UPCOMING EVENTS
September 26 -
September 30 - October 3
October 4 -
October 6 -
October 12 -
October 28-Nov. 1 -
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Are you looking to deepen your ministry of retreat leadership or congregational leadership?
Shalem's long-term programs might be the perfect fit for you.
- accepting applications in the fall, program begins January 2013
- accepting applications in the spring, program begins summer 2013
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Shalem's Mission is to
nurture
contemplative
living
and leadership -
a way of being
prayerfully
attentive
and responsive to
God's presence
and guidance.
"I'm so deeply
grateful for Shalem
and the meaningful faith community
it is for me
and so many,
and for the
countless ways this
connection sustains, supports and nurtures
not only the
various ministries
I offer, but the
heart of my soul itself.
How could I
not support Shalem in return?!"
(A Shalem Donor)
Thank you!
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"Let nothing disturb you,
Let nothing frighten you,
All things pass away:
God alone
is unchanging.
Patience obtains
all things.
Whoever has God
lacks nothing.
God alone suffices." ~Teresa of Avila
Join Shalem's FB page to view contemplative photos, inspiring quotes and be part of an online praying community of over 1300 people.
To join, click on the FB link below and LIKE Shalem's page.
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Events in:
Idaho
Indiana
Maryland
New York
Texas
Virginia
West Virginia
Austria
Canada
Italy
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Friends of Shalem
For more information, visit Contemplative Outreach of Northern Virginia. www.conova.org
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Donate to Shalem through Amazon
Did you know that by ordering products on Amazon through the link below, as well as through the Amazon links on
Shalem.org, that a portion of the proceeds will go to Shalem?
Please consider Shalem the next time you place an order with Amazon.
Thank you!!!
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Waiting for It to Clear
by Kathleen Moloney-Tarr
A couple of weeks ago I spent a week  alone writing in the North Carolina mountains high on a ridge overlooking a wide valley and long mountain range beyond. The first day I settled in with my journal of the last few months and the intent to gather pieces of poems to my computer screen where I could work them over, print them, and revise until they became whole. I was looking forward to being in a creative flow and accomplishing a lot happily in one of my favorite places.
The first evening a thick fog settled in. Tuesday morning I was sorry to see it remained and thought, "It'll burn off by lunchtime." At noon, I hoped the view would clear by late afternoon. When I went to bed, the lights in the valley were obscured by a dense white cloud. Wednesday morning I was disappointed to miss a second sunrise behind the fog. Even though all the doors and windows  were closed, the tiny squares of every screen filled with water drops. I could not see the mountain range or the valley or even a poplar tree. Surrounded by a blanket of white moisture, I felt a little uneasy and claustrophobic. I don't like being closed in. I sleep with my bedroom door open and choose not to have curtains or blinds in my kitchen, living room and dining room. I like light, and I like to be able to see what is outside.
When I write I love looking up from the  page to see what Nature is up to-the dogwood changing through the seasons, a hawk soaring, the blond squirrel scurrying up the lavender oak trunk or the native grasses swaying in the breeze. The very presence of the natural world keeps me company and settles me into writing. Often I rely on the external world to jumpstart me on to the page.
But in the fog, the only external presence was the cloud wall pressing against the screen and glass. For more than four days in this white world...
To read the full article, click here.
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 Kathleen Moloney-Tarr, a graduate of Shalem's Spiritual Guidance Program, enjoys the privilege of offering spiritual companionship to those of all faiths who seek contemplative, prayerful space to notice and turn toward the sacred Presence in their lives. She holds membership and the ethical commitments of Spiritual Directors International, The Unitarian Universalist Society for Community Ministries, the Shalem Society for Contemplative Leadership and the Unitarian Universalist Spiritual Directors Network. Kathleen also writes poetry and personal essays, weaves and knits, and leads workshops such as Writing Your Spiritual Journey.
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Spiritual Guidance Program
Now Accepting Applications
- Do you companion others on their spiritual journeys?
- Do others see your spiritual commitment and your gift of spiritual companioning?
- Do you desire support and enrichment for this ministry?
Shalem's Spiritual Guidance: Nurturing the Call, designed to nurture the spiritual heart of those called to the ministry of "holy listening" is now accepting applications.
"This is an amazing, transformative program-so deeply thought out and planned. Thank you for all of your careful attention to every detail!"
Shalem's Spiritual Guidance Program  draws on the rich resources of Christian contemplative tradition to enhance and deepen the spiritual lives of those called to this ministry. At its heart is the radical conviction that spiritual companionship is a form of prayer and that contemplative listening comes not so much from a set of skills but from grounding in one's relationship with God.
"I feel nurtured and transformed from the inside out. This transformation will be reflected in my ministry and in all parts of my life."
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SGP Residency
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To support this understanding, the Program offers an environment that nurtures an increasing openness to the many ways God's Spirit is seeking to be alive in both our participants and in those whom they companion on life's spiritual journey. This is done in a spacious, prayer-filled atmosphere with the support and guidance of committed peers and Shalem's seasoned staff. Always, the emphasis is on an open, immediate awareness of God's presence.
"I have experienced a deepening of trust in God and growing confidence in the silence and trust the quality of the presence I bring is enough-that I can let go more and more of my need to fix, to offer advice and let God be God."
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Spiritual Guidance Program Class of 2013
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Spiritual Guidance Program Class of 2014
Applications accepted September - January
Application deadlines: December 1, 2012; January 15, 2013
Program begins: February 2013
First residency: July 16-25, 2013
Second residency: June 3-12, 2014
Program ends: December 2014
To download a detailed program brochure (PDF) that includes information about the at-home work, residency topics, peer groups and other program components, click here.
If you would like to apply for this program, contact Christine Jeffrey [email protected] the Program Registrar at 301-897-7334 or download the application form (PDF) by clicking here.
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Want to know more about spiritual direction?
 Shalem has a number of resources to deepen your understanding of spiritual direction. If you are called to give or receive spiritual direction, perhaps one of the following may be helpful.
Featuring this month's eNews author & Spiritual Guidance Program graduate, Kathleen Moloney-Tarr. Kathleen talks with the UU Society of Community Ministries about the ministry of spiritual direction and what it like to be a spiritual director.
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On Being a Spiritual Guide
October 6, 2012
This will be a day to explore a contemplative approach to the ministry of spiritual direction. The day will include reflections on contemplative spiritual direction, times for individual and communal prayer and discernment, and times for optional sharing. There will also be time to answer questions about the distinctions and overlaps between counseling, group spiritual direction, and individual spiritual direction. For those interested in Shalem's Spiritual Guidance Program, there will be time for questions and comments.
Saturday October, 6, 2012
10:00am -3:30pm
St. Paul's College, 3015 4th St. NE, Washington, DC
Led by Liz Ward, Director of Shalem's Spiritual Guidance Program
$40. Please bring a bag lunch.
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Group Spiritual Direction WorkshopSeptember 30 - October 3, 2012
- Experience group spiritual direction within a prayerful community
- Deepen your contemplative grounding for this prayer practice through authentic sharing and faithful listening
- Expand your capacity to listen to God on behalf of others
- For beginners and experienced practitioners
September 30-October 3, 2012.
Held at The Bellfry, beautiful home in mountains of Southern Virginia, near Lexington, VA.
Led by Anne Grizzle, Patience Robbins, Nan Weir.
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New Special for the Shalem Community
15% off Tolle tickets!
The case sensitive discount code is: Shalem.
Look below the offered prices and click on discount code.
Experience the visionary author of The Power of Now and A New Earth in a face�-to-face encounter "in the moment." Join us for a rare opportunity to be drawn into the "spaciousness that words can only point to" by the conscious presence of Eckhart. "The most important part of us is totally unrecognized by the majority of people," teaches Eckhart Tolle. Living in Presence will help you discover your essential nature, through Eckhart's one-of-a-kind "pointers" about finding freedom from excessive thinking, aligning with whatever arises in the moment, the nature of consciousness, and more. Thursday, October 4, 7:30-9:00pm
The Warner Theatre, 513 13th Street, NW Washington, DC.Co�-produced by Eckhart Tolle TV, Sounds True, Grace Productions and Eckhart Teachings.  
Shalem is a co-�sponsor of this event.
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Empowering Leadership I: Listening for the Source of WisdomOctober 12, 2012
 Empowering Leadership is grounded in listening to the Wisdom that is available within every one of us--a divine wellspring of courage, integrity and renewal.
This workshop will be composed of a seminar, specific practices for cultivating presence and awareness, questions for reflection, and group interaction. You will have the opportunity to reflect with other leaders on today's challenges and opportunities and the call to empowering leadership.
Empowering Leadership I: Listening for the Source of Wisdom
Friday, October 12
10:00am - 4:00pm
Shalem Library, 3025 Fourth St. NE, Suite 22, Washington, DC
Led by Ann Dean, Leah Rampy & Kendrick Curry
$100 for the individual workshop -- or --
$275 for the entire Empowering Leadership series, which includes:
Empowering Leadership II: Discernment in Transition, 1/26/13
Empowering Leadership III: Conflict and Creativity, 4/19/13
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