Our first Janua Caeli Retreat Day was on April 21st and our theme for was Fullness of Grace: How to Receive an Overabundance of God’s Gifts.  Our retreat master was Rev. Quan Tran, priest for the Diocese of Orange in California and founder of Fullness of Grace, a ministry aimed at helping Catholics and other Christians grow in their spiritual life by better understanding supernatural grace, and how to gain an abundance of God's gifts by imitating the qualities of the Blessed Virgin Mary. 

The day of the retreat included talks, Eucharistic Adoration,  Confessions, Benediction, Mass and the Divine Office prayed with the Dominican nuns.  Our novitiate sisters also joined the young women in the parlor during afternoon recreation for an art project.  Most of the young women had never done much art, but were surprised at their own hidden talents uncovered through the simple watercolor project the sisters showed them and all had fun – it ranked as one of the top three moments of the retreat day.

Here's a bit more of what our retreatants had to say at the end of the day:

"I liked best the helpful information to live out grace in the secular world..."

"Father Tran shared much insight about developing our spiritual life.  I liked best the 12 essential dispositions needed to receive the fullness of God's grace."

"God is so good to have inspired you to hold this Janua Caeli Retreat Day.  Thank you!"

"A few words to describe this retreat to someone else?  Contemplative, informative, unique, peaceful..."

"I really appreciated how we were integrated into the sisters' prayer schedule - a very close second was the recreation time with the sisters.  Thank you!"

A big thank you to Father Tran, the young women who attended and to all those whose prayers and support helped make this retreat day possible.  And if you missed this Janua Caeli, don't miss the next one in October!  Invite a friend and register!