Report of Liberal Catholic Retreat, February 2009

By Fr Brian Harding, Vicar

This Retreat was the first held by the Church of St Alban for many years, and it proved a resounding success.  It was held at the Presentation Spirituality Centre, Manly, on Brisbane’s bayside at the end of February.  We had so many expressions of interest that we were completely surprised and delighted, and then worried we would not be able to accommodate everyone!

Group at Manly Retreat

However, several were unable to make it for various reasons.  Fr Alec Stevenson from Canberra suffered a car accident the previous Monday and finished up in hospital.  Fr Philip and Wilma Grier from Townsville found themselves off to Bali where Wilma had taken a new job.  And Fr John van der Ley from the Central Coast of NSW found his flight cancelled on arrival at the airport with no satisfactory rebooking available.

We were privileged to welcome Margaret Lemoh from Sydney, Stan Grauer from the Sunshine Coast, and Keith and Birthe Ross from Canberra.  Margaret was a great help and played the keyboard lent to us by Vestry Member and Cantor Marie Bertelle.  Thanks are due to all those who helped including, Bishop Allan and Rosemary (for organizing the services), Janet Harding who led us in an evening of sacred circle dancing, and not least Fr Geoff who volunteered to pop back to Wickham Terrace to take the regular Sunday morning service.

The theme of the weekend was The Practice of the Presence of God, and the opening talk focused on the life and work of Brother Lawrence.  During subsequent talks, the recognition of the presence of God in our lives was also noted in other traditions, notably Sufism and Buddhism, while Fr Brian introduced ideas from Alfred North Whitehead’s Process Philosophy.

A discussion group at the manly Retreat 2009

Best of all, the weekend provided us with an opportunity to withdraw from the hurly burly of daily life for a couple of days and enjoy the silence and beauty of our surroundings.  Many have since said how much they enjoyed the Retreat and how uplifting they found it.  So we hope they will spread the good news, and that we can hold another such event in 2010.