Facilitator: Gianluca Avanzato, MDiv
Tuesdays in January 2026:
January 6, 13, 20 and 27
7:30–9 pm ET / 4:30-6 pm PT
Live on Zoom
Cost: $100
Max participants: 20
The Catholic tradition is rich with literature, art and music inspired by personal encounters with the divine. In this Sacred Writing Circle with facilitator Gianluca Avanzato, we will ground ourselves in Ignatian-inspired creative and contemplative practices and turn to writing as a means to explore the sacred, mysterious and astonishing landscapes of our spiritual lives and journeys.
Alongside more contemporary voices, such as Mary Oliver and Rainer Maria Rilke, we will meditate on the work of four Catholic mystics — Ignatius of Loyola, Teresa of Avila, Hildegard of Bingen and Francis of Assisi — and respond to them with original pieces of creative writing.
All are welcome who feel called to join: no prior creative writing experience necessary. There will be no assignments outside of our meeting time, although participants are encouraged to develop their written pieces and writing practices throughout the week.
If you have any questions about the course, email Mike Jordan Laskey at jccucommunications@jesuits.org.
Sacred Writing Circle: Honoring Our Spiritual Journeys is full; to join a waiting list, email medialab@jesuits.org
Gianluca Avanzato is a writer, artist, poet and teacher living in upstate New York. Gianluca holds a Master of Divinity from Harvard Divinity School, where he studied religion and spiritual care. He teaches writing as a spiritual practice of self-knowing and offers one-on-one creativity coaching. Along with his work in higher education and teaching Italian, he has developed and led workshops, pilgrimages and programming around the United States and Europe.
