Programs for everyone

Seasonal and vocational retreats – These retreats are designed to provide a space for personal and professional renewal away from the demands of everyday life, using the Circle of Trust® approach.  Originally held in-person at retreat centers, they are taking various forms online, but all include small group conversations, journaling, and reflecting on poetry and prose taken from diverse wisdom traditions. 

Peer Learning Circles - These are groups of four or five that gather on monthly calls that last about two hours each.  Each person has the opportunity to share an issue and to receive support from their peers in that learning circle about that issue.  When initiated, each PLC must include a Courage & Renewal facilitator.

Clearness Committees - One of the hallmark practices of the Circle of Trust® approach is the Clearness Committee, a two-hour discernment process that happens in many Courage & Renewal retreats but can also be scheduled separately.  It is a process that helps us hear our own inner wisdom and the value of asking and hearing open, honest questions.  Prior preparation of the focus person and committee members by a trained facilitator is essential. 

Programs for elders

The Soul of Aging - A four-day institute for those who have experienced one or more Courage & Renewal programs and want to lead a small group, based on the Circle of Trust approach, in their congregation or community that addresses the spiritual dimensions of aging.

Journeying in the Autumn of Life - This Circle of Trust® retreat offers an opportunity to reflect in solitude and in community on the great questions we face in the autumn of life.  The retreat will include time and space for individuals and small groups, poems and stories, journaling, art, music, silence and dialogue as we reflect on the connection between the personal and professional identities of our past and our future.     

Programs for educators

Courage to Teach® - In a time when stress and pressure on teachers and administrators continue to rise because of internal and external demands, Courage to Teach® provides educators with an opportunity for rest, renewal and re-engagement with their identity and integrity as teachers.  It offers educators an opportunity to reflect on the inner dimensions of teaching and leading.  Participants engage in honest self-reflection and explore questions about purpose, values, and commitment to their challenging work.  In doing so, they increase their capacity to listen to self and others more deeply.

Programs for clergy and spiritual leaders

A Geography of Grace – A program of spiritual formation through discovery of the landscapes of the soul for those interested in offering a small group ministry in their local community.  

The Courage to Lead for Spiritual Leaders – The church today exists as a counter-cultural institution. Leading from within meets this moment in time with quiet, courageous and purposeful leadership. 

Clergy Soul Care – Peers meet monthly to befriend and support one another using the Circle of Trust® process.

Conversation With Your Life – A bi-vocational Circle of Trust® experience to find and explore the inner life for those who consider themselves “spiritual” but not religious.

Souls on Deck is a multi-year initiative for CCR facilitators from diverse faith communities and cultures leading programs in the spirituality/religion sector in a variety of capacities. This project focuses on creative community building, activating an ongoing community of practice, best practice sharing, idea generation and exploring important questions in our Circle of Trust work with regard to spiritual and religious communities and leaders.

This gathering is part of a longer commitment in which participants are participating in smaller ongoing communities of practice that meet monthly for 2-2.5 hours, and a seasonal virtual half-day gatherings for the entire cohort.

Ongoing Program: July 21, 2023 - December 31, 2024.

Programs sponsored by the Center for Courage & Renewal

Foundations of the Courage & Renewal Approach - This five-session online program, learn how the values, principles, and practices of the Courage & Renewal® approach, taken together, create trustworthy spaces to explore questions of meaning, purpose, and how to live authentically with integrity and courage.

Courage & Renewal Practicum - Deepen your engagement with the values, principles, and practices of the Courage & Renewal approach, gaining knowledge and insights on how to bring these ways of being and perceiving more fully into your own life while expanding your capacity to influence and transform the communities and institutions you care about.

The Courage & Renewal Facilitator Preparation Program is an 18-month leadership and apprenticeship program for carefully preparing and equipping facilitators to lead Circle of Trust® retreats and other programs rooted in the Courage & Renewal® approach.