Sacred Seasons
Community Holiday Retreats at the Christine Center
We are heartened and excited to offer a special invitation to join our community holiday gatherings, held throughout the year:
50% off the entire cost per person through 2025.
Holidays often bring a yearning to connect and celebrate together. Join us at the Christine Center for our community holiday retreats where every aspect of your being is welcome. Whether you bring joy, sorrow, energy, or tranquility, this is a sanctuary where all are embraced. We laugh, cry, pray, sing, and share meals in a setting that fosters deep connection and genuine celebration. We meditate together, celebrate together, have cozy gatherings around the fire, traditional meals, community connection, and time for solitude.
Six times a year, we host contemplative retreats that provide a peaceful and reflective atmosphere, allowing you to unwind and engage deeply in whatever way is most meaningful to you—spend time with others or alone with the woodland sanctuary.
Each retreat begins with a focus or reflection that sets the tone for your contemplative journey. Whether it’s a reading, a meditation, or an intention-setting exercise, this thematic container gently guides you into the sacred space of retreat.
We encourage you to co-create these moments with us!
Tell us what makes these times special for you or bring a practice to share with the community.
Every retreat Includes
Opening and Closing Circle
Begin and conclude each retreat with a sacred circle, setting intentions and reflecting on the journey together.
Daily Meditation
Engage in guided meditation sessions each day to deepen inner stillness and spiritual connection.
Holiday Meal
Gather for a traditional holiday meal, celebrating the season with community and gratitude.
Community Sharing
Participate in small group circles where participants can share their insights, reflections, and experiences in a supportive environment.
Celebration
Join in the joy of holiday celebrations, honoring the spirit of the season with community activities and festive moments.
Contemplation
Enjoy quiet times for personal reflection, contemplation, and connection with your spiritual path.
Puzzles in the Pines
Relax with mindful puzzle-building activities in the Pines room and join others in a community puzzle or creativity project.
Community Gatherings
Connect with others in informal gatherings, fostering friendship, conversation, and shared experiences.
Open Time
Engage in rest, explore nature, and use a meditation space for personal practices.
2024 – 2025 Retreats
Memorial Day Reflection and Remembrance: Tending Our Homeland Soul
May 23 – 26, 2025
The work of remembering, grieving and celebrating our deceased veteran is national soul-work of the deepest sort. Our weekend is also a time to bless any others gone before us, that are asking for our heart’s attention.
Franciscan Spirit-Medicine To Honor July 4th!
Circle up with S. Gabe Uhlein and the Christine Center Community for a weekend of INTER-DEPENDENCE conversation and celebration!
This year for July 4th, with celebration, contemplation, great food, and just plain fun, let’s lean into the Franciscan heritage of the Christine Center. Just like the world in which St. Francis’ first dreamed a new way of living, great global transformation is afoot. An “Inter-dependence” Canticle was his answer! 2025 is its 800th Anniversary. It is strong spirit-medicine for embracing difficult times. It holds laughter, love, tears, and even a wolf-howl or two! Learn More
Thanksgiving: Gathering in Gratitude
November 27 – December 1, 2025
Join us for our annual Gratitude Gathering, a special retreat to celebrate the spirit of thankfulness. Through guided gratitude practices, meditations, and reflections, we will come together as a community to honor the abundance in our lives. This retreat offers time for quiet reflection, heart-opening conversations, and space to deepen into the beauty of gratitude in both the small and large moments of life.
Christmas Pilgrimage: Life as Spiritual Journey
December 24 – 27, 2025
We invite you to join us for our annual Christmas retreat, a sacred pilgrimage within, exploring life as a spiritual journey. Through the lens of the Christmas story, we will reflect on themes of birth, light, and sacred transformation. Daily reflections and contemplative practices will guide you in honoring both the inner and outer aspects of your spiritual path. This retreat offers space to embrace the season with depth, meaning, and connection.
Registration Coming Soon
New Year’s Reflection and Release
December 27, 2025 – January 1, 2026
Join us for our annual year-end retreat, a time to reflect, release, and create space for what’s to come. Through contemplation, ritual, and intentional practices, we will honor the lessons of the past year and welcome new beginnings. This retreat offers opportunities for deep reflection, letting go of what no longer serves, and setting meaningful intentions for the year ahead.
Registration Coming Soon
Easter: Inner Experience of Renewal
April 2-5, 2026
Experience Easter as a time of inner renewal and transformation. Through guided meditations and reflective practices, we will explore the journey of rebirth, symbolized by the Easter story. This retreat invites participants to connect with their own experience of renewal, deepening their spiritual path through the exploration of personal growth, resurrection, and new life.