Writing Spirituality: Finding God in the Stories of our Lives

June 26-27, 2026
Hosted in-person by the Notre Dame Retreat House in Canandaigua, NY
Instructor: Eric Clayton

Are you a writer looking to make better sense of the Spirit at work in your daily life? Are you someone who finds God through journaling? Maybe you’re a person who simply wants to adopt a new prayer practice. In this Friday through Saturday retreat offered by the Jesuit Media Lab and partnership with the Notre Dame Retreat House, award-winning author Eric Clayton will lead participants through exercises and discussions, grounded in Ignatian spirituality, to help discover and articulate the working of God’s Spirit in our lives. You’ll walk away better equipped to share your story with others—and in so doing, share God at work in your life.

Themes include: embracing our belovedness, finding God in the details, writing our vocation.

About the Retreat Center

About the Facilitator

Our Mission at Notre Dame Retreat House is to provide space and time for spiritual formation and to awaken the spirit within. Now run by a volunteer Board of Directors, Notre Dame was founded in 1967 by the Redemptorist Fathers and remains true to their charism of preaching the good news of plentiful redemption–that Jesus loves us and knows us by name. Overlooking beautiful Canandaigua Lake and nestled on 50 beautifully landscaped acres, this “Piece of Heaven on Top of the Hill” offers comfortable overnight accommodations for up to 108 people. Learn more at notredameretreat.org.

Eric Clayton is an award-winning author and the deputy director of communications at the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States where he writes the weekly column “Now Discern This,” guest hosts “AMDG: A Jesuit Podcast” and produces a range of multimedia content on Ignatian spirituality and storytelling. His books include “Finding Peace Here and Now: How Ignatian Spirituality Leads Us to Healing and Wholeness,” “My Life with the Jedi: The Spirituality of Star Wars” and  “Cannonball Moments: Telling Your Story, Deepening Your Faith,” among others. Subscribe to his Substack “Story Scraps” or visit his website ericclaytonwrites.com.

Contributed by:

Eric Clayton

Eric Clayton is the deputy director of communications at the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States and the award-winning author of “Where Wonder Leads: Findin God Through Fairy Tales, Myth and Contemplative Prayer,” “Finding Peace Here and Now: How Ignatian Spirituality Leads Us to Healing and Wholeness,” and more. Follow his writing at ericclaytonwrites.com.