In praise of personal retreats

CONCEPTION, Mo. - Remember quiet?

It's that sound of not much at all, a fall breeze over a still pond, a car on a gravel road, frogs.

Conception Abbey, which sits among the hills and farms of northwest Missouri, a few miles east of where cell phone service dies, has that good kind of quiet, the kind that holds the promise of going on and on.

The abbey, home to about 65 monks, is one of several Roman Catholic Benedictine monasteries around the world that are open to groups and individuals looking for a little time to reflect, pray, escape or just stare off into space.

Retreat options abound across the United States and beyond. There are retreats for Quakers and wayward Catholics, body cleansing retreats and marriage retreats. Retreats are held in tepees and in four-star lodges. Many are religious. Some are not.

Retreat packages vary, but the point is usually similar. Retreats are meant to be different from a vacation: The idea is to do a little personal work, even if that means working at just being still and enjoying the quiet.

While Conception Abbey also provides group retreats, individual stays are simpler and don't require a lot of planning. A phone call or two, and if rooms are available, a traveler is welcome.

The Benedictine monks have a tradition of hospitality and welcoming people, says the Rev. Patrick Caveglia, director of the abbey's guest center. "There are a lot of people out there looking for some peace and quiet. There are a lot of baby boomers like me, thinking, 'I'm probably mortal, and I've taken early retirement, or early redundancy, and maybe I ought to think about what I ought to do with the rest of my life.' "

Some visitors show up at the abbey for a night or two, alone, in a group, or with a spouse. Some want to talk to a monk. Others want to be left alone to roam the grassy path around little Lake Placid or walk the wooded trail with the stations of the cross.

Jennifer Phelps started coming to the monastery five years ago. Now she travels the 140 miles from her home in Carlisle, Iowa, once a month to rest and pray.

"Frequently, napping is the first thing I do at the monastery," says Phelps, 60. "I usually don't go with an agenda. . . . I like to go where it is soothing, calm and tranquil."

Abbey guest rooms are simple. Most consist of two twin beds, shelving and a toilet and sink shared with the room next door. Showers are down the hall; meals are in the guest dining room.

A single room costs about $25 a night during the week. It's $5 more for weekends. If you choose to dine with the monks, it costs about $7 a meal. Reservations are required. Tours of the grounds, the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception and the abbey's "printery" - where cards, calendars and the like are made - are $10.

Prayer, of course, is encouraged. Prayers and services in the basilica are all among the dark-robed brothers, whose voices don't so much break the quiet as soothe it.

- - - 

Retreat directories

For Benedictine retreats, go to www.osb.org/retreats. Others can be found at www.retreatsintl.org. (Most listings here are Christian.)

[Last modified November 23, 2007, 12:38:33]