Sacred Earth Sacred Soul - Celtic Wisdom 3

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Sacred Earth Sacred Soul - Celtic Wisdom 3

In 2016 John Philip Newell began a teaching initiative of annual retreats to help reawaken awareness of the sacred in all things through the recovery of Celtic wisdom for today and to help translate this awareness into compassionate action in our lives and world. 

Celtic Wisdom 3 is the third of a three-part series of annual retreats led by the Celtic teacher John Philip Newell and his colleague Cami Twilling in which we explore the sacredness of the imagination, the sacredness of compassion, and the sacredness of reshaping the world.

The teachings of this retreat are based on John Philip’s award-winning book Sacred Earth Sacred Soul: Celtic Wisdom for Reawakening to What Our Souls Know and Healing the World (especially Chapters 5, 8, and 9 drawing on the wisdom of Alexander John Scott, George MacLeod, and Kenneth White). 

The essential text for the three-year Celtic Wisdom program is John Philip Newell’s Sacred Earth Sacred Soul. The shared prayer book for this program is Sounds of the Eternal: A Celtic Psalter.

Celtic Wisdom 3 can be taken as a stand-alone retreat or in conjunction with Celtic Wisdom 1 and Celtic Wisdom 2 which can be attended in any order and at any of our retreat centers across the country or online.

John Philip Newell - Bio

(See more comprehensive bio on the Earth & Soul website)

John Philip Newell is a Celtic teacher and author of spirituality who calls the modern world to reawaken to the sacredness of Earth and every human being.

Canadian by birth, and a citizen also of Scotland, he resides with his family in Edinburgh and works on both sides of the Atlantic. In 2016 he began the Earth & Soul initiative and teaches regularly in the United States and Canada as well as leading international pilgrimage weeks on Iona in the Western Isles of Scotland.

His PhD is from the University of Edinburgh and he has authored over fifteen books, including his latest award-winning publication, Sacred Earth Sacred Soul, which was the 2022 Gold Winner of the Nautilus Book Award for Spirituality and Religious Thought of the West. His forthcoming book (August 2024), also with Harper One, is The Great Search, in which he looks at the great spiritual yearnings of humanity today in the context of the decline of religion as we have known it. 

Newell speaks of himself as ‘a wandering teacher’ following the ancient path of many lone teachers before him in the Celtic world, seeking the wellbeing of the world. He has been described as having ‘the heart of a Celtic bard and the mind of a Celtic scholar’, combining in his teachings the poetic and the intellectual, the head as well as the heart, and spiritual awareness as well as political and ecological concern. 

For full bio see: https://www.earthandsoul.org/john-philip-newell 

 Cami Twilling -Bio

Cami Twilling, based in Colorado, is the Director of Earth & Soul (a Celtic initiative of study, spiritual practice and compassionate action inspired by the teachings of John Philip Newell). As well as heading up the overall work of Earth & Soul, she facilitates the spiritual practice component of the Earth & Soul Annual Retreats. In addition to leading mountain and urban retreats, she has led international pilgrimage groups to Iona in the Western Isles of Scotland and work teams to Guatemala to build houses in communities that have suffered from political strife and economic hardship. Cami is passionate about the relationship between spirituality and action and believes that spiritual vision and practice can play a vital role in helping to heal and transform our lives both individually and together.

SUMMER 2024 AT HIU

Sacred Earth Sacred Soul - Celtic Wisdom 3

Each day begins and ends with meditative prayer and chant. John Philip teaches from the wisdom of Celtic prophets over the centuries, applying this ancient wisdom to the most critical challenges of today. Cami Twilling, Director of Earth & Soul, invites us into spiritual practice bringing our inner attention to the presence of the sacred within us and within all things. In the early afternoon there is silence and free time for resting and walking. Some meals are shared in common and on the evening of the second day there will be a reception to celebrate our time together. On the final morning before lunch, we share in a time of teaching followed by a closing ritual of thanksgiving.

(A final detailed schedule will be released closer to the event)

(*asterisk indicates entering meeting space in silence)

Friday, July 12

6:00 - 6:45 p.m. – Check-In / Registration / Light refreshments
*7:00 p.m. – Evening Prayer (please enter in silence)   
*7:30 p.m. – Session 1: Introductory Presentation
8:45 p.m. – Sacred Silence (until breakfast)

Saturday, July 13

8:30 a.m. – Coffee/Tea
*9:00 a.m. – Morning Prayer (enter in silence)
*9:30 a.m. – Session 2: Teaching I (enter in silence)
10:30 a.m. – Morning Break
*11:00 a.m. – Session 3: Spiritual Practice I (enter in silence)
12:30 p.m. – Lunch and free time to walk and read
*2:30 p.m. – Session 4: Spiritual Practice II (enter in silence)
3:30 p.m. – Afternoon Break
*4:00 p.m. – Session 5: Teaching II (enter in silence)
5:30 p.m. – Wine & Cheese Reception and Book Signing

Sunday, July 14

8:30 a.m. – Coffee/Tea
*9:00 a.m. – Morning Prayer (enter in silence)
*9:30 a.m. – Session 6: Teaching III (enter in silence)
10:30 a.m. – Morning Break
*11:00 a.m. – Session 7: Thanksgiving (enter in silence)
12:30 p.m. – Departure

Vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options will be available for meals. When you fill out the form to register and pay below, please select your dietary preference/needs. If you have other dietary restrictions that will not be met by these options, you will need to bring supplemental food.

Fees and Housing

Registration will be capped at 70 people. Fees include the entire weekend's teaching program plus Friday evening light refreshments, Saturday coffee/tea, Saturday lunch, a Saturday evening wine and heavy hors d'oeuvres reception, and Sunday coffee/tea.

Cost -- not including housing -- is $400. 

Cancellation policy:
A 75% refund for cancellations up to July 1, 2024.
A 50% refund for cancellations from July 2-July 11. 2024.
​​​​​​​No refund on the day the program starts or after.

We recommend that participants make their own arrangements for accommodations. For a listing of hotels in Hartford, visit this link.

A limited number of participants may be able to stay with a host family. If you would like to be considered for that option, please email Joe Chung at jchung@hartfordinternational.edu

Accommodation with a host family is NOT guaranteed and is on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Registration and payment options:

Option 1
If you are paying for the event by credit card, please register and pay by clicking on the link below. Eventbrite fees apply.
Click here to register and pay by credit card

Option 2
If you are paying by check, please register and see payment instructions by clicking on the link below:
Click here to register and pay by check 

Donations

Donations can be made to Earth & Soul here: https://givebutter.com/donate2earthandsoul