Community Mennonite
Church Retreat
September 21 – 23, 2018
Camp Brethren Woods
Sabbath Soul Tending
with Anita Amstutz
Register online (and pay online)
Register online (pay by cash or check)
All are welcome, whether you are new to CMC, or have been here for many years. Come – all ages – for food, fun, reflection, and fellowship. Come for part of a day or the whole weekend!
Sabbath Soul Tending
Sabbath keeping is as relevant today as it was for the ancient Hebrews and early Christians. It is about rest, about resurrection, about re-membering the Lord of the Sabbath. Walter Bruggeman, Biblical Scholar, called Sabbath “Resistance to the Culture of Now". Ceasing our labors calls us to unplug from our cultural sirens and profit driven economy in order to understand the "grace of limits" and experience eternal time.
Retreat will be a time to carve out spaciousness and explore themes of Sabbath rhythm together—to rekindle our relationships with self, other, and God. As we tend our communal soul, we will re-imagine our lives, our work, and hopefully new ways of thinking and being!
Our retreat keynote speaker, Anita Amstutz, a native of Ohio, completed her seminary degrees at Associated Anabaptist Seminary and Pacific School of Religion. After a first career as a social worker, she became an ordained Mennonite minister, serving in congregational ministry along the Rocky Mountain region for 17 years. In her spare time she tends her soul by singing, caring for half a million honey bees, enjoying 2 cats, a husband and a plot of native desert plants.
Schedule
Friday
6-7:30 pm Registration
7:30-8:45 pm Session 1 with Anita Amstutz
Child care for children age 8 and up
9-10 pm Bonfire, s’mores, and songs
Quiet hours from 10 pm-7 am
Saturday
7:30-10am Breakfast
10-12pm Session 2 with Anita Amstutz
Childcare for children under 2
Planned activities for elementary and junior high youth
12-1 pm Lunch
1:00-5:00pm Free time and group activities –
hiking, games, Ultimate Frisbee, canoeing, bike-riding, or coloring
5-6pm Dinner
6-7pm Churchwide Game
7-8:30pm Team Trivia & MYF fundraiser snack
Quiet hours from 10pm-7am
Sunday
7:45-8:45am Breakfast
9-10 am Cabin and campsite cleanup
10-11:30am Worship with Anita Amstutz
11:45-12:45pm Lunch
1-2 pm Cleanup
Check-in is from 6-7:30 on Friday in Pine Grove. If you arrive later in the weekend, please stop by to pick up your nametag and confirm your registration.
Lodging options include tenting, camping in an RV, cabins for men only and for women only, family cabins, a youth cabin, or the comfort of your own home.
Meals will be catered by Camp Brethren Woods and supplemented by traditional CMC retreat foods such as barbequed chicken, a snack made by MYF, and homemade donuts.
Registration is available on the CMC website. Assistance with completing the online registration will be available at the retreat table in the fellowship hall on Sept 2, 9, and 16.
Retreat fees may be paid via the registration page on the website or in cash or by check, made payable to CMC with “Retreat” in the memo line. Please pay at the retreat table in the fellowship hall or in the church office. Retreat costs $50 plus $10 for a cabin or $5 to camp. Fees are capped at the cost of 3 family members. There is no fee for children under five.
Scholarships are available. Gifts to help cover those scholarships are welcome.
CMC’s Sunday worship will be held at Brethren Woods, beginning at 10 am.
What to bring
Sleeping bag/linens | Flashlight |
Personal supplies | $$ for MYF fundraiser |
Walking shoes | Musical instruments |
Insect repellant | Bible |
Flashlight | Outdoor game equipment |
Table games | Bike and helmet |
Camp Brethren Woods is located at the base of the Massanutten Mountain, about a 20-minute drive northeast of Harrisonburg, at 4896 Armentrout Path, Keezletown, Virginia.
From the South (i.e. Harrisonburg):
Take I-81 North to Exit 251 (Rt. 11 North). Follow Rt. 11 North for 2.85 miles. Turn Right onto Fellowship Road (Rt. 721) and follow for 1.25 miles. Turn left onto Indian Trail Road (Rt. 717) and follow for 0.4 miles. Turn Right onto Fridley Gap Road (Rt. 811) and follow for 3 miles. Bear Right onto Armentrout Path (Rt. 722) and follow for 1 mile. Brethren Woods is on the Left.
From the North (i.e. New Market):
Take I-81 South to Exit 257 (Mauzy). Follow Rt. 11 South for 2.2 miles. Turn Left onto Martz Road (Rt. 806) and follow for 3.5 miles to a stop sign. Turn Right onto Mountain Valley Road and follow for 1.8 miles. Turn Left onto Armentrout Path (Rt. 722) and follow for 1 mile. Brethren Woods is on the Left.
Please Note
- No pets
- No riding bikes after dark
- MYF sponsors will encourage high school youth to participate in all adult sessions and worship, but youth and parents have the ultimate responsibility for attendance.
- Youth who opt out of any activity (with parental permission) are asked to be respectful of others.
- Please respect nature – don’t leave trash.
- Please bring extra money if you would like to participate in the MYF fundraiser snack on Saturday evening. Your generous donations are appreciated.
Questions?
Hannah Bailey: hannahbailey418@gmail.com
Ben Bailey: bwbailey90@gmail.com
Linda Martin Burkholder: lmburkholder66@gmail.com