St Margaret’s Retreat

St Margaret’s Annual Men’s Retreat

The Men’s Retreat at the Holy Family Retreat Center in West Hartford for St Margaret is scheduled for the weekend of April 10 – 12, 2026, which is the weekend after Easter. This year’s theme is Pilgrims of Hope.

Last year, just months before his passing, Pope Francis called for a jubilee year, and he announced the theme would be “Pilgrims of Hope.” The Holy Father stated: “Faith is a pilgrimage, and we on this Earth are pilgrims, not tourists or wanderers: we are pilgrims!”

As “pilgrims of hope,” we must be willing to take risks, to make the effort to understand God’s call, and to grow in our faith. The pilgrim doesn’t travel aimlessly but allows God to be the North Star, leading us to discover that God is at the heart of our journey. In fact, hope itself is a pilgrimage!

During our weekend retreat, with the theme Pilgrims of Hope, we will explore hope in the context of a journey – a sacred pilgrimage with God. We will delve into the many dimensions of hope, which is a theological virtue given to us as a gift from God. While hope can be difficult to define, we know when we have it, and we never want to lose it!

We invite you to join us this year at Holy Family for your annual retreat as we celebrate our 75th Anniversary of ministry. Together, as part of God’s beloved creation, we can pursue that blessed goal – life with God as beloved companions and pilgrims of hope.

I have found the retreat to be a wonderful experience. I plan to attend for the entire weekend. Many of our brother Knights have often come just for the Saturday. Either is fine.  I would also encourage you to consider inviting the men in your life who you believe would benefit from a retreat – sons, nephews, brothers, cousins, friends. You never know who may want to attend but just needs to be invited. Brother Hugh O’Toole attended with his 2 sons last year and they all plan to attend this year. They had a great experience. I am planning to go with my son.

Please send an email to me if you are potentially interested (whether a definite or just considering) in attending either for the full retreat or just for a day.
Please email Arthur Decillis at arthur.decillis@comcast.net