Pastoral Retreat Provides Time for Prayer, Reflection, and Renewal
For four days, clergy from across the Orthodox Church in America set aside the ordinary demands of parish life to pray, listen, learn, and be renewed in fellowship with one another.
The 2026 Pastoral Retreat of the Orthodox Church in America’s Office of Pastoral Life was held September 29–October 2 at the University of Saint Mary of the Lake in Mundelein, IL. About 100 bishops, priests, and deacons participated in this year’s retreat. Clergy gathered around the theme “The Fields Are Ripe for the Harvest,” sharing in a dedicated time of prayer, reflection, conversation, and brotherhood.
His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon noted in his opening remarks: “Setting aside a time for prayer, reflection, and pastoral renewal is not an escape from our responsibilities as pastors. Rather, these moments of rest and renewal are necessary so that we might be strengthened and re-energized to return to our sacred ministries by nourishing our own souls and strengthening the spiritual brotherhood of the priesthood.”
The retreat featured presentations by Archpriest John Parker, Dean of Saint Tikhon’s Orthodox Theological Seminary in South Canaan, PA, and Mother Christophora, Abbess of Holy Transfiguration Monastery in Ellwood City, PA.
Father Parker spoke on “Radical Growth and a Return to the Roots of Discipleship,” inviting clergy to reflect on the pastoral implications of growth and the need to remain rooted in the fundamental work of forming disciples of Christ.
Mother Christophora offered a reflection entitled “The One who Endures to the End will be Saved: Clues from the Cloister,” drawing upon the wisdom and experience of monastic life to explore perseverance and faithful service.
The retreat also included optional workshops led by clergy and ministry leaders from across the Orthodox Church in America. Topics included preaching and spiritual hunger, ministry in established and aging parishes, cultivating a culture of hospitality, digital discernment, stewardship and parish growth, and discerning and preparing men for priestly vocations.
Prayer and worship remained at the heart of the Pastoral Retreat. The retreat included daily prayer, Great Vespers, and a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy for the Feast of the Protection of the Mother of God on Thursday, October 1, at New Gračanica Monastery in Third Lake, Illinois.
Alongside the formal sessions and services, clergy shared meals, conversation, fellowship, and time for rest. These less structured moments provided opportunities for clergy to strengthen existing relationships and build new ones.
The 2026 Pastoral Retreat continued the Office of Pastoral Life’s commitment to providing regular opportunities for clergy to step away from the demands of parish ministry and attend to the spiritual, pastoral, and fraternal dimensions of their vocation.
The next Office of Pastoral Life Pastoral Retreat will be held from October 19–22, 2027 at the University of Saint Mary of the Lake in Mundelein, IL.
About the Office of Pastoral Life
The Orthodox Church in America’s Office of Pastoral Life supports the well-being of clergy and their families, who are foundational to parish life across North America. Believing that the health of the Church is inseparable from the health of her clergy, the Office offers programs that build resilience, connection, and pastoral joy. Programs include Thriving in Ministry peer-learning groups, Financial Health Initiatives, quarterly Synaxis Gatherings, retreats, and Clergy Wives Ministry. In partnership with bishops, dioceses, parishes and generous donors, the Office of Pastoral Life helps create sustainable conditions in which priests, deacons and their families throughout the Orthodox Church in America can flourish spiritually, vocationally, and personally through every season of parish ministry.