2010 Dates Announced: July 8-11 2010

The Sophia Institute Summer Program promises to evoke a sense of wonder as the basis for moral, intellectual and spiritual excellence. Consider joining us for an immersion into Catholic culture in a formative environment for college-age students. Aided by tutors with advanced academic degrees, participants will read and discuss texts from some of the intellectual architects of Western civilization—Plato, Aristotle, St. Augustine, St. Thomas Aquinas and others.
Thanks to the hospitality of the Perron family, our time together is incorporated into the life of their 217 acre working farm and homestead located in western Maine. Join us for lively discussion, home cooking, recreation, liturgical prayer and quiet reflection.While the majority of our participants are undergraduates, recent graduates and graduate students are welcome to apply.
Space is limited. Apply online today at http://cyamme.org/ click on the "events" tag

Bishop Richard Malone's Endorsement

“College students have a special place in my heart as they seek to discover God’s plan for their lives. The Sophia Institute Summer Program assists students in discovering their personal vocation in the world and within the Church by introducing them to the rich intellectual and spiritual patrimony of the Catholic Church. Better equipped by understanding the relationship between faith and reason, attendees will progress in their present vocation as students.”

Most Rev. Richard J. Malone, Th.D, Bishop of Portland

Sophia Institute Summer Program: For the Study of Faith and Reason (July 25-29, 2008)

The Sophia Institute Summer Program promises to evoke a sense of wonder as the basis for intellectual, moral and spiritual excellence. Consider joining us for full immersion into Catholic culture in a formative environment for college-age students asking the questions:

What is a good life? What does it mean to be happy? Can the existence of God be proved? How has God revealed Himself to us? What is the relationship between faith and reason, or science and religion? How does one pray? Am I called to live a holy life? What is my life’s vocation? What does an integral Catholic life look like for me?

This meeting of university students in a retreat-like context introduces young men and women to the rich intellectual and spiritual patrimony of the Catholic Church through conversation about perennial truths. Participants will be reading and reflecting upon some seminal works from the history of Western thought—both Christian and otherwise. The program will benefit those pursuing a wide range of academic studies at a variety of schools.

Thanks to the sponsorship of Saint Joseph College of Maine campus ministry and the hospitality of the Perron family, we will spend a week in a rural setting well suited to our purpose—fostering a sense of wonder inspired by the beauty of creation. The Saint Padre Pio Chapel and Retreat Center is located on a 217 acre farm in the western foothills of Maine only an hour from Augusta in Sumner where we will enjoy leisure on small working farm, family-style meals, folk music, hikes on Speckled and Bald Mountains as well as swimming in the river that winds its way through homestead.

The ideal candidate will be a motivated student who is eager to develop the human and theological virtues characteristic of an authentic Catholic life. We encourage a vigorous exchange of ideas among students who will also benefit from the guidance of tutors in a common reading of texts. Our days will be punctuated with prayer as we participate at Mass, pray the Liturgy of the Hours and take time to be quiet.

A Day in the Life of the Sophia Institute

Thursday; June 26, 2008

7:30 Breakfast

8:00 Morning prayer

8:30-10:00 Seminar I.2: The Happiness of this Life

11:00 Holy Mass

12:00 Lunch

1:00 Recreation

3:00-4:30 Seminar I.3: Happiness and the Christian Life

5:30 Evening Prayer

6:00 Supper

7:00-8:30 Seminar II.1: Philosophical Proofs for the Existence of God

9:00 Night Prayer and Benediction

9:30 Hospitality

9:30-11:00 Sacrament of Confession available)

11:00 Good night

A Prayer for Students of the Sophia Institute

V. Let us remember that we are in the holy presence of God
R. + In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
V. Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful,
And enkindle in them the fire of Thy love.
R. Send forth Thy Spirit and they shall be created
And Thou shalt renew the face of the Earth.
V. O God, Who by the light of the Holy Spirit did instruct the hearts of the faithful,
Grant us in that same Spirit to be made truly wise,
Ever to rejoice in His consolation.
Through Jesus Christ, our Lord . . .
R. Amen.
V. St. Jean Baptiste de la Salle, Patron of Teachers . . .
R. . . . pray for us.
V. St. Thomas Aquinas, Patron of Christian schools . . .
R. . . . pray for us now and at the hour of death.
V. Live, Jesus, in our hearts . . .
R. Forever.
V. + In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit . . .
R. Amen.
Hail Mary . . .
…Amen.

Note: The invocation, “Let us remember…” and the ending “Live, Jesus…” are the two prayers of St. Jean Baptiste de la Salle, the father of modern pedagogy, patron saint of teachers and the Founder of the Brothers of the Christian Schools. The main petition of the prayer is taken from the ancient Latin hymn, Veni Creator Spiritus, which is recited at the Mass of the Holy Spirit.

2008 Sophia Institute Summer Program

Following on the successes of the inaugural program in 2007, the Sophia Institute met from Wednesday, June 25th through Sunday, June 29th, 2008, at the Morrill Farm in Sumner, Maine. Joined by 11 students and led by Fr. Paul H. Dumais, Dr. Angela Franks, Dr. J. David Franks, Dr. Michael P. Krom, and Mr. Pierre Dumais, the second annual meeting was both leisurely and enriching.

The program began with a lecture on the duty of Catholics to participate in politics, with an emphasis on the need to center political involvement on a life of prayer. The nine seminars focused on the human desire for happiness, God's revelation as the path to human fulfillment, and the need to integrate faith and reason in one's pursuit of God's merciful love. In addition to daily prayer, mass, and the sacrament of reconciliation, students labored (without too much toil!) on the Perron's farm, enjoyed hiking, swimming, live music, and a barnyard dance. A notable highlight this year was that participants were able to take advantage of the Holy Father's proclamation of the Pauline year by attending Sunday mass on the feasts of Sts. Peter and Paul at the basilica in Lewiston dedicated to these holy apostles. The Holy Father offered a plenary indulgence under the usual conditions for those who attended mass at a basilica dedicated to St. Paul on this day.