Among the six live-in groups, one focused on midlife as a sacred season of spiritual replanting. Facilitated by Sr. Ranette L. Angot, ODN, at the Lestonnac Youth Center, this three-day retreat invited participants to embrace midlife not as a crisis, but as a threshold of renewal.
Midlife often brings questions, transitions, and quiet grief. Yet through the lens of Isaiah 43:19 - "See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” —participants embraced hope as a courageous trust in grace. Anchored in the Ignatian Examen, they traced God’s presence across past seasons and discerned new seeds being sown.
Midlife became a moment to reclaim vocation and deepen commitment to Ignatian values: Cura Personalis, Finding God in All Things, Tantum Quantum, Discernment, and Magis. Inspired by Philippians 3:13–14— “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead…”—retreatants reflected on their personal journey and its intersection with Xavier University’s mission and the wider Jesuit tradition.
As roles evolve, midlife invites generativity—leading with empathy, mentoring with wisdom, and serving with spiritual depth. Echoing John 15:16— “I chose you and appointed you to bear fruit—fruit that will last…”—the retreat culminated with the Sacraments of Reconciliation and the Eucharist, sending participants forth renewed in courage, clarity and commitment.
Day 1: Identity, Cura Personalis and Finding God in All Things. Reflections drew from Erik Erikson, Carl Jung, and Gail Sheehy’s book entitled Passages, exploring the spiritual contours of identity and midlife transition.
Day 2: Intimacy and Generativity. Guided by Tantum Quantum and Discernment, participants explored relational depth and the call to mentor and serve.
Day 3: Mission and Hope. Through symbolic art and shared prayer, retreatants expressed their commitment to Magis—living with re-dimensioned purpose; loving and giving more because of love.
A Sacred Space for Renewal
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