Orientation

Praised be Jesus Christ! Welcome to your Virtual Weekend Retreat prepared for you with love by the Carmelite Sisters at Sacred Heart Retreat House.

We have been isolated and quarantined for many weeks now. This is the time to give God space to share with him all your experiences. Here, now, in this room He meets you, not just at the Church or adoration chapel, but in your heart and in the hearts of your loved ones right next door. God will reward you for giving Him this time to speak, for allowing Him to share His deep and abiding love for you.

If you are like many of the faithful, you might be experiencing anxiety, isolation, and maybe a little anger from not being able to go to Holy Mass, to receive Him in Holy Communion or the sacraments. These emotions are natural and normal.
Our mother Foundress, Venerable Mother Luisita would say to you:

“Form a rich and beautiful tabernacle for our Lord within your heart
and then do not let him go.
In that way, you will always have him with you.
Enter within yourself, and meeting Him, tell Him all your experiences.”

As you receive each email, we encourage you to stay in the present moment and assure you of our prayers, all 130 of the Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles!

Tips for your Retreat

Prepare a Prayer Space

  • Listen in a room inside or outside set apart from others, not where there is a television or computer screen on.  Try to pray in this space consistently.
  • Make sure that you are comfortable, but not too comfortable.
  • Give yourself a solid 45-60 minutes of time to listen and then pray and reflect after the conference.
  • Have a journal you can write with, if it is helpful, and write down any key points that struck you.  As you know, this is the way the Holy Spirit works.  He inspires you to ponder certain truths that He wants you to deepen in your understanding.

Stay Recollected

  • Although silence might be difficult if you live with others, share with them what you are doing so that they can respect your time and space, or invite them to listen in with you!
  • You can also take the talks and prayers outside on a walk or while gardening or other, but try to stay away from unnecessary conversation. The most important thing is that you keep your interior peace of soul.

Stay on Schedule

  • You will receive links to the next conference according to a specific schedule
  • You may choose to either listen to these conferences according to the time range provided, or at your own timing as the conferences will be accessible to you at anytime. We do recommend that you listen to all the talks in the order that you receive them.

Retreat Theme: Peace in the Home

Retreat Master: Retreat Master: Father John Henry Hanson, O. Praem., is a Norbertine priest of St Michael’s Abbey in Silverado, California. He was ordained to the priesthood in 2006 and currently, he is a formator in his community’s seminary, preaches retreats, is chaplain to several communities of women religious, and serves Armenian rite Catholics at the Cathedral of St Gregory the Illuminator in Glendale, California. He is the author of Praying from the Depths of the Psalms (Scepter Publishers 2019) and Home Again: A Prayerful Rediscovery of your Catholic Faith (Scepter 2020)

 

Retreat Schedule

This is a suggested retreat schedule.  Feel free to listen at your own pace as the conferences will remain accessible to you so long as you keep this link.

Friday May 15, 2020

  • Orientation Video: View any time after 5:00 pm your time
    Conference 1 “Do You Love Me?”
    Night Prayer with the Carmelite Sisters
    Listen any time after 6:30 pm your time

Saturday, May 16, 2020

  • Conference 2: “The Story of Your Life”
    Musical Meditation and Rosary by the Carmelite Sisters
    Listen between 8:00 am to 11:00 am your time
  • Conference 3: “Finding our place in the Sacred Heart”
    Musical Meditation and Rosary by the Carmelite Sisters
    Listen between 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm
  • Conference 4: “Living Water”
    Night Prayer with the Carmelite Sisters
    Listen any time after 6:30 pm

Sunday, May 17, 2020

  • Conference 5: “Lord of our House”
    Listen any time between 8:00 am to 11:00 am
    Holy Mass livestream – Fr. John Henry, O. Praem.
    Post Retreat Follow up, Evaluation survey, and Staying Connected

Conference 1 “Do You Love Me?”

Click through the link below to access our first Conference, “Do You Love Me?”

Quick Links

Join us
for Mass and Evening Prayer

on Facebook LIVE

Join us
for Mass and Evening Prayer

on Instagram App