Retreat Days

We very rarely take time out to reflect on the role that our bodies play in Christian spiritual formation. Coming from an intellectual background, this has been a really interesting and stretching experience for us personally as we have considered this topic.

We are very aware that many of us (we are included in this) carry some negative “baggage” when it comes to our bodies. We feel that all the activities we have planned for this retreat day are very conservative/safe; all the sessions will be Bible-focused. There will still be lots of time for personal reflection but there may be a little more input than usual. You can choose to participate as much or as little as you like!
Ruth Haley-Barton explains the link between physicality and spirituality really well. She writes:

“My early lessons in flesh-and-blood spirituality began with growing my understanding that the physical and spiritual were not as opposed to each other as I had thought. I am not merely a soul and spirit; I am an embodied human being, and my body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. In some unexplainable way God inhabits our bodies, making them a place where we can meet and know Him. Beginning with the Biblical account of creation, all the great themes of Scripture affirm the significance of the body as a place where the presence of God can be known and experienced. The Incarnation itself – Christ’s choice to take on flesh and inhabit a human body – forever elevates the experience of being in a body to new heights of spiritual significance.”