“As Americans we don’t know how to just sit. We’ll have the TV going, the phone in our lap, talking to the person next to us,” describes Sister Kathy Curtis. “It’s out of guilt. We feel like we’re supposed to be doing something, accomplishing something. Here at the Dwelling Place Monastery, we invite people to come sit a spell, to join us for the gift of peace, and escape all the chatter going on.”
On the side of a mountain near the town of Martin, Kentucky, this invite is as sincere as they come. The monastery sits on 24 acres, purchased, designed and built by hand in the 1980s by a group of Benedictine sisters. Their retreat center and grounds are open to anyone who wants to come visit for an hour, an afternoon, or a few days, whether you would like time to be alone or be with the sisters.
The eight women who live and pray there practice a type of religion that is ecumenical, whether you want to be closer to what you view as your God or creator, or simply be a better person.
Sister Kathy shared how they recently hosted a Buddhist group from Lexington for a four-day retreat, “Our doors are open. We want people here. We want to learn about them, what they need, and what they think.”
“We’re not cookie cutter nuns,” Sister Mary Going said in a recent video. “We’re very dynamic… if you sat at our Sunday morning breakfast conversation: we’ve got 8 million opinions about 20 different things. We’ve got the stability [of the monastic life] but we’re also free to explore ideas and bounce them off each other.”
The Mountain Association recently supported the monastery in completely redoing their website and creating a series of videos working toward their goal of “bringing the monastery into the 21st century,” in Sister Kathy’s words.
The Mountain Association consultant they chose to work with, S Media, helped guide the sisters, ranging in age from 64 to 82 years old, as they considered what they wanted the website and supporting outreach materials to do, and helped them think through what the next generation may like to experience on the mountain.
The website outlines what each building on the grounds offers, with meeting space, cooking space and rooms for overnights. Whether it’s a corporate, solo or a couples retreat, there’s an option for everyone. Sister Kathy says their suggested donation is $75 per person per night which includes meals. Event space is $100 per building being used per day. Though this is their general guide, they have a policy of “pay what you can.”
“You should never not come because you can’t afford it. Anyone who has a need for respite, this is our gift to give. We feel really good about that – it costs us nothing to share; God has a way of providing more than what we need.”
They specifically offer two-day stays free of charge to those who work in high burnout fields like addiction recovery and social justice, partnering with organizations like Hope in the Mountains, a women residential treatment center, and Kentuckians for the Commonwealth.
In one of the videos, Sister Judy Yunker describes what they have built: “we were given a cauldron of peace, and our job is to maintain this bowl of peace and provide an environment that people can come in and take a little bit of that away or to bring that peace”.
If you’d like to learn more about the Dwelling Place Monastery at Mt Tabor, visit their website or follow on Facebook where their posts take you along on a simple walk around the grounds with one of dogs, or allow you to witness the changing of seasons throughout the year. You can also join their enewsletter, which currently goes out three times a year, and is full of reflections from the sisters.
“There are over 35 years of prayer on this mountain; it has soaked into the ground. Please know that we are open to receiving your tired spirit on this mountain. It is a place of peace and a place that can refresh your spirit. You are welcomed to join us.”
