Art And Faith And Other Lenten Invitations

This year, our theme for Lent at Rolling Ridge is embodied spiritual practices. Through our Taize Lenten Retreat last week, we entered into this season embracing music and silence as invitations to draw us into that space of prayer and reflection on the journey with Jesus to Easter.  Upcoming retreats in our Lenten series include art, yoga, and tai chi to help us discover new embodied practices that help us connect the physical with the spiritual in our relationship with God.  We hope that you will join us.

Last year, Art and Faith: Let's Make Ukrainian Eggs sold out.  This year, we still have a few more spaces for Eliza Goodell's popular retreat which is scheduled for next Wednesday, March 6th.  Beginners are welcome and no prior artistic talent is needed as Eliza will patiently teach you this ancient art form of painting Ukrainian Easter Eggs which ties together faith, spirituality, and unexpected beauty.  Register today as space is limited.

Whether you are a regular practitioner, novice, or total newbie, we invite you to experience the beauty of yoga as an embodied spiritual practice.  Our God in Yoga Day Apart Retreat approaches yoga through a Christian lens and offers a way to alleviate the stress that is so much a part of today’s world.  Wanda Winnicki will help you find flexibility, stability and the self confidence that yoga brings, offering a place of calm and rest in God’s loving arms. Join us on Wednesday, March 13th for a day to physically move in the spiritual graces of God in yoga.

The gentle and slow movements of Tai Chi come from a simple, cyclical rhythm of “loosen-empty-push.”  We invite you to enter this rhythm as Rev. Dr. Hyuk Seonwoo will guide us during Holy Week as we learn to loosen (Lent), empty (Good Friday), and push (Easter) through the Tai Chi movements.  No previous experience of Tai Chi is required as we gather on Wednesday, March 27th and prepare to enter the Paschal Mystery and the climactic last three days of Jesus' life. The focus won’t be learning the formal Tai Chi choreography, but on indwelling more fully in God’s self-giving love, of suffering, death, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

And be sure to join us at Rolling Ridge as we again reflect on the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus with our Good Friday Sunset Service and Easter Sunrise Service at our Point of Pines outdoor chapel.  We will meet in the courtyard at 6:30 pm on March 29th and 6:15 am on March 31st to remember, to celebrate, to "loosen-empty-push" in community.