Dates/Time:
Monday, Sept 14th, 2026 @ 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM EST
PARTICIPANTS: open to all men
This is a virtual event taking place on Zoom
Dates/Time:
“What is the focus of this retreat?”
Self-Compassion is mentally treating yourself the way you want to be treated.
What is the purpose of this retreat?
However, most never learned this; the consequences are the negative feelings we experience, which is suffering. You will learn to recognize suffering, why it happens, and how to minimize it by being self-compassionate.
“Why come to this retreat?”
Why would I want to come to this retreat? I can learn how my mind automatically creates my suffering. Then work with and train it to minimize that suffering by loving and being kinder to myself. Thus, enabling me to be more loving to others.
Special Note: This an exclusively online event. Once registration closes, you will be sent the Zoom link that will give you access to the event.
Please refer to the resources below to learn more about Zoom, download the software or review a short user tutorial.
What is Zoom?
Learn more about Zoom // Zoom is the software we use for Virtual Council Circles and many other Illuman gatherings in light of the pandemic. Zoom provides remote conferencing services using cloud computing and is a downloadable communications software that combines video conferencing, online meetings, chat, and mobile collaborations. Learn more at this link!
Getting Started with Zoom
Follow this article to learn about the basic features of the Zoom client on Windows and Mac. This give some step by step guidance on navigating Zoom. Click here for the article!
Download Zoom
Click here to download Zoom.Zoom is available on Mobile and Tablet and works with either Mac and Windows operating systems.
Related Quotes and Recommended Reading
“We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”
– Albert Einstein
– Albert Einstein
“Before I can tell my life what I want to do with it, I must listen to my life telling me who I am… Discovering vocation does not mean scrambling toward some prize just beyond my reach but accepting the treasure of true self I already possess.”
– Parker Palmer
“Contemplation is an exercise in keeping your heart and mind spaces open long enough for the mind to see other hidden material.”
– Richard Rohr
When there are no enemies within, the enemies outside cannot hurt you.
– African Proverb
The retreat leaders:
Wisdom Elder:
Blair Ashby //
In 1994, Blair owned a recording studio and was asked to transfer a video series about Christian mysticism to audio cassettes. In the first fifteen minutes of the introductory tape, the host Fr. Thomas Keating said so much about reality that Blair’s head felt as if it had exploded. Those new insights unknowingly germinated a desire to experience and eventually teach this reality. In 1997, Keating’s organization asked Blair to record Fr. Thomas live, and Blair has been recording spiritual teachers and philosophers ever since. Through personal relationships with dozens of these spiritual teachers, philosophers, and scientists, he has learned that the root problems we humans have in our lives are the distorted ways we think and navigate reality. More importantly, he has learned some methods for minimizing or eliminating those distortions so we can live more joyfully, peacefully, and contentedly.
Blair now teaches his Creating Self-Compassion class at least six times a year, does private coaching with clients worldwide, and teaches Communication and Critical Thinking at a trade school.
You can reach Blair through his website www.Self-CompassionateLiving.com or at Blair@Self-CompassionateLiving.com
Weaver:
Phil Noonan //
I have been married for 37 years. My wife Cathy and I, have three grown children and two dogs: all have been and continue to be my teachers…the learning never stops! My spiritual journey has led me to the teachings of Richard Rohr, the 12 Step program and my marriage as a spiritual practice. I completed my MROP in 2014 at Pilgrim Park, IL; participated in Elder Cohort 5 in 2019 and am an Elder with Illuman of Indiana-Michigan Council and student at the Living School with the Center for Action and Contemplation.
