Fr Eamonn Mulcahy
Friday 1st May from 6.30pm to Sunday 3rd May at 2pm
Suggested Donation £220

Jesus asked at least 307 questions in the Gospels. He told 43 parables. And according to Fr Eamonn Mulcahy, most of us have never really heard them.

“We’ve made Jesus too bland, too beige, too neutral,” he says. “Go back to the Gospels — really go back — and you’ll find he was anything but. His parables are dynamite. Revolutionary. And familiarity has made us switch off.”

This weekend at Minsteracres, Fr Eamonn wants to change that.

About the Retreat

Drawing on the parables of Jesus, this weekend explores what those stories were actually saying — in their original context, with their original force. Not Sunday school tales. Not comfortable moral lessons. Stories that got Jesus executed. Stories that reveal a completely new idea of who God is, and who we are.

Each day includes two substantial reflective sessions — prayerful, meditative, and deliberately accessible. There is no pressure to share, no expectation to perform. Plenty of free time to walk the 110-acre estate, to sit quietly, or to meet one-to-one with Fr Eamonn. Mass is celebrated daily for those who wish to attend.

Fr Eamonn has a word for what a weekend like this actually is. “In English, retreat means running away — escaping. But we’re not here to escape. We’re here to face — to grow, to advance.” He pauses. “I think we should call it an assault.”

He’s joking. Mostly.

About Fr Eamonn Mulcahy CSSp

Fr Eamonn has been a Spiritan priest for nearly 46 years. He was sent to Central Africa at 24 — no electricity, no tarmac roads, only schoolboy French — and has spent his life since working across the Congo, Nigeria, Kenya, Scotland, Ireland, Vietnam, and beyond. He still runs a school in the Kibera slum in Nairobi. He lectures in Systematic Theology. He gives retreats to priests, religious, and ordinary Christians on six continents.

He didn’t set out to lead retreats. A superior put him on the spot in 1983 and he’s never stopped since.

“I want to give people something meaty. Something that inspires. I want to bring back the fireworks.”

Who Is This For?

Everyone. You do not need to be Catholic, Passionist, or even a regular churchgoer. Fr Eamonn asks only one thing of anyone who comes: good faith.

First-timers are warmly welcome. There are no wrong questions, no prior knowledge required, and no obligation to attend any religious ceremony.

Practical Details

📅 Friday 1st May 2026 from 6.30pm — Sunday 3rd May 2026 at 2pm
📍 Minsteracres Retreat Centre, Nr Consett, County Durham, DH8 9RT
💷 Suggested donation: £220 (includes accommodation and all meals)
📞 01434 673 248 | minsteracres.org

Places are limited. No one should feel excluded for financial reasons — concessions are available through our Bursary programme.