Spiritual Formation Retreat at Montreat

Inhabiting Eden

Spiritual Formation Retreat – April 24-27, 2014

From the Montreat website:

Some think the Bible concerns only humans and God. Yet from the first creation story to the end of Revelation, Scripture imagines a larger universe inhabited by other creatures besides ourselves. Genesis 1 shows God’s pleasure with the earth and all its species long before humans appear. Genesis 2 pictures humans made from the ground in order to serve and preserve God’s garden. The speeches of God in Job imagine nature as a wild place, barely understandable to people, yet adored by God. As we come to terms with our ecological limits, we can reignite the imagination to see more clearly our place in creation’s intricate web, to cherish more actively its delicate beauty, and to relish our responsibilities to treat life—human and other—with respect and awe. Enjoying the Eden of Montreat and listening to Scripture, we will explore a spirituality of grateful care, and of realistic hope for facing our generation’s ecological crises.

The class includes time for learning, group interaction, contemplation and exploration, and fellowship. The formal sessions are titled:

  • Session 1: Inhabiting Eden: Why Does It Matter?
  • Session 2: Practicing Gratitude in a World of Entitlement
  • Session 3: Practicing Connection in an Insular World
  • Session 4: Practicing Lament in a Numb World
  • Session 5: Practicing Hope in a World of Despair
  • Session 6: Conclusion: Practicing Life in a World of Wounds

Patricia K. Tull is A. B. Rhodes Professor Emerita of Old Testament at Louisville Presbyterian Seminary. She is the author of Inhabiting Eden: Christians, the Bible, and the Ecological Crisis (Westminster John Knox, 2013) and of the 2001-02 Horizons Bible Study Esther’s Feast. She writes for Thoughtful Christian, These Days, Horizons Magazine, Presbyterians Today, Christian Century, and other publications, and leads spiritual pilgrimages at home and abroad.

The cost is $390 for the program plus housing and meals at Montreat (single: $325.50; double: $205.50). See the retreat webpage for registration and more information.