May 2015 - Jesuit Retreat House
Jesuit Retreat House 4800 Fahrnwald Road Oshkosh, WI 54902 “For The Greater Glory of God” Reflections Newsletter Non-Profit Org U.S. Postage Paid Oshkosh, WI Permit No. 272 Volume2529• •No. No.2 5• •Summer May 2015 Volume 2011 4800 Fahrnwald Road Oshkosh, WI 54902 920.231.9060 800.962.7330 (WI only) www.JesuitRetreatHouse.org ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED e Jesuit Retreat House in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, fosters spiritual enrichment rooted in the Gospels, the Catholic tradition and the spirituality of St. Ignatius of Loyola. Our ministry is dedicated to creating a rich variety of retreat experiences and providing an atmosphere of quiet, peace and prayer in which men and women of all faiths are encouraged to discover and respond generously to God’s personal invitation to wholeness and holiness. www.JesuitRetreatHouse.org Fr. McCaslin Memorial – Exceeded Our Goal e special memorial tribute to Fr. Richard (Dick) McCaslin, S.J. to raise an additional $25,000 for the new building project has been a true blessing. rough the generosity of hundreds of retreatants and their families, the Fr. Dick memorial fundraising effort has secured $26,840 or 107.36% of goal. If you would still like to make a gi to remember Fr. McCaslin who died this past year, there is still time. During the Grand Opening/Dedication/Farewell Celebration on Saturday, July 11th, the final memorial check will be presented to the retreat house in remembrance of Fr. Dick and to celebrate his 81st birthday which is July 16th. Fr. Dick’s memorial funds will enhance the 2nd floor sun porch in the new Manresa to allow it to be used earlier and later into each season. For more information, contact the Development Office at either (920) 230-6992 or email at ebenedict@jesuitretreathouse.org or deaconji@gmail.com. “For The Greater Glory of God” WALKING ON WATER As I prepare to begin another sacred journey with the Lord, I would like to share with you a passage from Scripture that always offers me great comfort, reassurance, courage, insight, hope and companionship when I am unsure of what lies ahead. It is Matthew Chapter 14, “e Calming of the Storm. “ ere are two parts to this passage. e first part is oen missed, but has become an essential part of my prayer and the foundation for my relationship with Jesus. It states “Jesus went up to the mountain top by himself to pray.” Over the past forty some years I have oen gone to the hilltop to sit beside the Lord in prayer. On some occasions I am the one doing all the talking while at other times I am the one who needs to listen. Many times we are together in the silence feeling the gentle breeze coming off the lake or listening as the waves crash into the shoreline. e second part of the passage speaks about the apostles out on the lake being tossed about by the strong winds. Even though they are fishermen they are filled with fear for they know that the boat could sink. It isn’t until they see Jesus walking towards them on the water that they know they have nothing to fear. For the past eight years I have been blessed to stand and pray with the Lord and all of you on the shoreline of Lake Winnebago. Truly this is “Holy Ground.” ere have been times of great joy and times of great sorrow. ere have been times of doubt and fear and times of great hope and trust. Last April during discernment for the Leadership Team of my community I received two grace-filled blessings. e first blessing happened when I asked Father Jack what was the grace I needed to pray for if I was going to leave my name in to be considered for leadership? He simply said to me, “Pray for the grace of holy indifference.” What a powerful and challenging grace to pray for. As you know it has changed the course of my life. e second blessing has happened slowly throughout these past eight years. Being here with all of you every weekend on retreat, along with the summer directed retreats, has allowed me to know in the depth of my being the power, and gi, of silence and solitude with the Lord. What I shared with my sisters in the final part of that discernment process was that I had been gone for eight years and that they no longer knew me. I had changed because I had come to know my God. Sometimes we need to step out of the boat and keep our eyes focused on Jesus so we can walk on the water together. At other times we need to invite Jesus into the boat with us and allow him to calm our storms. Know you will always be with me in the silence and the solitude. Blessings, Sr. Kerry Larkin, OSM Taking Care of Our Debt Gratitude abounds, as does God’s grace, as we look ahead to the coming years with our new facilities. Looking at the beautiful buildings and soon-to-be landscaped grounds, and hearing the warm response to the new facilities from the nearly 700 retreatants who have been here through April, it’s been a real boost for those involved in the planning, and carrying out of the vision proposed several years ago so that the Jesuit Retreat House on Lake Winnebago can meet retreatant needs far into the future. e $4.2 million raised from nearly 900 donors gives retreatants and staff a sense of pride as we near the July 11 dedication and an even greater sense of humility. For we all realize that today’s fruit not only is the result of our labor but the fruit of more than 50 years of selfless, faithful, and pioneering dedication on the part of retreatants and staff who le us this legacy. What remains to be paid – a loan of $2.5 million – will demand selflessness, faithfulness, and pioneering dedication as well. We already made our first monthly debt payment, $18,417.24, and we need to be ready to do the same the 17th of each month as long as needed. However, that is not the ideal scenario. If we get rid of this debt within two years, and not the projected five to seven years, we will save from $200,000 to $300,000 in interest that is otherwise lost to our retreat ministry. If you can help pay down this debt sooner rather than later please use the enclosed envelope. Keep us in your prayers, and we seek the intercession of Saint Joseph the Worker whose feast we celebrate this month, so that the Jesuit Retreat House may bring greater glory to God. Gratefully, Employee Spotlight Nov. 19-22 Retreat Director: Trish Neuman – Registrar to the Retreatants Trish Neuman, who grew up in Hortonville, WI, and now lives in Neenah WI, joined the Jesuit Retreat House in August of 2010. Her prior work background was as a house manager with Casa Clare, a women’s residential treatment facility and as a HR representative, records manager, and team leader with Step Industries in Neenah. Trish is currently JRH’s Administrative Assistant and Registrar to the Retreatants. A friend directed Trish to JRH. “When I drove through the gates and walked through the door, I was instantly at ease,” commented Neuman. “e people are open and amazing, both the staff and the retreatants. Retreatants come to the retreat house hurting and tired. However, aer a while you begin to see them relax and let go. I am truly blessed to work here.” Trish has three children, and six grandchildren ages 2 to 22. ey are her joy. Grand Opening / Dedication / Farewell Our retreats, which are based on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola, conclude with an apostolic blessing for retreatants at the final Mass. e blessing springs from the official approval of the Spiritual Exercises given by Pope Paul III in 1548, and is the Church’s means of encouraging and confirming retreats that are based on the Spiritual Exercises. Pope Benedict XVI in 2008 lauded such retreats as “a strong experience of God, sustained by listening to His Word, understood and welcomed in one’s personal life under the action of the Holy Spirit, which in a climate of silence, prayer and by means of a spiritual guide, offer the capacity of discernment in order to purify the heart, convert one’s life, follow Christ, and fulfill one’s own mission in the Church and in the world.” Retreatants, who have found that to be true over the years, have taken it upon themselves to invite others who are seeking the same. When Fr. Dick McCaslin, S.J., was director he oen joked that a retreatant celebrating a milestone of 10, 15, 20, or more retreats had yet to show “any discernable change.” Everyone, including the retreatant, would laugh because all were aware of what a difference these retreats do make in ways that are seen and unseen. Underscoring the transformative effect that can take place during a retreat based on the Spiritual Exercises, Pope Francis last year told a group of Italian retreatants, “He [or she] who lives the Exercises in a genuine way, experiences the attraction, the fascination of God, and returns renewed, transfigured to ordinary life, to the ministry, to daily relations, bearing within him [or her] the perfume of Christ.” e Retreat Director for the Women's 12-Step Retreat (#124) on November 19-22, 2015 will be Sr. Lorna Hays, IBVM. e Retreat Director had not been appointed by the time our 2015 Retreat Schedule was published in October 2014. Sr. Lorna is a religious of the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary and currently the Director, Adult Addictions Services at Pillars in Hickory Hills, IL. Her recovery date is October 20, 1973. Sr. Lorna has been directing retreats for recovering persons over the last 25 years in the Midwest area. RSVP by June 1, 2015 Fr. Chris Manahan, S.J. Director A Fitting End Sr. Lorna Hays, IBVM Manresa Residential Wing & LaStorta Conference Center Saturday, July 11, 2015 Check the appropriate response below: ____ Yes, we will attend. ____ Total number attending ____ No, we are unable to attend Join us as we celebrate a New Beginning! We’ll also wish Fr. John Schwantes, SJ and Sr. Kerry Larkin, OSM a fond farewell! Name(s): _________________________________ Saturday, July 11, 2015 • JRH Sacred Ground Name(s): _________________________________ 10:00 am – Guests Arrival & Self-Guided Tours 11:30 am – Celebration of the Eucharist 12:45 pm – Welcome/Introductions/Speakers 1:30 pm – Lunch Buffet 3:00 pm – Self-Guided Tours 4:00 pm – Departure Contact Info: Phone:________________________ *Please RSVP by Monday, June 1, 2015 for the Grand Opening / Dedication / Farewell by either mailing us the cut-out Response Card or by calling (920) 230-6992 or by emailing ebenedict@jesuitretreathouse.org. Email: ___________________________________ Please mail this form to: Jesuit Retreat House 4800 Fahrnwald Road Oshkosh, WI 54902
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