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To: Priests
From: Monsignor James Schillinger, Director, Ongoing Formation of Priests
If you are anticipating retirement in the next few years, please consider participating in the Encore Priests program offered by the Institute for Priests and Presbyterates at St. Meinrad Seminary. This program prepares priests for their transition into retirement. Over the years, several of our priests have attended the pre-retirement workshop and have found a very worthwhile experience. Msgr. Churchwell was one of them and was a strong advocate for the program. Encore Priests is offered twice a year at St. Meinrad with the next session scheduled for November 26-29, 2018.
This four-day program, developed and facilitated by Dr. Richard P. Johnson, provides priests with an opportunity to redefine retirement as a spiritual journey. Identifying how personal strengths and talents have played out over years of ministry, while naming challenges for the future, serves to help form a positive and energizing perspective for a priest considering new opportunities for ministry in his later years.
More information, including a video clip of Dr. Johnson talking about the program is available online.
The Encore Priests workshop will address the following topics:
• Planning for transition into retirement
• Making retirement meaningful and purposeful
• Discovering your strengths and likely challenges
• Discovering 15 spiritual growth factors that can transform retirement into an energizing time of personal and spiritual development
Prior to the workshop, participants will complete a retirement success profile designed especially for priests to assess crucial factors for achieving personal success in this phase of life.
During the workshop, each participant will receive his personalized report and use it as a tool to create a personal and successful transition program.
The workshop will be at St. Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology. The fee is $650 and includes meals and accommodations. Funding from Ongoing Formation is available.
For more information and registration, please visit www.saintmeinrad.edu.