Welcome to Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center Catholic Retreats
Weekend or mid-week Catholic retreats at Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center provide a spiritual oasis for people of all faiths seeking a deeper relationship with the Almighty. Our enlightening talks, lovely grounds, and inviting rooms along with the care and concern of the friars and staff provide a peaceful setting for prayer, reflection and personal growth.
We are situated on 60 acres in Prior Lake MN, southwest of Minneapolis/St. Paul.
2019 Retreat Theme Rejoice and Be Glad: Our Call to Holiness in Today’s World
“My modest goal is to re-propose the call to holiness in a practical way for our own time, with all its risks, challenges and opportunities.” Pope Francis, Gaudium et Exsultate, paragraph 2
What is it like to go on a Retreat?
Just what is it like to go on a Retreat? If you haven’t had the pleasure to come out and experience it for yourself, we invite you to read the following article, describing what you can expect when you come and join us for one of our retreats. What is it like to go on a Retreat…
Would you like to know more? Click here to read about Who goes on Retreats…
KMSP Channel 9 ‘Why attend a Retreat’ interview; MA Roscoe
Upcoming Retreats
April 18-20 Men’s Holy Week Retreat
April 26-28 Women’s Weekend Retreat
May 14-16 Women’s Midweek Retreat
June 11-13 Women’s Midweek Retreat
June 20-23 Silent Retreat
Free Spiritual Audio to Brighten Your Day
Lenten Special: Drama of Holy Week
Join Fr. Jim Van Dorn and Bob Beck as they explore the world altering Drama of Holy Week in a downloadable audio recording.
Check out our free audio of Brother Bob, Chris Martin and Debbie Koop singing the David Haas Prayer for Peace song.
Newsletters
The cover of our Spring Newsletter highlights this year’s Franciscan International Award winner: Loaves and Fishes of Minnesota. It also covers our Lenten Days’ of Prayer theme, has information on our new Private Retreats, as well as some of our new updates. Also included are, a special invitation to a summer Garden Party, a springtime recipe from Judy and some testimonials on this year’s Retreat theme . Click to read more…
Father Howard’s Homilies for the Liturgical Week
Passion or Palm Sunday has always suggested to me the fact that there are always two sides to every story. The 
celebrations of this day leave us with feelings both of great joy and deep sorrow. These feelings come from the two Gospel readings in today’s Liturgy. The first has Jesus riding on a colt over the cloaks of the people spread on the streets. “The whole multitude of his disciples began to praise God aloud for joy for all the mighty deeds they had seen.” They proclaimed, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord. Praise in heaven, and glory in the highest.” The people waved palm branches and praised his presence. Joy was everywhere! Then the scene changes to the second Gospel, the Passion of our Lord according to St. Luke…. Click to read more…
Judy’s Gems: Favorite Recipes from Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center
Franciscan Retreats provides nourishing food for the body as well as the soul. Our chef, Judy Miller, serves fresh, wholesome and delicious meals that are an integral part of the retreat experience.