Joan Chittister Reader's Retreat

How does a Reader’s Retreat with Joan Chittister look? In the one held in 2016 at Peek ‘n Peak Resort in Clymer, NY, it looked like this. Joan read aloud a story from one of her latest books,Two Dogs and a Parrot. One by one participants read aloud from the reflections that followed each story until they came to a place where they questioned the text, needed clarification, or wanted to comment on it. At that point the reader engaged Joan in conversation about the passage while the others listened and then could join the conversation, too. This was the format for the six sessions of the retreat that were centered in Benedictine prayer and included shared meals and leisure time. “You only cover a handful of chapters during the retreat,” Sister Joan explained, “but you really read them. You get under the words and wrestle with the ideas and what they mean in your life, now.”