Dear Fathers and clergy, as well as brothers and sisters in Christ, 

We joyfully invite you to the 4th annual one-day monastic retreat, hosted this year by our dear friends at St. George Cathedral located at 917 N. Wood Street in Chicago!

We are blessed to welcome back Hegumen Gabriel and Priestmonk Father Macarius from Holy Cross Monastery in West Virginia as our guest speakers.

We started this retreat to share the profound impact of our conversations with the monks of Holy Cross. As St. John Climacus wrote, "Angels are a light for monks, and the monastic life is a light for all men." We deeply appreciate their willingness to bring the approachable wisdom of the Holy Fathers to the world, and we are blessed to share this opportunity with you.

At past events, many of you expressed a desire to dive deeper into the Jesus Prayer. This November the fathers will say some words on the Jesus Prayer in particular, and frequent prayer in general. At the same time, we often hear questions about the Holy Fathers. Who exactly are the Holy Fathers? What is a good place to start? and How can we, as laypeople, weave the wisdom of their writings into our everyday spiritual lives? We are combining both sought-after subjects into one retreat. It is a perfect pairing, for it is impossible either to practice spiritual prayer without the guidance of the Holy Fathers, or to put on the mind of the Holy Fathers unless doing so in a spirit of humble prayer. In the end, they are both about intentionally living our faith.

As always, this retreat is intended as an opportunity for local Orthodox Christians who want to deepen their faith, break bread together, and connect with other brothers and sisters in Christ in edifying one-day fellowship. It is also for our friends and loved ones who might be interested in Holy Orthodoxy and her spiritual treasures.

Please help us by sharing the news of this event with your community and friends!

This is a FREE event. Donations are welcome! Your donations will cover Orthodoxy Today expenses, and proceeds will be put towards the beautification of the new monastery church in Holy Cross Monastery in West Virginia, as well as for the construction of new monastic buildings in their growing community.

We look forward to seeing you in a DIFFERENT LOCATION from our past events! 
Be sure to save this address to your calendar:

St. George Orthodox Cathedral
917 N Wood St, Chicago, IL 60622

RSVP by October 31st to ensure your seat