Mary Theotokos Retreat Center Vermont

12/13/2025

Please consider donating to our annual appeal ! We rely on your donations to keep the Center operational ! Please be generous and every donation is tax deductible !

12/13/2025

Check out our Fall/Winter newsletter !

07/10/2025

A wonderful Fourth of July retreat from the Franciscans of Primitive Observance last weekend!

Today's quotes for reflection come from St. Francis of Assisi:

"We must all be on our guard against pride and empty boasting and beware of worldly or natural wisdom. A worldly spirit loves to talk a lot but do nothing, striving for the exterior signs of holiness that people can see, with no desire for true piety and interior holiness of spirit."

"While you are proclaiming peace with your lips, be careful to have it even more fully in your heart."

To learn more and book a retreat call Rob at (802) 467-3009

06/20/2025

Greetings in the Lord this lovely summer!

Today's quotes for reflection come from St. Therese of Lisieux:

"If I did not simply live from one moment to another, it would be impossible for me to be patient; but I only look at the present, I forget the past, and I take good care not to forestall the future."

"I learned from experience that joy does not reside in the things about us, but in the very depths of the soul, that one can have it in the gloom of a dungeon as well as in the palace of a king."

To learn more and book a retreat, call Rob at (802) 467-3009

05/19/2025

Happy Birthday Bishop Paul !

Today, our dear Bishop Paul is celebrating his birthday. On this special occasion, we sincerely congratulate our beloved Bishop and pray that God grants him abundant blessings, good health, and many happy years to come. На многії і благії літа владико!

05/17/2025

Greetings in the Lord this month of Mary!

The spring sunshine has made for beautiful days and blossoming trees here in the Northeast Kingdom 🌞🌷

With the inspiration of morning birdsong ringing from the trees, today's quotes for reflection come from Saint Isidore and Pope Benedict XVI, respectively:

"And without music there can be no perfect knowledge, for there is nothing without it. For even the universe itself is said to have been put together with a certain harmony of sounds, and the very heavens revolve under the guidance of harmony."

"Singing itself is almost like flying, rising up to God; it is in some way an anticipation of eternity when we will be able to “unceasingly sing God’s praise”.”

To learn more and book a retreat call Rob at 802-467-3009

04/27/2025

Greetings in the Lord! 🌻

We know spring is finally here when the daffodils start blooming! Winter left us with a sinkhole, so we'll be installing a new culvert this summer. We're looking forward to more warm, sunshiny weeks like this one for the near future! 🌞

Today's quotes for reflection come from Pope Francis, may he rest in peace with the Lord:

“Just as we need the courage to be happy, we also need the courage to live simply.”

“Holiness doesn’t mean doing extraordinary things, but doing ordinary things with love and faith.”

“I prefer a church which is bruised, hurting, and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security.”

To learn more and book a retreat call Rob at 802-467-3009 .

04/12/2025

Greetings in the Lord!

It's a typical Vermont April with the weather giving us three seasons each week 😅 The snow may be getting old, but we're grateful for the wonder that this climate provides, being uniquely suited to maple syrup production. Looking forward to Maple Fest over the next few weekends!

Today's quotes for reflection comes from Michael Acaldo:

"When we say we served 300 meals, that's one thing, but when we say we had 300 opportunities to serve Christ and we did--that's a whole different perspective."

"Every act of charity is an act of worship."

To learn more and book a retreat, call Rob at 802-467-3009 .

04/04/2025

Greetings in the Lord!

Today's quotes for reflection come from Mother Angelica:

"Faith is what gets you started. Hope is what keeps you going. Love is what brings you to the end.”

"The apostles were dodos, dummies. But all the smart people in the world at the time wouldn’t take chances. That is the same problem we have today. The world is looking for intellectuals and the Lord is looking for dummies."

"I'm not afraid to fail...I'm scared to death of dying and having the Lord say to me, 'Angelica, this is what you might have done had you trusted more.'"

To learn more and book a retreat call Rob at 802-467-3009 .

03/23/2025

Greetings in the Lord this Lenten season!

We are well into mud season here in the Northeast Kingdom, with beautiful days in the 50's and 60's most of the week. We've enjoyed getting to go out without jackets and enjoy the lovely sunshine! 🌞

Today's quotes for reflection come from Pope St. John Paul II and St. Therese of Lisieux, respectively:

"Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth."

"True charity consists in bearing all our neighbor’s defects – not being surprised at their weakness, but edified at their smallest virtues."

To learn more and book a retreat call Rob at 802-467-3009 !

03/14/2025

Greetings in the Lord!

This week we celebrated the warm weather with the windows open for the first time in 2025 🌞

Today's quote for reflection comes from Venerable Fulton Sheen:

“You will never be happy if your happiness depends on getting solely what you want. Change the focus. Get a new center. Will what God wills, and your joy no man shall take from you.”

To learn more and book a retreat call Rob at 802-467-3009

03/08/2025

Greetings in the Lord this Lenten season!

Mud season thaws are beginning here in the Northeast Kingdom, and the sap is flowing for bountiful sugaring.* Soon the crocuses will be sprouting in beautiful blues and purples before everything blooms for the summer.

*For those unfamiliar with the term, "sugaring" is the process of harvesting and boiling down sap from sugar maple trees into syrup, sugar, and cream.

Today's quotes for reflection come from Pope Francis:

“Love is the greatest power for the transformation of reality because it pulls down the walls of selfishness and fills the ditches that keep us apart.”

“If we see someone who needs help, do we stop? There is so much suffering and poverty, and a great need for good Samaritans.”

“Let us not forget: if we are to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus, our lives must bear witness to what we preach.”

To learn more and book a retreat, call Rob at 802-467-3009 .