NCB loves retreats! Short, one-off classes have their place, but extended retreats provide concentrated time away in restorative settings, with both focused and spontaneous conversations, shared meals, and times of rest, relaxation, and fun. Our three most recent retreats were:
1. A 3-day retreat at a Benecia Airbnb, centered on discussions of MLK’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail, “Three Evils” speech, and “Beyond Vietnam” speech. We learned how King reached out respectfully and even lovingly to those who opposed him, confronted powerful but destructive interests, and took principled but widely unpopular stands, especially in his later years. We also contemplated what has changed and what has largely remained the same from King’s time to ours.
2. A one-day “Prayer and Journal Keeping in Anxious Times” workshop retreat at Peninsula Covenant Church in Redwood City, which expanded our repertoire of approaches to prayer and to journaling, making both disciplines more powerful and appealing.
3. An overnight retreat (for members of our cohort program) that included an introduction to Eastern Orthodox iconography and worship, at Prophet Elias Greek Orthodox Church in Santa Cruz. In the midst of the “daily grind” of ordinary life, we glimpsed a more timeless, heavenly perspective on life through the images, embodied rituals, and chanted hymns of Orthodox worship.
Retreats are key for NCB’s work of gospel discernment, providing the time and space needed for relational conversations and communal reflection. While some retreats are for our cohorts (and “deep divers”) we’ve now begun monthly all-day “workshop retreats” (or sometimes “one day conferences”) that all can attend. And they rotate from the Peninsula to San Francisco to the East Bay so you won’t always have to fight that bridge. Come, learn with others, build relationships, and be refreshed!