Thomas Merton spent a lifetime searching for a physical and spiritual home. While he found some sense of it at Gethsemani, his searching continued even to the abrupt end of his life. Still, Merton had an uncanny ability to sense the Divine in whatever landscape or environment he was in. This related also to his search for the True Self.
Thomas Berry spent his later years trying to lead us home, recognizing that our true home is found not in some spiritual realm, but grounded on this Earth within the larger context of a Universe infused with the Divine.
Where Merton spoke of discovering the True Self, Berry spoke of the “small self” (the individual ‘I’) and the “Great Self” interconnected with the unfolding Universe. Berry, like Merton, believed it is through our Earth community that we discover both our genuine self and the Divine.
Retreatants will:
- explore the writings of Merton and Berry in conversation,
- reflect on what it means to find home and how our own sense of home and place affects our lives,
- consider both the spiritual and physical aspects of home and how they necessarily co-exist,
- engage in conversation, journal prompts, individual and group reflection.