Open Courses & Retreats
Our whole life is an act of worship. In ordinary life, we serve like priests at the altar. Novalis
In addition to providing training for the vocation of priest, the seminary wishes to support all those who seek to deepen and renew their inner life by offering week-long retreats. The structured day of the seminary provides a unique opportunity for such a renewal. We also welcome individuals of any age, who wish to participate in an entire semester, while on a sabbatical or in a life transition wishing to gather forces for the next step in their biography.
We are coming to you!
Spring 2010 seminary activities and
courses will be offered in several
congregations
In Washington, DC
March 5-7, 2010
(out of town participants arrive March 4th)
Christianity is a Body-Building Religion
Rev. Gisela Wielki
In Hillsdale, NY
March 19-21, 2010
(out of town participants arrive March 18th)
The Trinity: Light, Life and Love
Rev. Gisela Wielki
In San Francisco, CA.
March 26, (evening) – 28, 2010
Memberhood and Priesthood Today -
The Initiation Path of Sacrament.
Rev. Richard Dancey, Rev.Oliver Steinrueck
At the Seminary
July 26 – 30, 2010
(out of town participants arrive Sunday, July 25)
‘Transforming Work of Earth’
In and through Sacrament, Life and Destiny
Every morning the Act of Consecration of Man
Talks, study, conversation, artistic activity
Picnic and concert in Millennium Park
For more details and to register, please email:
info@chicagoseminary.org
Download the Brochure
For more details (in PDF format) of open courses, please click on the link below:
View open course brochures from previous years here.
Comments from participants
Open Courses at the seminary
Every fall and every spring I take the time to come to Chicago to attend one or two Open Courses at the Seminary. By now I have slept in almost every room, met all the seminary students who were here over the years and have experienced almost every kind of weather Chicago has to offer. Well, that’s not exactly the reason why I come back over and over again. I have been privileged to sit in on some of the most amazing courses. Every time I walk away with food for thought and new knowledge that keeps me nourished for weeks and months. Just look at the titles of the Open Courses that are offered every semester. It is impossible not to find a subject that “talks to you”.
Margit Gratzl, North Carolina
… And so went the week. Are you getting the picture, dear friend, that not all deepening of one’s spiritual life has to lead to an ivory tower of knowledge? We can simply make our lives more livable, more enjoyable, more observant, by laying aside the laundry list and enlist for a week at the seminary. There we can make new personal connections and enrich the lives of other like-minded-people as well as taking away something personal. Now it is your turn!
Margaret Shipman, California
Attending the Open Course, ‘Lazarus, Mary Magdalene, Judas and the Mystery of Golgotha’ during Holy Week at the seminary was something I’d long anticipated. Although I am relatively new to The Christian Community, I had hoped for years to make a retreat during Holy Week to explore this time leading up to Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection. When I saw this course listed in the seminary brochure I jumped at the chance!
Faith Lerner, Wisconsin
If only I knew
In the good old days, if you wanted to attend a Christian Community seminary class you just had to learn German. Now there is an alternative, a seminary in Chicago, where the best minds of the international Movement for Religious Renewal come to us. They conveniently provide world-class courses, some of which are open to the wider community at a minimal cost. Now you know.
Tom McGuire, Chicago
Week long summer retreats at the seminary
“Walking with Christ – Working from Christ” …
During the waning days of August 2007 from the four points of the compass, nine seekers, most members of The Christian Community, gathered together at the Chicago Seminary for five days of exploration, study and conversation on the theme.
Coming together to share among ourselves on this journey is a special blessing. Terri Bennett, NY, NY
The theme of the week seemed to encompass the fact, that you could not possibly encompass everything. From the many people who attended, the fast pace, discussions and activities made anyone who thought they were on a retreat, realize that perhaps more than anything else, they were actually on the forefront or the charge of the Christian Community. But more than all of our differences, more than our many way’s of thinking and our prejudices, biases, varying points of view and often humorous disagreements, was the idea of our commonalities, was the idea of community life and thought, and in the center was Christ, his thinking and his presence in all of our lives…
Martin Young, Fayetteville, N.C.
The “fuss” was this – a week of the most in-depth and wondrous conversation and sharing I have ever participated in. From discussions on the four gospels, to examination of different aspects of the Act of Consecration; from opening up possibilities with the Lord’s Prayer to reflecting on what it might mean to “walk with Christ, work from Christ”, each conversation was a precious elixir which I felt nurture and deepen my spiritual awareness…
Donna Simmons, Viroqua, Wisconsin
“Sacrament and Destiny”, June 18-21, 2009
Destiny Brought Us Together!
Amidst a deluge of June rain and hail, sun and warmth, 14 seekers came together to experience a four-day retreat centered around “Sacrament and Destiny”. We hailed from as far away as North Carolina and Minnesota, from as near as Chicago and Milwaukee, and points in-between. What we discovered was each other and a common quest to deepen our relationship to The Christian Community……. Our days together were punctuated by much laughter and many wonderings. We made new connections, reached new insights and left warmed by the camaraderie of fellow travelers on the path.
Kathleen Reagan