. Lisa Miller—author and researcher from […]
What Science Reveals
Strengthening our spirituality is more than something that feels good or is “nice to do.” According to research by Dr. Lisa Miller from Columbia University, cultivating our spirituality is imperative for our thriving, wellbeing and wholeness. As we care for our physical bodies through the food we eat, the movement we participate in and the rest […]
Combatting Diseases of Despair
Many of us have had to say goodbye to someone far too soon as the weight of mental illness has become too heavy. Or we’ve sat on the side of a hospital bed, gutted and in shock that a loved one has attempted to take their life. The epidemic of depression, anxiety, addiction and other […]
Stewards of Divine Creation: God’s Guests
We are all guests of God’s hospitality. The world in which we live is pure gift,” proclaims theologian Monika Hellwig in her famous work Guests of God: Stewards of Divine Creation. Our very existence, human nature, consciousness, intelligence, creativity … all are gift. Companionship of other humans, plant and animal life, water, air, minerals, light, […]