For those seeking a spiritual start to the new year, St. Scholastica Retreat Center in Fort Smith is offering a quiet alternative -- a silent retreat.
And, yes, silent means silent. No music. No chatting on the phone. Just hours and hours of silence.
Known as silent directed retreats -- because participants are paired with a spiritual director who guides them through the experience -- the retreats offer a time to be silent "and make room for God," said Sister Rachel Dietz.
Dietz, who will lead the retreats, is a Benedictine nun at St. Scholastica Monastery and the retreat center is a ministry run by the sisters. Participants can choose from three options for their retreat -- three, five or eight days. All begin Jan. 5.
"It's a great way to start the new year," Dietz said.
The retreats begin at dinner on the first night, a Thursday, and participants can talk and get acquainted and meet their spiritual director.
"But they know it's the only time they'll talk until Sunday at noon," Dietz said.
For those staying for the eight-day retreat, that silence will stretch on for five more days.
Such a long stretch of silence is hard for first-timers, Dietz said.
"We tell them it may be difficult because we're so used to noise and bustling about," she said. "We don't take time to sit and listen to what God may be saying to us."
Dietz said participants are instructed not only to be silent, but also to not make eye contact with one another. Meals are eaten in silence after that first night. Even the nuns of the monastery are asked not to greet retreatgoers they might encounter in the buildings or on the grounds.
"We really do stress the silence," Dietz said. "It takes us a while to quiet ourselves to hear the movement in our heart. I have a committee in my head, all with different views and they just keep talking. I've got to shut them up so they'll leave me alone for the weekend."
Betsy McNeil attended her first silent retreat about seven years ago and hasn't missed one since. She knows firsthand how daunting three days of silence can seem.
"Anyone who knows me will tell you silence is not one of my strong suits," she said.
In fact, her first attempt at a retreat ended not long after it began -- not because of talking, but because of a family emergency.
"The next year I went back and I wasn't kidding around about keeping my mouth closed, and I looked forward to it with anticipation," McNeil said.
She said participating in the retreats at the start of a new year adds to the experience.
"I love the timing, because it's at the beginning of the year and it gives God and I the opportunity to look back on last year and He sheds light on it," McNeil said. "We're looking back and forward and all the while being present in the moment."
These days McNeil serves as a spiritual director at the silent retreats at St. Scholastica, helping guide retreatgoers and offering Scriptures to reflect on, as does Dietz.
"We tell them, when praying with the Scriptures, to pay attention to words or phrases that jump out at you," Dietz said. "That's the meat and potatoes of what God is trying to tell you, and usually that is how wonderful you are and how much he loves you."
Retreat participants are asked to bring only a Bible -- no other religious books or commentaries -- and a journal so they can focus on Scripture and writing down their thoughts.
Dietz said she tells participants to write what comes to them without worrying about grammar or punctuation.
"Write what comes and then read it," she said. "So many will say, 'I didn't realize what I was writing and it was God's word to me.'"
The retreat center offered its first silent retreat in 2006 and a handful of people participated. This year, the center can host up to 40. Dietz said participants come from various backgrounds and there is usually a mix of Catholics and Protestants, men and women.
"We tell them, it's not chance that you are here. God called you to this retreat," Dietz said. "You may have thought it was your idea, but go back and think."
For Dietz, these retreats are sacred time.
"It's right at Epiphany and God's manifestation to the world and we are to continue that manifestation in the world," she said.
Dietz said some participants continue to work with a spiritual director long after the retreat is over. She remains in monthly contact with a participant who lives in Alaska. They talk on the phone or via live video chat.
McNeil suggests that anyone thinking about attending a silent directed retreat first spend time in prayer.
"Let them see if they can ascertain an invitation. Is God inviting them, or are they trying to move into something they are not ready for or it's not the right time," she said. "Once they figure out, yes, this is something I would like to do, then let nothing stop you."
For those worried about being parted from their ever present smartphone, Dietz said participants can bring phones.
"But we tell them if you can't leave them alone, give them to us," she said. "If there's a situation at home, let them call you. Ask God to send you the peace and quiet and openness to his voice and how he is speaking to you, because if you listen, you will hear him."
The Jan. 5-8 retreat is $235 and includes lodging and meals. The Jan. 5-11 retreat is $385, and the Jan. 5-14 retreat is $575. The deadline for registering is Tuesday.
Information and registration are available online at stscho.org/retreat-registration or by calling (479) 783-1135.
Religion on 12/17/2016