Well, it’s a moving target. As summer moves into its middle phase, we are thankful for the progress made in curtailing the spread of the Covid virus. We are especially grateful to those who have been vaccinated. Unfortunately, we are located in an area that is a red zone due to many unvaccinated citizens and a surge in Covid cases.

We had begun to welcome guests back to the campus but have just made the difficult decision to host our silent directed retreat via zoom. We are saddened about this but the safety of our guests, staff and sisters is uppermost in our minds.

Many of our retreats are already scheduled to be held via zoom. They will, of course, continue. If you haven’t participated yet, we encourage you to give it a try. Evaluations from previous zoom retreats have rated presenters and the zoom format excellent.

For now, we will continue welcoming private retreatants who have been fully vaccinated to our Just Bee hermitage. Guests will not have the option of eating in the dining room, attending prayers with the sisters or entering the monastery. However, they will be welcome to enjoy silence in the beautiful and comfortable hermitage, walk the grounds, and use Sophia Center during business hours. Please use the form on the Sophia Center website if you are interested or call us at 913.360.6173.

Many of you have received the July-December mailer and our website is being updated constantly. We will continue to monitor the Covid numbers as we make decisions about in-person retreats already scheduled and accepting individuals who wish to come for private retreats.

Thank you for your support during the difficult times of the pandemic. Be assured of our continuing prayers for you and your family. We are anxious to welcome you back to Sophia!