Pā Maria caters for a range of retreat experiences, including days of reflection with the use of Scripture, music and song, focused on a particular theme, as well as longer silent retreats. These are advertised under the ‘What’s on’ category of this website.
Individual-directed retreats
Individually directed retreats are silent retreats of varying durations. They may be a one day experience or up to a 6 day experience on site.
During a directed retreat, a retreatant will meet daily with a retreat director to explore the movements of God during their times of prayer.
Typically, a retreatant will be given Scriptural passages as a focus for their prayer.
Retreats in daily life
A ‘retreat in daily life’ is a guided weekly programme of prayer following the Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius of Loyola over several months.
Retreatants meet weekly with their director at Pā Maria or online while maintaining the ordinary rhythms of life.
Self-directed retreat
Sometimes retreatants prefer simply to have the space to pray and reflect in a prayerful atmosphere without the need for a spiritual guide. This can be a live-in experience while staying in Pā Maria’s apartment.