
Mysterium
Paschale
An In-Person Retreat
with
Father Vincent Pizzuto, Ph.D.
Thursday, April 6 – Sunday, April 9
Retreat Theme The church is most herself in the celebration of the liturgy, where in Word and Sacrament, rite and ritual, sign and symbol she reveals in herself the whole history of salvation in praise of the Risen Lord in her midst. The cosmological scope and theological depth of the liturgy comes to expression in shared words, gestures, symbols, and in the sacrament of the Eucharist par excellence. Through the liturgy, the archetypes of light and darkness, life and death, creation and redemption unfold dramatically, not merely as a remembrance of things past, nor the perpetuation of timeless myth. Rather, the liturgy unites past, present, and future in the Eternal Now.
The Triduum marks the holiest season of the Christian calendar and incorporates the most ancient and transformative rituals of the Christian Church: the washing of feet, the veneration of the cross, the blessing of fire and light, and the Mass of the Resurrection. In this immersive retreat, Fr. Vincent will invite the full participation of the retreatants in each of the four liturgies of the Triduum, while offering theological reflections on their fundamental themes and movements. Outdoor walks and movement meditation will open time for participants to reflect communally on the mystical theology of the liturgy. Everything from the structure of the liturgies themselves, their ritual words and actions, and the liturgical symbols and vestments will be explored.
Presenter Bio Father Vincent Pizzuto, Ph.D. is Professor of New Testament Studies and Christian Mysticism in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at the (Jesuit) University of San Francisco. He received his doctorate in New Testament Exegesis from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium (2003) and has since published and presented internationally in the areas of New Testament christology, ecological discipleship, marriage equality, inter-religious dialogue, Christian mysticism and contemplative Christian spirituality. In 2018 he published his second book, Contemplating Christ: The Gospels and the Interior Life with Liturgical Press; translated in Spanish, Contemplar a Cristo: Los Evangelios y la vida interior, (Desclée de Brouwer) in January 2022. As an Episcopal priest Fr. Vincent serves as Vicar of St. Columba’s Episcopal Church and Retreat House in Inverness, California. Working for the advancement of contemplative Christianity, he has reinvigorated the mission and ministry of St. Columba’s through the introduction of contemplative eucharistic liturgies, public lectures, online courses, directed retreats, thought provoking sermons, an online blog and a weekly online study of his book through the Meditation Chapel.
