Waterholes depicted by Australian Indigenous artists are often shown as a series of concentric circles, lines radiating out, radiating in – connecting the water in the centre to the life around. The image of the waterhole reflects something of how Benedictus seeks to be – a place of refreshment and replenishment, an open sanctuary in the midst of our city. Everyone, from whatever background or tradition, is welcome to come sit awhile in the garden, join us for meditation or participate in gatherings that offer a chance to rest, reflect and be returned to daily life replenished.
Labyrinth Walks
Thursday Morning Labyrinth Walks occur on the first Thursday of the month, 11.30-12.30pm at The Waterhole Labyrinth in the grounds of St Ninian’s.
Forthcoming dates for 2026 are October 1, November 11, and December 3.
Scar Tree Walk
This is a special opportunity to learn about and sit with scar trees in south Canberra. Scar trees are trees that have had bark removed by Aboriginal Australians for the creation of bark canoes, shelters, weapons such as shields, tools, traps, containers, or other artefacts.
On this silent walk, guided by Gadigal woman Tucky Cooley, we will spend time walking to and sitting with several scar trees in the suburb of Wanniassa. You’re invited to bring a journal and/or drawing materials, and a folding chair if you wish.
When: 2.00 – 4.00pm, Sunday October 11
Where: Meet at Wanniassa Hills Public School Carpark
RSVP: Please let us know if you would like to join this walk, since numbers are limited. Email info@benedictus.com.au
Contemplative Photography Gathering
With Frances Marston
Saturday 31 October, 9.30am – 4.00pm at St Ninian’s
Can photography as a contemplative practice? Surely not! Join the Benedictus Contemplative Photography Group to find out how this can indeed be a transformative practice. Come and find out what happens when you slow down and look through the lens in a different way – to see the world with fresh eyes, when things you’d never imagined reveal themselves in all sorts of life-giving and enabling ways.
The group has been sharing this journey since an introductory workshop early in 2023, steadily growing ever since with members based all around the country. So, this will be an opportunity to meet face-to-face, for locals and out-of-towners alike, and for potential members to dip a toe in our contemplative photography practice waterhole. We’ll begin with an introductory/refresher workshop that will be ‘hands on’ with plenty of opportunity for ‘doing’. After a short outline of tips and tricks, Frances will guide us through some simple contemplative photography exercises that will help you engage with this practice.
So come along with your camera – phone, tablet, compact, DSLR, or whatever other device does it for you – and see what you can see or, more precisely, see what images reveal themselves to you!
We will meet onsite in the hall and grounds at St Ninians (Cnr Brigalow & Mouat Sts, Lyneham ACT).
There is no cost but PLEASE REGISTER if you plan to attend – email benedictusphotography@gmail.com.
BYO packed lunch; morning and arvo teas provided.
For more information, including an outline of what the day will look like, see the flyer.
Men’s Mini (Un)Retreat
This Men’s Mini (un)Retreat is an opportunity to draw aside on Friday evening and Saturday for a time of connection, conversation and reflection in an open and respectful space – a breathing space!
All men are welcome; you don’t need to be a part of Benedictus or hold a particularworld view or belief. You won’t be away all weekend and you will get to go home to sleepin your own bed on Friday night.
The program includes time for eating together, hearing a few stories, quiet reflection and small group conversation. To paraphrase Van Morrison there’ll be no gurus or teachers at this gathering, just fellow travellers. We hope you can join us.
For more information, contact Paul Falconer 0409034779, Peter Yuile 0417662870, David Ridge 0408625620 or Neil Millar 0402433084.
When: Friday 23 October – Saturday 24 October
Where: The Gathering Place/Simply Mindful: 4 Bancroft St, Dickson ACT
Cost: $80 (includes Friday night dinner, Saturday breakfast and venue hire). Assistance is available- don’t let cost preclude you from joining us.
For more information see the attached brochure
Book via TryBooking here
Retreat: Embodied Listening- Awakening to the Spirit of Place
This Retreat is now fully subscribed. Please let us know if you’d like to be put on the waiting list.
Facilitated by Susanna Pain at The Abbey, Raymond Island, Victoria
Wednesday 4 – Sunday 8 November, 2026
Come away. Encounter the land and her creatures. Be silent, meditate, move, make art, sing and tell stories. Engage with InterPlay tools and principles. Immerse yourself.
For more information, including room costs, please see the flyer
Bookings: via https://www.trybooking.com/DHBWC or contact us at The Abbey.(03) 5156 6580 and info@theabbey.org.au
RSVP by October 26, 2026
Christogenesis Group (on zoom)
Dr Nikolai Blaskow has been invited to be a facilitator of another emerging Group in Australia (part of a world-wide network) and will carry out this role under the umbrella of Benedictus.
What is CHRISTOGENESIS and what will be its focus? Its founding leader is Sister Ilia Delio, a Franciscan nun and physicist. The head of Group Facilitators is Dr Emily DeMoor.
Three extracts from Sr Delio’s recent reflections on ‘The Great Work of Love: Chaos, Justice and Divine Evolution’ January 28 2026 in the wake of Renee Good’s tragic death in Minnesota will give you a taste of what “Christogenesis” means:
*Resistance always signals disruption and systemic breakdown. Jesus of Nazareth exemplified the boundary-transgressor who confronted his adversaries in the name of justice and love. Yet his disruption served a larger vision: an inclusive community forged through love, compassion, and peace—a flourishing life accessible to all. What vision animates contemporary protest? When we reject ICE’s authority and affirm the justice inherent in love, how does this conviction translate into the fabric of daily existence? What promise resides within our collective dissent?
*Teilhard de Chardin understood religion’s authentic function as sustaining and accelerating life’s advancement, nurturing humanity’s vital élan. Religion participates in cosmic personalization and unification, leading Teilhard to recognize religion and evolution as inherently unified.
*The God in evolution summons us beyond passive belief to active participation, beyond fearful obedience to courageous love, beyond awaiting divine intervention to recognizing ourselves as the hands, feet, and heart of the divine becoming. Like Renee and countless other witnesses, known and unknown, we are invited to embrace our role as co-creators of a new and sacred future.
The group will meet the last Wednesday of the month, on zoom. Contact info@benedictus.com.au or chat with Nikolai to learn more.
Sacred Geography: A Pilgrimage Without and Within
Sarah and Neil have once more been invited by the Tasmanian Walking Company to lead contemplative walks on the Overland Track in Tasmania. Our next walk is scheduled for January 2027.
The walk is a seven-day pilgrimage from Cradle Mountain to Lake St Clair. Through conversation, reflection, and the sharing of wisdom and practice from contemplative traditions, this journey is a chance to attend to landscape and inscape, to connect and reconnect, body, soul and spirit. We’d love to have your company!
For more information and to book: https://www.taswalkingco.com.au/overland-track-with-Sarah-Bachelard/