There Has Never Been A Bad Retreat

December 13, 2017

By Fran Gaspari, Immaculate Conception Retreat

As you drive into the retreat house known as ‘MALVERN’ or ‘Saint Joseph’s-in-the-Hills’, you begin to sense the presence of ‘Holy Ground’ where you will soon gather with approximately  200 other men and two Spiritual Retreat Masters for the next 40 hours or so!

Such was the experience when my two  sons and grandson gathered the weekend of ‘The Immaculate Conception’  retreat group. Each retreatant gets something special out of their retreat experience…besides sharing good food and old friendships with fellow retreatants…!!!

Our Retreat Master, Father Mike Shea, a Vincentian priest in residence at The Miraculous Medal Shrine in Germantown, Pa guided us through a great and eventful weekend…

Celebrating a Mass, the Anointing Of The Sick service on Saturday, an excellent Q&A session later Saturday afternoon and ending with a Sunday morning conference placed the entire retreat weekend into perspective.  It was packaged perfectly to be useful to each of us individually as retreatants when we returned to our homes, families, and workplaces…!!!

I can truthfully say in my own 38 years of retreats, “there has never been a ‘bad’ retreat”…and this past weekend was no exception…

It probably will take several weeks and even beyond the Christmas Holydays to discern the many lessons,  teachings and insights learned from the weekend.

May all who read this be blessed and encouraged to attend a retreat weekend at MALVERN…as we continue to remember our Retreat Masters and fellow retreatants in our thoughts and prayers until next year!