DAY 1 THE SPIRITUALITY OF PILGRIMAGE

We arrive in New York City and settle in at The Desmond Tutu Center, a new retreat location on the grounds of General Seminary that combines charming 19th-century Gothic architecture with sophisticated 21st-century comforts. Before supper, we can tour the seminary grounds, pray in the seminary's Chapel of the Good Shepherd, or walk along The High Line, a new elevated public park built on old freight railroad trestle just across the street from the Tutu Center. After dinner, Jeanne Person, Director of the Center for Christian Spirituality at General Seminary, will offer us a workshop on the spiritual art of pilgrimage. What makes any place sacred? What happens within the pilgrim upon visiting a sacred site? Is pilgrimage a solitary or communal experience?

DAY 2  THE ABRAHAMIC FAITHS

After breakfast, we will spend the day visiting houses of worship in Manhattan that draw thousands of pilgrims each year. The sacred sites will include St. Patrick's Cathedral, the seat of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of New York and a center of Catholic life in the United States; Saint Peter's Church in the Citicorp Building, an Evangelical Lutheran community celebrated for its contemporary worship space; Central Synagogue, one of the oldest synagogues in continuous use in New York City and one of the leading Reform congregations in the country; and the Islamic Cultural Center of New York, the largest mosque in the city that welcomes Muslims and non-Muslims alike for prayer. We'll meet with religious leaders from the faith communities, pray together, and participate in worship services. We'll learn from scholars and architects about the intersection between architectural design and spiritual practice. And throughout the day, we will see famous sites like Rockefeller Center, Radio City Music Hall and Times Square. At day's end, we will enjoy dinner and the evening on our own.

DAY 3 MEDIEVAL OLD & NEW

After breakfast, we will spend our day visiting two sacred sites that will invite us to reflect on how history shapes our current spiritual expression. We will begin by visiting The Cloisters, a branch of the Metropolitan Museum of Art devoted to the art and architecture of Medieval Europe. Located on four acres overlooking the Hudson River, The Cloisters replicates cloistered monastic life and features medieval gardens and works of art. Then, we'll journey on to the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, a Gothic revival cathedral whose architecture and programs are both rooted in tradition and exemplary of contemporary spirituality. Dinner and the evening on our own.

DAY 4 REMEMBERING

In the Christian tradition, remembering is a spiritual practice. The Eucharist, for example, is an act of remembering Jesus through the sharing of bread and wine. After breakfast, we will spend this day visiting places of remembrance in lower Manhattan. The sites will include Ground Zero and St. Paul's Chapel, in remembrance of the September 11, 2001 tragedy. We will also visit the African Burial Ground National Monument that commemorates the story of Africans buried in an unmarked cemetery in the 17th and 18th centuries. The day, which will include Sunday Eucharist at Trinity Church Wall Street, will end by 2:00 P.M.