Three Week Meditation Retreat 2020
with Rabbi Jeff Roth, Sheila Katz and Brian Arnell
at The Fitzgerald Center in Jemez Springs, NM
December 29, 2019 - January 19th, 2020
We are very excited to be holding our 11th annual three-week meditation retreat in New Mexico.
The Fitzgerald Center is located in northern New Mexico in the village of Jemez Springs. It sits tucked in the Jemez Mountains amid fifteen acres of canyons, mesas, and ponderosa pines. Native lands surround the Center with spectacular views, unrivaled sunrises and sunsets and a sacredness that is felt upon arrival. The presence of the Jemez river running through the property affords many special places for reflection, peace, quiet and a sense of wonder.
Across the street is one of the most beautiful prehistoric and historic sites in the Southwest. It includes the stone ruins of a 500 year old Indian village and the San José de los Jemez church dating to 1620. The village of Giusewa was built in the narrow San Diego Canyon by the ancestors of the present-day people of Jemez Pueblo. These enchanted lands offer renewal of mind and spirit, healing waters, tranquil settings, and a peacefulness found in nature’s beauty.
The housing at the Fitzgerald Center are all simple suites – bedroom, small study and private bathroom. Some have a single beds, some have two twin beds.
The Fitzgerald Center is easily accessible from Albuquerque and Santa Fe.
Structure of the Retreat
Using the vehicle of silence and a variety of Jewish meditation approaches this retreat will help you to look deeply into your own life. The retreat includes daily periods of prayer, chant and yoga. Daily instruction in meditation will help guide both beginning and advanced practitioners into the sacred space of the retreat process. Throughout the retreat we will maintain social silence. There will also be times for questions and answers as well as small group and private interviews with the instructors.
Our hope is that a significant number of people will want to sit for the full three weeks. Preference will be given to those sitting the entire retreat – shorter periods will be considered only when space permits. The retreat will be limited to 28 people.
Registration Information
The retreat fees cover room and board and other retreat costs. The retreat fees do not include support for the teaching staff. Donations to support their work will be discussed at the end of the retreat.
Costs for the retreat are:
Double room with private bath: $1,850
Single room with private bath: $2,400
Financial support is available through The Awakened Heart Project.
Contact Jeff@awakenedheartproject.org with requests for aid.
For questions about registration or for additional information contact brian@awakenedheartproject.org.
The retreat will be held at the Fitzgerald Center, 18161 Highway 4, Jemez Springs, NM 87025. All meals are vegetarian. Space limited to 24 people.
All meals are vegetarian, with some fish. Space limited to 24 people.
To register, please click on the "Register Now" button above and make a partial payment. One half of the total is recommended amount to pay to reserve your spot in the retreat. The balance will be due later. Financial support is available through The Awakened Heart Project.
Faculty Biographies
Rabbi Jeff Roth is the founder and Director of The Awakened Heart Project for Contemplative Judaism. He was the co-founder of Elat Chayyim where he served as Executive Director and Spiritual Director for 13 years. He is the co-leader of the Jewish Mindfulness Teacher Training program and has facilitated of over 190 Jewish meditation retreats. He is the author of, Jewish Meditation Practices for Everyday Life and Me, Myself and God from Jewish lights Publishing.
Rabbi Joanna Katz, teaches Jewish Meditation, and Mindfulness Meditation with an emphasis on Insight and Loving-kindness practice. She is the Jewish Chaplain at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility were she serves women who teach her what it means to open to the Divine in daily life and live with compassion. She serves as a spiritual resource and guide to an ongoing women’s meditation group that has been meeting weekly for 12 years. Joanna lives with her family in New York’s glorious Hudson River Valley.
Brian Arnell re-connected with Judaism in the late 70’s when he joined a Jewish renewal community in Portland Oregon. In the ‘80’s he was one of the founders of P’nai Or of Porland, a renewal congregation. In 1998, he moved full-time to the Elat Chayyim retreat center in New York’s Hudson Valley and began intensive study of Jewish contemplative practice. He left the retreat center in 2006 and moved to Philadelphia. He practices as the senior Teacher and Director of Springboard Meditation Sangha, and offers Mindfulness-Based Counseling to individual clients and students.