Introducing The 12 Days of Christmas Contemplations: "Reclaiming Joy."

A contemplative online journey to the heart of Christmas for dancing monks and weary pilgrims, joyful warriors and wounded healers, seekers and skeptics.

Dear fellow travelers, kindred spirits, dancing monks, weary pilgrims,

A confession first: We are not very Christmas-y people. At least not in the traditional sense. Usually, we arrive late for Advent, and recycle a tree from the curb, when neighbors are done with theirs. Thus, our take on the 12 Days of Christmas, - which we have only known as a silly song before - is born of an utter need:

What lies beyond traditions when we arrive in the silence of the silent night? What lies at the heart of this old story of Divine birth, and how does it matter to our own heart’s journey?

Every year we wonder anew if we want to challenge ourselves to this journey, and every year we are humbled again by the many across the globe, from Germany to New Zealand!, who join into this pilgrimage where seekers like us can take a break from the hustle and bustle, breathe, and wonder, guided and sustained by wise women and men before us  (including Mary, Joseph, Meister Eckhart, Hildegard, Rumi, Bonhoeffer, Kierkegaard and others).  

Together we will walk — in a contemplative spirit and in your own pace and time — from Christmas to the threshold where the old and new year meet, then all the way to Epiphany, guided by our heart’s longing and the many wise women and men before us.

Every day you will receive in your inbox a brief reflection, poem, photo meditation, blessing, or practice which you can unwrap like an unexpected Christmas gift.

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"I cannot express in words what the 12 Days of Christmas does for my soul. Your willingness to keep going despite trepidations means so much to so many. A thousand thank yous."

— Kathleen S., participant since 2018

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A gift from our heart to your’s

Now in its 7th year, and the first time here on substack, we invite you to journey with us through the 12 Days of Christmas and to find a place of rest and new beginnings. This online pilgrimage will lead you on a interior journey into the heart of hearts, at your own pace and time.

As we will try out this new venue here we have decided to give this year’s 12 Days of Christmas journey as a free gift from our heart to your’s.

All you need to do to receive your gift is to subscribe to our Cloister Notes here on substack and to help us grow this project into a movement of seekers who long for a quieter and deeper Christmas path. And if you are already on our list (yay!) please bring some one along who fits this description :-).

Of course, if you have been moved by these Contemplations before, or if you feel moved while walking with us, we gladly will accept your gift in return, e.g. by becoming a sustaining member of this journey, inviting a friend along, or giving a gift subscription.

This year’s theme: “Reclaiming joy” - really?!

Every year again I arrive at the Advent door somewhat weary.

What could I possibly say that would console the hearts of those exhausted and numb from too long a journey through pandemic years, political and personal turmoil; what could I possibly write in this aching world?

Thus the theme for this year’s journey through the 12 Days of Christmas was born: "Reclaiming Joy."

I am thinking of a joy which does not come easy, and which is not happiness. I think about a joy that is waiting at the depths of all being, to be reclaimed, and to be birthed time and again.

The 12 Days of Christmas Contemplations are not a pre-packaged retreat. Instead our Contemplations are offered as daily inspiration and meditations, sometimes brief, sometimes longer, written while walking along side you, raw and dusty like the streets to Bethlehem, one step at a time, never quite knowing the ending, other than at the Divine dwelling place.

And I invite you to join us, and travel along.

Will you journey with us? And will you bring some one along?

And may Christmas find you where you are, Almut (with Chuck and little one)

PS: If you are new here (as we are) please leave a ❤️ (top or bottom of this post) and make yourself known to us. Thank you, thank you.

Facilitators

Dr. Almut Furchert, OblSB is the woman behind www.cloisterseminars.org, which she started with her husband Chuck Huff, PhD, to offer retreats and seminars in the intersection of philosophy, psychology and healing. She is a German American teacher and practitioner, Benedictine oblate, wisdom seeker and retreat leader and has published on wise men and women like Søren Kierkegaard and Hildegard of Bingen. Her husband Chuck will look after little one so Almut can write, but he often also adds a reflection, a poem or some other surprise to the journey.

The idea behind The Twelve Days and how it works

The 12 Days of Christmas might remind some of a silly song. But we use these days to revive the early medieval tradition of a sacred time between Christmas Day and Epiphany. We started our 12 Day of Christmas Online Journey six years ago following a dream (literally, a dream at night) of a sacred reading retreat between the years where seekers like us can walk together towards the heart of Christmas, take a break from the hustle and bustle, breathe, and wonder, guided and sustained by wise women and men before us  (including Mary, Joseph, Meister Eckhart, Hildegard, Rumi, Bonhoeffer, Kierkegaard and others).  

Those who have traveled with us before know, this is not a prepackaged journey where I offer you a curated selection of texts. Instead, I am thrown into the movement of the heart myself, every year again, humbly walking along to offer you what I receive, in each moment and time.

We do not follow much of the traditional string of saints’ days for the season, but rather explore every year anew what Christmas might mean to each of us, while creating a breathing space for you, guiding you through readings and practices from Holy Night to the threshold of the Old and the New Year and all the way to Epiphany on a quiet interior journey.

How it works

Every day we will provide a brief online reflection or practice you might find time for at the same day or a time of your liking. The reflection will help set the stage, and the question or practice will help you construct your own interior journey through the 12 Days.

You should set aside 15-20 min every day if you want to follow along daily, or mark regularly times in your calendar for your personal Christmas Journey. Some set aside a day or two for a 12 Days of Christmas retreat. What ever works for you will work for the Spirit.

But you must show up for the journey, how ever that may look for you. Some walk in and out of the different Christmas days as their schedule allows, some set aside time on the past day pf the year or on Epiphany to conduct their own retreat reading several posts. It is important that you become a sense of travel and pilgrimage.

Because Christmas does not end with Holy Night when many are ready to discard their dried out Christmas trees. Like a newborn child, new-born hope must be cradled, carefully fed and tended, protected, nourished, and guided on its way. And as there is no hope without facing darkness and no Christmas Day without Christmas Night we want to tap into the deep well of courage to hold both our sorrows and hopes on this sacred journey, birthing new life in each of us.

How to subscribe

We give the 12 Days as a gift from heart to heart. You can subscribe to our 12 Days of Christmas Contemplations to receive them in your inbox every day.

For this we ask for a gift in return, by simply giving what feels right for you. Also, choosing the right amount will help you to commit to this journey. And those who give more help us sustain this journey for all. Thank you, thank you!

Upon registration you will receive some welcoming email to help you set up your journey, a Blessing for the journey on Holy Night and from then on our daily meditations through the 12 Days of Christmas 2022-23 every morning in your email inbox.

Here you can (re)visit some letters of our previous journeys:

Twelve Days of Christmas Archive