Praise of Glory| OLSC

Praise of Glory

July 2-24, 2025

Desire to renew the gift of spiritual fatherhood that the Father has blessed you with in Christ? Withdraw from the world and enter into great silence in the Carmelite tradition for twenty-four days with meditations composed by St. Elisabeth of the Trinity. The retreat includes Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, opportunties for confession, daily conferences, daily meetings with the retreat master, daily spiritual exercises, a booklet for journalling with meditations drawn from “Heaven in Faith” and "Last Retreat" in her complete works, and ample silence for prayer.

Meet the Team

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Retreat Facilitator

Dr. Anthony Lilles

Anthony Lilles has taught graduate level theology and assisted in clergy formation since 1994, having served at St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Denver, St. John Vianney Theological Seminary in Denver, and St. John’s Seminary in Camarillo prior to joining the faculty of St. Patrick’s Seminary. With a BA in theology from Franciscan University of Steubenville, as well as an ecclesiastical licentiate and doctorate in spiritual theology from the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas in Rome (the Angelicum), he is specialized in St. Elisabeth of the Trinity and the Carmelite Doctors of the Church. He co-founded the Avila Institute for Spiritual Formation and the High Calling Program for priestly vocations. He also founded and serves as president for the John Paul II Center for Contemplative Culture. From 2024 through 2027, he will be committed to a new initiative for priestly renewal jointly sponsored by St. Patrick’s Seminary and the High Calling program of the Avila Foundation. He blogs at Spiritual Direction and podcasts at Discerning Hearts.

Chaplain

Fr. Sean Aaron, LC

Fr. Shawn Aaron, born January 25, 1968, in Ridgecrest, CA, joined the Legionaries of Christ in 1991 in Cheshire, Connecticut. He studied philosophy and theology at the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum in Rome and was ordained a priest on Christmas Eve 2002. After ordination, he served as development director for the Legionaries and later as retreat director at Our Lady of Santa Clara in Cupertino, CA. From 2009 to 2010, he was President of Southern Catholic College in Georgia, and from 2010 to 2017, served as National Chaplain for The Lumen Institute in New York. He currently sits on the boards of Divine Mercy University and the Lumen Institute. In 2017, he became North American Territorial Vicar, and in 2020 was appointed North American Territorial Director of the Legionaries of Christ, a role renewed in 2023. He plays a key role in the governance of Regnum Christi, which established a new structure approved by the Holy See in 2019.

Chaplain

Fr. Daniel Wilson, LC

Fr. Daniel Wilson is a priest of the Legionaries of Christ religious congregation. He studied at Cal State Fullerton and University of Dallas prior to entering the religious order and his priestly formation studies in Rome at Regina Apostolorum Athenaeum. He was ordained in 2002 and since has served as a spiritual director and retreat preacher for the spirituality of the Regnum Christi Ecclesial Movement in the diocese of Baltimore, New York, Philadelphia, San Jose and most recently in Calgary. In 2016 the Legionaries of Christ was given a parish in Calgary, Canada which he served as the Associate Pastor for Sacred Heart Catholic church. In the diocese of Calgary, he worked together with the Regnum Christi Movement for collaborating with the post synodal diocesan renewal for the New Evangelization to engage the leadership of the laity through formation and personal accompaniment to strengthen the identity and missionary discipleship for marriages, family life, and youth Catholic outreach. He is proud to be a Catholic priest of Jesus Christ.

Practicals

The basic structure of the day consists of the three meals, plus the Celebration of the Eucharist before lunch and a couple hours of optional adoration in the evening after dinner.  This offers a simple structure of community activities for the day and allows for plenty of personal time for prayer.  In addition, you will meet with your director daily, during which time you can review the previous day’s experiences, and go over the content for the upcoming day.   

Silence

Silence alone powerfully opens the soul to the movements of God.  We ask that retreatants keep exterior silence for their own benefit and to respect others.  We also encourage retreatants to keep interior silence by disconnecting from the noise of the world and unplugging from electronic devices for the duration of the retreat.  Keeping silence may sound daunting, but you will be in an interior dialogue with the Lord.  Note: complete silence cannot be guaranteed, especially during weekdays.

Meals

Healthy and balanced meals will be provided, and coffee, tea, fruit and snacks will be available throughout the retreat.  Breakfast will be in silence and each one can come and go on their own.  During lunch we listen to an audio book on themes of the spiritual life or on the life of a saint.  At dinner we listen to appropriate classical music.

Schedule

The regular schedule is as follows: 8:00 breakfast, 11:30 Celebration of the Eucharist, followed by lunch, 6:00 dinner, 7:00 adoration, 9:00 night prayer and benediction.  Arrivals are at 4:00 pm so you can get situated and have an introduction before dinner.  Departures are by 10:00 am.  For custom retreats different arrival and departure times can be accommodated; please inquire when you register.   

Amenities

You will have a private bedroom with an ensuite bathroom.  Linens, towels, hair dryers, as well as basic toiletries such as soap, shampoo, conditioner, and moisturizer are provided.  You will want to bring other personal toiletries & medications, comfortable clothes, and footwear for walking if you desire.  Notebooks and pens will be provided; bring your bible and rosary. 