HERE’S a World Youth Day opportunity with a difference.
Abbot Michael Kelly and Good Samaritan sister Liz Wiemers will facilitate short retreats in “the Australian desert environment” near Alice Springs before and after World Youth Day in July.
Encouraged by Bishop of Townsville Michael Putney, their purpose will be to inspire “desert wisdom”.
“Bishop Michael Putney said to us a few years ago that he has always been amazed that so many people go to the geographical centre as tourists without being offered an accompanying opportunity to journey to the spiritual centre,” Sr Liz said.
Christian meditation will be introduced in the retreats while local national parks will be used as a backdrop.
Members of the St Benedict’s Monastery, Arcadia, Sisters of the Good Samaritan and some from the Christian Meditation community will also be involved.
Sr Liz said her “energy” in offering this experience to young people comes from being “a bush woman” with “a particular affinity with the scripture of the land”.
The group retreats will be in four-day units with alternative durations also offered on request.
A four-day retreat will cost $195 and includes all meals plus transfers from Alice Springs to and from the camp site in Hamilton Downs, 75 kms northwest, in the MacDonnell Ranges.
For more information contact info@wydtours.com
