Chapel of the Cross, Chapel Hill, NC

The Spiritual Life Committee provides opportunities to learn about spiritual practices and join in community to pursue guided meditation and contemplation. Our seasonal "quiet day" programs have become a much-anticipated tradition at the Chapel of the Cross. In recent years, programs have been offered on iconography, worshiping God in Creation (Earth Day), and Lenten disciplines. Additionally, we co-sponsor the annual Labyrinth during Holy Week at Binkley Baptist Church. Walking the labyrinth is a journey of reflection and spiritual renewal. (Interested parishioners can walk labyrinths locally in the chapel at UNC Hospitals, in the courtyard at St. Philip's in Durham, and at Camp Chestnut Ridge in Efland.)

The 2005-2006 program year will begin with an Autumn Quiet Day, an Introduction to Centering Prayer, led by the Rev. David Frazelle. Centering prayer is a contemporary form of an ancient, silent, contemplative way of prayer. David will provide a foundation and guide us in the practice of this method of prayer. Following the quiet day, he will foster this practice in our parish by convening a centering prayer group on Tuesday evenings from 5:30 to 6:30, in the chapel following Evening Prayer. The Autumn Quiet Day will be held on Saturday, September 17, from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the parish hall of St. Matthew's Episcopal Church in Hillsborough. (A light breakfast and a simple lunch will be served; small donations to cover food costs will be appreciated but are not required.) To register, please notify our parish office (919-929-2193). Directions and carpooling information are available. If you have questions, please contact Jan Seabock (jseabock@mindspring.com.)

This year's Advent Quiet Day program will be led by Fr. David McBriar, a Franciscan priest, whose pastoral ministry included Immaculate Conception in Durham and St. Francis in Raleigh. He also taught theology at the Franciscan School of Theology in Berkeley. Father David's program will focus on our inward and outward (in the world) journeys. Mark your calendars for Saturday, December 3, 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

The Rev. Tammy Lee will lead a Lenten Quiet Day retreat on the writings of Philip Newell in preparation for his visit to the Chapel of the Cross in November 2006. The program, which is scheduled for Saturday, March 4, 2006, will help us achieve a deeper spiritual experience of Lent.

An Easter Quiet Day is being planned for Saturday, April 29, or May 6, 2006, perhaps continuing the environmental theme that proved popular this year.

The committee welcomes all who seek to enrich their spiritual lives to our programs. Interested members of the parish, who would like to participate in creating opportunities to enhance the spiritual development of our church family, are invited to join the committee. In addition to planning programs, our meetings include devotion, meditation, and sharing our spiritual journeys.

Current Spiritual Life Committee members include Edward Baker, David Dodson, Noel Dunivant, Miriam Fahrer, Gayle Hartis, Vicky Jamieson-Drake, Gretchen Jordan, David Moore, Laurie Pahel, Robin MacNicol-Quinn, Harold Quinn, and Jan Seabock.

For more information about the committee and its work please contact Noel Dunivant (ndunivant@nc.rr.com)

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