Quiet Retreat Theme - 2010

"Believing is Seeing: 
Take a Closer Look"

We’ve all heard the phrase, “seeing is believing,” but Jesus asks us to believe so that we might see. Christ turned the world up-side-down with His teachings and the example of His life. When we look through the eyes of faith at our neighbor, our world and ourselves we are asked to see what God sees. We are asked to widen our perspective and deepen our understanding of how great is God’s love.

During this year’s Quiet Retreat we will examine life through the lenses of faith. We’ll appraise the view that we have right now. Who and what have influenced our perspectives of the world? Are there spiritual optical illusions that I must overcome in order to see the real face of God? Using the microscope of the Spirit we will explore our own inner world. Perhaps we will be surprised by the light that lives in our shadows or by the joy that comes from discovering that God is not just “out there” but within us.

Our world is an explosion of color, shapes and sizes of people and experiences so we’ll put our eye up to God’s kaleidoscope to see how God is manifested in every event and person. Holding people and spaces of our lives up to the light will perhaps
offer us a glimpse of hidden beauty.

In our Reconciliation service we’ll try to discover what interferes with our seeing clearly. Cataracts of pride, selfish short-sightedness or broken lenses of love might be uncovered. In this beautiful sacrament of liberation we will be offered the opportunity to see with new eyes.

Finally with God’s telescope we’ll expand our vision beyond our personal world. We will begin to see the big picture of God’s enduring love of the universe and how we unfold this love to our neighbor.

- Sr. Janis Yaekel, ASC
Pastoral Team, King's House