Walter Brueggemann is acclaimed as currently being the "world's leading interpreter of the Old Testament". He enables us to access the memories of Judeo-Christian ancestors, through their poetry and stories concerning enduring themes in human faith journey. Those themes, in broad stroke, continue to be recognized in our contemporary western culture. Thus, we discover that drawing on memories of the ancestors, joined with personal memories and contemporary experiences, we in effect are provided an itinerary for an imaginative life journey.
So, in this retreat we turn to the medium in which the ancestors engaged their world -- poetry and story. The creativity and hope to be discovered through such speech is articulated by Walter in an earlier book -- Finally Comes the Poet.
"The entertainment of a 'fiction' drives us beyond known truth. From the great narratives of Israel to the prophetic poems to the testimony of early Christians, the singers and storytellers spoke dangerously about dangerous matters, about new possibilities. The settled, entrenched, and certain heard only fiction, but it was a 'fiction' more powerful than facts".
"After the engineers, inventors, scientists, 'finally comes the poet' -- 'shattering evocative speech that breaks fixed conclusions and presses us always toward new, dangerous, imaginative possibilities".
Preparation for this retreat is to read Brueggemann's current book -- Journey to the Common Good, 2010, 122 pages through which we each will discover rich insights to be shared with one another in retreat. HOW we find our way to the common good in our contemporary communities of faith or other ventures of 'doing good' is so central to whether those life ventures will be experienced as blessing.
The structure of this retreat is a simple one as follows:-
- October 22, 7:00pm-- dinner and sharing current life journey notes.
- Following dinner, around the fire we meditate on samples of poetry read aloud from ancestors in their quest for the common good.
- We close with music and bedtime prayers.
- October 23, 8:00am-- breakfast.
- Following breakfast at 9:00 for sharing our respective learnings from reading of Journey to the Common Good.
- At 10:30 -- time of reflection and journaling while walking on Rolling Ridge trails in the Blue Ridge.
- Lunch at 12:30.
- Second time of sharing insights at 1:30.
- Dinner of celebration and thanksgiving at 5:00pm
- Depart for home at 6:00pm.
Our study source, Journey to the Common Good, is an easy accessible read, 122 pages, and packed with rich insight from an outstanding scholar. Obtain it from your bookstore or favorite on-line bookseller.
To register for retreat call us at 304-725-2312 or e-mail Vvatrr@juno.com. Bring your own wash towels and comfortable walking shoes. Retreat fee is $30 covering meals, and lodging to be paid upon arrival. Those who prefer to do so may arrive for retreat by 9:00am on October 23, for which retreat fee is $20.
If you need directions to Deer Spring House at Rolling Ridge Study Retreat Community can consult our website: www Rolling Ridge.net or call us at 304-725-2312.
Please join us for our next Seasonal Quiet Day, this one celebrating Autumn: Wednesday, October 20, 10 am - 4 pm. You are welcome to overnight in the Retreat House Tuesday or Wednesday to extend your retreat time!
Cost of the Workshop Weekend - $145, including meals and housing. (If finances are an issue, please contact us.)
*Sigi was the architect who designed Woodhaven and she has done strawbale and plastering workshops here at Rolling Ridge and many other places. She founded Down to Earth to provide healthy, sustainable design and consulting services in the Mid-Atlantic region. For more info visit: 
