A Framework for Reconnection An Eco-spiritual Retreat Template for Stewardship and Reconnection with God, self, others, and all of Creation Created for use by faith communities by Diana Brushey for Faith & the Common Good & Greening Sacred Spaces with support from the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa Table of Contents Introduction ............................................................................................ 4 Template overview ............................................................................... 6 Facilitator’s Guide ................................................................................... 7 Shaping Your Vision............................................................................... 7 Sharing your vision/Sample vision ............................................................ 8 Planning and Preparation ............................................................. 9 Managing Expectations and Covenanting .................................................... 9 Vulnerable Populations .......................................................................... 10 Territorial Acknowledgement, Opening Ceremony ......................................... 11 Building Your Toolkit ..................................................................... 11 Timekeeping, Transitions, Scheduling, Evening, Outdoor, Practical Tools .............. 12 Travel and Stewardship .......................................................................... 14 The Journey and the Journal; Engaging In Advance/En Route ........... 15 Seasonal prompts ................................................................................. 15 Fellow travelers on God’s earth ................................................................ 17 Stewardship and the circumstances of the journey; Migration ......................... 19 Spirit/Human/Earth community prompts .................................................... 21 Greeting and Greening ................................................................. 27 Sit spots ........................................................................................... 28 Spirit Studies session 1—Evening Cosmology/Creation ...................... 30 Scripture study ..................................................................................... 31 Universe Story .................................................................................... 32 Outdoor/stargazing dark skies activity 1 ..................................................... 33 2 Table of Contents (Session 1 continued) Outdoor/migration dark skies activity 2 ...................................................... 36 Genesis guided meditation ..................................................................... 37 Spirit Studies Session 2: Day Garden/Food and Free Will ................... 39 Scripture study creation/exile .................................................................. 40 Scripture studies: four soils, sower/seeds, and the growing seed ...................... 42 Ecological learning points ....................................................................... 42 Activity suggestions .............................................................................. 44 Food for thought/seeds of hope ............................................................... 46 Spirit Studies Session 3: Day Building the Ark/Biodiversity ............... 47 Scripture study the ark and the deluge ....................................................... 49 Ecological discussion.............................................................................. 51 The heart of the matter: difficult questions/deep discussion ............................ 53 Excursion—hike ideas ............................................................................ 54 Guided forest meditation ideas ................................................................ 55 Suggested themes for guest speakers/discussion ......................................... 55 Activity suggestions .............................................................................. 56 Evening reflections, spirit connection ......................................................... 57 Evening Star: poetry & parables/ending on the positive ............................... 58 The Journey Home: embarking, weaving the web ............................. 59 Activities: web of life and support ............................................................. 59 Reconnection prompts and Journey Journal ................................................. 61 Return and reconnect ............................................................................ 62 Afterword................................................................................................ 63 3 Introduction This is a retreat template for Stewardship and Reconnection: with God, self, others, and all of Creation. It is designed for use by ecumenical faith communities, and was piloted by an Anglican- led group on an eco-spiritual retreat to Costa Rica in 2016. Several modules were tested by a United Church group on a local retreat near Ottawa. This template is for groups wishing to explore Christian connections to ecology. It is suitable for groups of approximately 8 - 20 participants attending multi-day reflective spiritual retreats with elements of ecological immersion. You do not need to travel far nor must you be in a remote location! You need only to have access to greenspace and trails, and some planned excursions to natural areas. You are encouraged to select outings appropriate to the terrain of your area and the abilities of your participants. The template activities will assist you in setting up and reflecting on outings. It assumes a minimum of one group outing per day plus opportunities for individual greenspace enjoyment each morning and afternoon/evening. The template has modular sections. You can choose how to use it: in weekend (2 night/3 day) retreats, in a series of one-day or evening meetings, as daily sessions of a longer (week or 10-day) retreat, with one theme as a starting point for a month-long or Lenten learning focus Feedback from pilot groups suggest selecting one module for a weekend retreat, two or three modules for an extended week-long retreat, or focusing on one theme for a month-long series (eg. Lenten learning) focus. This Framework for Reconnection includes facilitator’s suggestions and activity outlines for reconnecting participants with their inner faith, with community (ecological/social/spiritual), and with the earth. Through your planned excursions and our suggested activities and reflections, participants will experience a mix of structured and unstructured time. This can include guided discussions, group activities on eco-spirituality, and a framework for individual spiritual reflection and meditation. The goal is to return with a renewed sense of connection and spiritual call for stewardship of all Creation. Caveat: any external links/urls were current as of the time of publication, but readers should confirm link safety and suitability before use. Faith & the Common Good and the author assume no responsibility for external link content. Links do not imply endorsement of ideas, products, or organizations. * Throughout this work the word Creation has been capitalized as an expression of respect for the sacredness of God’s world. © 2015, 2016 Diana Brushey, for Faith & the Common Good and the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa. Author reserves right to use this materials and to publish excerpts. 4 Background Information This template was inspired by and developed for a pilot project envisioned and experienced by an eco-spiritual retreat group who traveled to Costa Rica in 2016, led by Rev. Jason Pollick of the Anglican Parish of Glengarry. The intergenerational group included Anglican and United Church clergy and laypersons. Rev. Pollick had the vision for traveling to and learning from Costa Rican environmental initiatives and faith communities, to facilitate faith-based, outdoor explorations in an eco-spiritual retreat at a remote eco-centre in the rich biodiverse setting of the Osa Peninsula. The group met in advance to learn about their destination, prior to travelling to San Jose and then on to the Osa Peninsula. Travel plans were facilitated by a tour guide and retreat host who planned excursions such as garden and food production sustainability tours, kayak tours, and hikes through diverse habitats. Each day was planned with a spiritual reflection and introduction of an ecological and theological concept to keep in mind prior to going out in nature. Comments printed in purple are specific to the Costa Rican group, included here as a sample for customizing one’s retreat or for anyone traveling to the same or similar region. Costa Rica was selected by the group for several reasons: the incredible biodiversity and rich natural habitat, featuring rainforest, bird sanctuaries, animal refuges, migratory paths, and fresh- and salt-water excursion options. The region also has many examples of sustainability success stories with sanctuaries, conservation programs, and organic options, as well as cautionary tales from invasive species, monoculture, and pressures of globalization upon delicate ecosystems. Despite the rainforest locale for this pilot group, the template is designed for use in any area at home or abroad with access to greenspace - no long-distance travel is required. The goal for the curriculum template was to provide jumping-off points for discussion and reflection throughout