Spirit of Place 2024: Experiences of Engaged Spirituality

WELCOME!

THE MYSTERY OF WATER

Human Health, Ecological Balance, and Sacred Ritual

September 11 – 14. 2024

Big Bay, Michigan

(4 P.M. Wednesday – 1 P.M. Saturday)

PROGRAM:

This retreat explores the mystery of water, this most extraordinary natural gift to the earth’s biosphere. Presentations by foresters, poets, musicians, political activists, and theologians will provide opportunities to celebrate the essential role that water plays in the health of the planet and our own personal health. There will be time for solitude, prayer, and reflective dialogs about the role of water in the Great World Religions and in Native American traditions. As part of the closing morning of the retreat, interested participants will be collectively and prayerfully invited to assist in planting 100 small cedar seedlings in a nearby community forest.

Since its founding in 1995, The Cedar Tree Institute has sponsored 28 retreats and seminars across North America that have brought together small groups to explore specifically designed experiences of “engaged spirituality.” These events have focused on environmental and justice issues, others on the dialogue between East and West, several on the critical link between prayer and social action. Participants are invited to connect both inner (personal) and outer landscapes. Retreats have been held in monasteries, remote cabins, and on American Indian reservations.

RETREAT FORMAT:

Participants will have the option to begin the day with an introduction to mindfulness and Tai Chi exercises. Our time together will be based at the historic Thunder Bay Inn in Big Bay, a former summer retreat for Henry Ford. Two of our three evening meals and discussions will take place at cabins near the shore of Lake Superior. Saunas available for those who choose.

TRAVEL, MEALS, AND LODGING:

Meals will be nourishing and healthy. Transportation will be provided by the Cedar Tree Institute throughout the retreat. There will be a balance of informal and formal time together. Single rooms at the Inn will be provided unless otherwise requested.

Marquette, Michigan is located in the State’s Upper Peninsula. It can be accessed by airline via Marquette Sawyer Regional Airport, a 25-minute drive. Transportation will be available from and to the airport for those traveling by plane. Big Bay, the site of our retreat, is located 30 miles north of Marquette.

If choosing to travel by car, Big Bay is a three-hour drive northeast from Green Bay, Wisconsin, and three-hour drive from Mackinac Island located at the east end of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Transportation may also be available via a van from O’Hare International Airport Chicago – depending on interest. Please contact Ruth Almén, if interested at ruth.almen@gmail.com

FACILITATORS AND RESOURCE PERSONS:

Joseph Piccione is a theologian and ethicist. He holds degrees in theology from the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, DC and St. Mary’s Seminary and University. He is the author of “Receiving God and Responding – In Breath Meditation.” (2020)

Jeff Noble is a forester and veteran wild land fire fighter across North America.

Ruth Almén previously held leadership positions with hospice agencies and community mental health organizations serving the rural poor across Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Most recently, she served as a Clinical Manager with Cleveland Clinic’s Center for Brain Health in Las Vegas. She currently works as COO for Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, a progressive faith community in Arlington Heights, Illinois.

Katie Rosenberg was Mayor of Wausau, Wisconsin from 2020-2024. She is a leader in her community raising controversial issues about human health and the threat of toxic PFAS chemicals in Wausau.

Scott Emerson is a retired ER physician n Marquette, Michigan holding advanced degrees in integrative medicine.

Kenton Fish is a retired ophthalmologist residing in West Texas. He is a leader in his faith community, a musician, and long-distance runner. Kent continues to assist in facilitating CTI retreats and trainings across North America.

Kathleen Heideman is one of the Upper Peninsula’s most beloved poets. A writer, artist and environmentalist, her newest collection of poetry is Psalms of the Early Anthropocene (Winter Cabin Books, 2017).

Jon Magnuson is Director of The Cedar Institute, a nonprofit organization in Northern Michigan that initiates projects and provides services in the areas of mental health, interfaith collaboration, and the environment. A former Peace Corps volunteer in Nepal, he has served as parish pastor, clinical social worker, and adjunct faculty member at the University of Washington, Oregon State University, and Northern Michigan University.

WELCOME!

THE SPIRITUAL BRAIN

What Neuroscience Teaches us about Pain, Pleasure, and

Mystical Experience

November 14 -17, 2024

4 P.M. Thursday – 1 P.M. Sunday

Boulder City, Nevada (Las Vegas)

PROGRAM:  

This retreat explores basic emotions and perceptions regarding pain, pleasure and mystical experience. Layne Kalbfleisch, a doctor of educational psychology and cognitive neuroscience, will lead us through a number of presentations that will review latest research around the functions of the brain and its processing of pain and pleasure. Perspectives from various faith traditions will be integrated. Treatment options for various addictive behaviors will be reviewed.

 “The Varieties of Religious Experience” by William James and “Why God Won’t Go Away: Brain Science and Biology of Belief” by Newberg, D’Quili & Rause, will serve as reference points for discussions. Interviews with representatives of the gaming industry, the sex trade, and the substance abuse recovery community will be an integral part of the retreat experience.

Since its founding in 1995, The Cedar Tree Institute has sponsored 28 retreats and seminars across North America that have brought together small groups to explore specifically designed experiences of “engaged spirituality.” These events have focused on environmental and justice issues, others on the dialogue between East and West, several on the critical link between prayer and social action. Participants are invited to connect both inner (personal) and outer landscapes. Retreats have been held in monasteries, remote cabins, and on American Indian reservations.

RETREAT FORMAT: 

Participants have the option to begin the day with an introduction to mindfulness and Tai Chi exercises. Our time together will be based in in Boulder City, a 25-minute drive from Las Vegas. 

TRAVEL, MEALS, AND LODGING:

Meals will be nourishing and healthy. Transportation will be provided, if requested, by the Cedar Tree Institute throughout the retreat. There will be a balance of informal and formal time together. Single rooms at the historic Boulder Dam Hotel will be provided unless otherwise requested. The hotel is in the heart of Boulder Dam, home to the Hoover Dam, and walkable to downtown attractions and hiking trails.  The Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas is a 30-minute drive or ride from the Hotel. Transport from the airport will be available.

FACILITATORS AND RESOURCE PERSONS

Layne Kalbfleisch, M.Ed., Ph.D. is a former associate professor at George Mason University, she also served as adjunct faculty in the department of pediatrics at The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences and in the department of neurology at Georgetown University of Medicine and Health Sciences. Most recently, she is the author of “Teaching to Every Kid’s Potential: Simple Neuroscience Lessons to Liberate Learners’ (2021)

Layne is a doctor of educational psychology and cognitive neuroscience. She is the founder of 2E Consults (R). The link to her website is:  https://www.the2e.com

Joseph Piccione is a theologian and ethicist holds degrees in theology from the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, DC and St. Mary’s Seminary and University. He is the author of “Receiving God and Responding – In Breath Meditation.” (2020)

Michael Grossman. MD, a family medicine physician, currently serves as is a Medical Director of a Hospice in Northern Michigan and certified in addiction medicine. 

Ruth Almén previously held leadership positions with hospice agencies, aging services and community mental health organizations serving the rural poor across Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. She then she served as a Clinical Manager with Cleveland Clinic’s Center for Brain Health in Las Vegas. She currently is CCO for Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, a progressive faith community in Arlington Heights, Illinois. Ruth serves as our Logistics Coordinator and will work with you on registration, transportation, and other questions.  (ruth.almen@gmail.com)

Kenton Fish (TBC) is a retired ophthalmologist residing in West Texas. He is a leader in his faith community, a musician, and long-distance runner.  Kent continues to assist in facilitating CTI retreats and trainings across North America.

Jon Magnuson is Director of The Cedar Institute, a nonprofit organization in Northern Michigan that initiates projects and provides services in the areas of mental health, interfaith collaboration, and the environment. A former Peace Corps volunteer in Nepal, he has served as parish pastor, clinical social worker, and adjunct faculty member at the University of Washington, Oregon State University, and Northern Michigan University.