The retreat will take place at St. Augustine’s House, located in Oxford, MI. The cost of the retreat is $30. Courtesy | Reagan Meyer

Hillsdale students will have the opportunity to spend a long weekend of “silence and solitude” at an ecumenical Lutheran monastery in April, according to College Chaplain Rev. Adam Rick.

The retreat will take place at St. Augustine’s House, located in Oxford, MI. The house follows the rule of St. Benedict. Students will leave campus at 4:00 p.m. on Friday, April 4, and return late morning Sunday, April 6. The cost of the retreat is $30. 

“The purpose is to give our students a chance to rest and be still before the Lord in an environment of prayer and peace,” Rick said.

Director of Health Services Brock Lutz and Rick take a small group of students to the monastery every semester. 

“Groups are usually small owing to the limited beds at the house, anywhere from six to 10 total, including me and Brock,” Rick said.

According to Rick, the monastery regularly receives short-term visitors, called “retreatants.” Students get their own private room and bath. Meals are provided at the house

“There’s a library on site with a lot of spiritual books, a beautiful chapel, hiking trails on an expansive wooded property, and lots and lots of peace and quiet,” he said.

Sophomore Lexi Travis said she has gone to the monastery twice with the college and once by herself.

“At the monastery, you spend a lot of your time praying in the offices with the monks,” Travis said. “When not doing that, I take a lot of walks on the trails they have. I also spend a lot of time journaling, reading Scripture, and sometimes painting.”

Students prepare dinner for themselves and the house one night in the retreat, Rick said.

“St. Augustine’s is, in my estimation, one of the most peaceful places on the planet,” he said. “There is no structure other than the rhythm of the monastery: seven set services a day, three square meals, and space in between for study, rest, or manual labor — mostly of the grounds-keeping or garden-tending variety — as students themselves decide.”

Travis said her takeaways from the retreat change from time-to-time, but that she always finds herself in God’s presence when she is there.

“Silence can be uncomfortable and even painful,” Travis said. “But God does meet us in that place, and if hearing from Him is something that you want, I would encourage you to think about this opportunity.”

Students should RSVP to Rick by April 2 if they want to attend the retreat.

“Come to the monastery if you want rest for your souls,” Rick said. “But reach out soon; space is very limited.”