Individually Guided Retreats
A sacred space for personal encounter and discernment
Each person walks through different seasons of life — moments of clarity, struggle, decision, and renewal. An individually guided retreat offers sacred time to step aside, listen deeply, and allow the Holy Spirit to bring light, healing, and direction.
What Is a Guided Retreat?
An individually guided retreat is a time set apart for deep prayer, silence, and personal spiritual accompaniment.
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Three realities meet in this retreat:
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The Lord, who invites us to “come away… and rest awhile” (Mk 6:31, NRSV).
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The retreatant, seeking deeper relationship and clarity.
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The spiritual guide, who listens attentively and helps discern the movements of the Holy Spirit.
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These retreats are not conferences.
They are quiet, structured journeys where each participant is accompanied personally.
The Experience
Each day includes:
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A daily group instruction from the retreat facilitator, introducing the Scripture passages and guiding attention to the movements of the Holy Spirit
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Approximately five periods of silent prayer (40–60 minutes each), including Scripture reading and personal journaling
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A daily one-to-one spiritual conversation (or longer sessions as needed)
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Silence throughout the retreat, including during meals
This simple rhythm allows Scripture to be received deeply and prayerfully.
Retreat Formats
4–5 Days
(example Sunday evening to Friday morning)
This is the foundational format, allowing participants to disengage from daily life and enter deeply into silence.
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Eight Days (Strongly Recommended)
An extended format for deeper spiritual clarity and sustained discernment.
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Spiritual Exercises (30–33 Days)
For those ready to undertake the full Spiritual Exercises, offered in collaboration with retreat houses capable of sustaining long periods of silence.
For Retreat Houses
These retreats are offered in collaboration with retreat houses able to provide:
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A truly silent environment. This includes participants eating their meals separately in silence or while listening to Scripture.
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Daily access to the Eucharist. Fr. Dominic will celebrate Mass, and therefore an altar must be available.
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A simple and prayerful atmosphere.
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Suitable accommodation. Each retreatant must have a private room. Rooms are not shared for individually guided retreats. Even if a married couple attends together, two separate rooms are strongly recommended.
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Retreat houses should provide access to printing facilities, as prayer materials may need to be prepared according to individual needs, especially where internet access is limited.
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Retreat houses may request:
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4–8 day Individually Guided Retreats
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30–33 day retreat following the full Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius
To preserve the quality of accompaniment:
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Retreats up to 8 days: minimum 8 and maximum 12 participants
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Spiritual Exercises (30–33 days): minimum 6 and maximum 10 participants
This structure ensures that each retreatant receives attentive and meaningful spiritual guidance.
Fr. Dominic has been guiding individually directed retreats and the full Spiritual Exercises for over 15 years.
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