Craig Lodge

At the weekend I went to a Catholic house of prayer up in the highlands of Scotland called Craig Lodge. Craig Lodge was originally a hunting and fishing lodge up until the early 1980's. Following a pilgrimage to Medjugorje, a small town in Bosnia where Our Lady is appearing, the owners had a powerful spiritual experience and felt called to turn the lodge into a house of prayer. A community started up, living a life of prayer and service, and subsequently Craig Lodge started to take in guests and host organised retreats. It is a very special place, an oasis of peace and grace in the barren desert of this secular society. It has played a very important role in my own life and I have experienced much healing and grace there. On Friday evening the bus journey took about two hours, and I spent the time reading a book called 'The Kite Runner' (great) and taking in the scenery, which at times was beautiful. At Dalmally, a village about a mile from Craig Lodge, I was picked up by one of the community members, a pleasant girl called Christina. I had not been to Craig Lodge for a couple of years and I knew the weekend was going to be a challenge. When you have depression everything is a challenge, even getting up in the morning, but this was a quite a big step for me. I was a bit apprehensive at first but the guests and everyone in the community made me feel welcome and I began to feel more at ease. This weekend was a 'Community Retreat', the idea being that the guests take part in the way of community life through adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, divine office, the rosary and mass. There were also talks, testimonies, a healing service and praise and worship lead by the community. The retreat went well and I enjoyed most of it but it is quite an intense spiritual and human experience and it's a very religious environment if you take part in everything. I was glad that I had attended and I'm sure I was blessed in some way. Part of me did'nt want the retreat to finish, but I was feeling emotionally drained and raw by Sunday and part of me was relieved to go. I got a lift back to Glasgow and as we entered back into the city everything seemed drab and flat in comparison to the beautiful setting, atmosphere and spirituality of Criag Lodge. It took me a couple of days to settle down and feel better. I hope to go back in Novemeber for an advent retreat. I highly recommend everyone to visit Craig Lodge. http://www.criaglodge.org/index.htm