Holy Wisdom Monastery

Holy Wisdom Monastery
Middleton

Continue your spiritual journey at a place where all are welcome.

The calm of Holy Wisdom Monastery provides women and men with the space needed for renewal in an environment of natural beauty. The time is yours. Whether you choose to walk nature trails, observe wildlife on the lake, sleep in your room, browse the library, join in community prayer or find a spot on the grounds to journal, you open yourself to the inner journey.

 

All of us need to draw away from our busy lives from time to time. A retreat at Holy Wisdom Monastery (whether by yourself or with a group) gives you the space and flexibility to do it. You set your schedule. You determine what you are going to do. We invite you to experience a time to rest, reflect, and renew.

Personal Retreat Opportunities for Individuals

Jesus told his disciples to “come away with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” We welcome all people to experience the quiet spaciousness of Holy Wisdom Monastery. Whether you choose to walk the nature trails, sleep, browse in the library, join community prayer or find a spot near the lake to write in your journal, you open yourself to the inner journey.

Plan your retreat for a day, an overnight, a weekend or longer. Our facilities provide comfort without distraction. Single or double guest rooms in our renovated Retreat and Guest House have private bathrooms.

Shared meals in our eco-friendly monastery building allow you to engage in conversation with members of the community and with monastery guests. We offer meals made from healthy, locally grown food. A light breakfast is provided in the Retreat and Guest House with your overnight room reservation.

For those seeking a more solitary experience, private hermitages can be reserved for a night or more. These small houses include a kitchenette, sitting area, bathroom and an outdoor deck overlooking a wooded landscape. Whether working on a personal project or seeking a deeper connection with God, a hermitage surrounds you in silence and simplicity.

Directed retreats provide the personal retreat experience and include regular sessions of spiritual guidance. The spiritual guide facilitates your reflection on your life experience in relation to God, yourself, and others.

Hermitages

For those seeking a more solitary experience, we can offer private hermitages. These small houses include a kitchenette, sitting area, bath and an outdoor deck overlooking the wooded landscape. Whether working on a personal project or seeking a deeper connection with God, a hermitage surrounds you in a silence and deep calm that cultivates renewal.

Spiritual Guidance

Those who want to reflect on God’s presence in their lives with a trained and experienced spiritual guide can arrange for a confidential conversation.

“Listen and attend with the ear of your heart.”
(Saint Benedict of Nursia)

Spiritual guidance offers a faith-centered and confidential conversation in which you can become more attuned to God’s presence. You might come to spiritual guidance to reflect deeply on your experiences or to integrate spirituality into your daily life. Spiritual guidance is helpful at times of transition, loss or disillusionment.

Spiritual guides are nonjudgmental. They are trained and experienced in helping others with their spiritual lives. Distinct from counseling, the goal of spiritual guidance is not to solve life’s problems, but rather to increase awareness of how God is already active in an individual’s life.

Retreat Tips

This is your retreat. Start your planning by asking yourself, “What do I want from this retreat?” Take a moment to listen to your greatest need. The freedom at Holy Wisdom Monastery allows you to go and do it! You might read a book, take a nap, go to prayer, walk in the prairie, or sit on the hill and gaze over Lake Mendota.

It can be helpful to begin your inward journey with some small ceremony: put your favorite blanket across your knees, play your favorite calming music, close your eyes and look to your heart.

Listen during your retreat with the ear of your heart. Don’t expect any earth-shaking revelations. Rather, be open and find your center. You will return to your life with more balance and serenity.

When you leave, take something home with you (a ritual, a stone, a leaf) as a reminder of where your center resides.

Prayer

There are several opportunities each day to join with others in prayer. Centering prayer is a time of quiet. You are also welcome for the service of scripture and song in the morning, at noon and during early evening.