Jesuit Retreat House to close

By KATE BLAIN- | Comments: 0 | Leave a comment

More than 60 years after its inception, the Jesuit Retreat House at Auriesville will close at the end of December.

Citing a decreasing number of retreatants, Rev. John Marzolf, SJ, director of the Shrine of the North American Martyrs (of which the retreat house is a part), said that the house was not drawing enough income to remain open.

The Martyrs' Shrine, which is visited by approximately 50,000 people each year, will not be affected by the retreat house's closure.

History

"It's sad," Father Marzolf stated. "I think we've been doing good work, but there are not enough [retreatants] to warrant its continuance."

The retreat house building opened in the late 1930s as a "tertianship," a site where Jesuits of the New York province could receive the last of their training before taking their final vows. Other priests began coming to the "Sacred Heart Retreat House" for retreats around 1941.

In the 1950s, one priest on retreat there wrote that "the place has charm and an inspiration that is never dull." That affection is still shared by the laity who gather there; retreat director Elizabeth Simcoe told The Evangelist that one retreatant brought his entire family along for a recent retreat and said they enjoyed the experience.

Falling numbers

However, the retreat house, which can accommodate about 60 people overnight, has of late been pulling in only ten to 15 people per retreat. The Jesuit community that directs the house debated its closure for several years, changing its retreat offerings and hiring Mrs. Simcoe, its first female retreat director, in the hope of drawing more retreatants.

The effort did not make a significant difference, and Father Marzolf told The Evangelist that the Jesuit provincial for this area decided that those who wish to attend a retreat would be better served by the Diocese's other retreat centers.

The last retreat scheduled for the Jesuit Retreat House will be a mid-December gathering commemorating the 30th anniversary of Trappist author Rev. Thomas Merton. The Jesuit community is presently discussing options for the house's future use with several organizations.

Sad moment

Mrs. Simcoe, who just joined the retreat house's staff last November, said that her reaction to the closure is "great sadness. The loss of the retreat house is a loss for our Diocese."

Personally, she added, "I really have loved the work I have done here. It's been an exceptional experience. I regret there isn't another way we could continue this ministry."

(09-03-98) [[In-content Ad]]