Wonder, Wisdom, and Witness: The Legacy of the Beguines for Our Time
With Joyce Hollyday
September 17 - 19, 2024
In an age of intolerance, they practiced compassion. In an era of religious arrogance, they embraced the Divine Feminine and celebrated gifts of the Spirit. Under suffocating patriarchy, they rejected cultural dictates limiting women to the roles of wives owned and subjugated by husbands or nuns cloistered and controlled by the church. They boldly lived together in empowering communities, providing safe haven and education for girls, supporting one another by making lace and candles, baking bread and brewing beer.
Come to the mountain as the autumn breezes begin to stir and dive into the mystery of the stunning medieval mystics known as the Beguines. They will be our guides as we explore themes of community and sustainability, resistance and resilience. Time will be provided for walking the trails, labyrinth, or sacred Columcille Megalith Park, for writing, resting, or sitting by the pond. On Tuesday evening of this retreat, we will gather on a ridge with a magnificent panoramic view, and by the glow of a bonfire and a partial lunar eclipse, we will share in a ritual of remembrance and celebration.
Leader
Joyce Hollyday is the author of Pillar of Fire, a historical novel based on the witness of the Beguines. She has written several other books on oral history, spirituality, and social witness, including Clothed with the Sun: Biblical Women, Social Justice, and Us, and a memoir titled Turning Toward Home. Joyce has served as an editor of Sojourners magazine, a co-founder and co-pastor of Circle of Mercy in Asheville, N.C., a court advocate for survivors of domestic violence, a chaplain to children with cancer, and a visitor on death row. She is a member of the intentional community at Kirkridge.
Learn more about Joyce Hollyday