From the Bishop
28 January 2021
Feast of Saint Thomas Aquinas
This email sent to Episcopal and Lutheran clergy in the Diocese of Maine.
About the retreat
A Table in the Wilderness: A Clergy Retreat in Lent for the Diocese of Maine is a daytime, online retreat to provide space and encouragement for you to recollect your life and open the way for restoration of what has been spent or lost. Life comes with its share of joys and strains, and this last season – with the pandemic, the strife, and the ripple effects – has been so very challenging, even bewildering. The psalmist asks rhetorically, “Can God set a table in the wilderness?” Yes. 

Every clergyperson in Maine is encouraged to set aside this time (10:00-4:00) during which Brother Curtis will offer three meditations, and then invite us to silence and reflection. In addition to the time for quiet and prayer, two opportunities to connect and talk with each other will be offered, one during lunch and one at the day’s end. 

The arrangements for this clergy retreat have been made by the Clergy Formation Committee, and all the expenses for the retreat are underwritten by the Diocese of Maine.
About our retreat leader
Curtis Almquist, a brother and priest of the Society of St. John the Evangelist for more than 30 years, lives at SSJE’s monastery in Cambridge, Mass. He works with leaders from a wide spectrum of professional disciplines, helping them listen and respond to God’s amazing gift of life.

Faithfully in Christ,
The Right Reverend Thomas J. Brown
Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Maine

Urgent Message
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