These preached retreats are an opportunity for priests in the Diocese of Orlando to spend time in prayer, reflection, and fellowship.

**These retreats are only open to priests in the Diocese of Orlando**

october 5-9, 2026

The Open Heart of Jesus: The Priest’s Call to Intimacy with Christ

Led by Fr. Stephen Dominic Hayes, O.P.

This retreat will reflect on the meaning of Christ’s open and unhealed Heart—a summons to deeper intimacy for those who persevere with Him in the work of His Cross. The conferences will explore God’s invitation to hospitality and communion with the human race from the beginning, tracing the patterns in Scripture through which He draws near to us. In Christ, we are invited to recognize this divine intimacy not only as God’s desire for us, but also as the very heart of our vocation as His disciples.

Father Hayes is currently assigned as a full-time mission and retreat preacher based at Saint Patrick Priory, Columbus, Ohio. He is a native of Boston, Massachusetts. Born in 1953, he has seven brothers and sisters and rejoices in his Irish heritage.

He holds an A.B. in Biology from Saint Anselm College, Manchester, New Hampshire, a J.D. from Boston University School of Law, and an S.T.B. from the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception (the Dominican House of Studies) in Washington, DC.

In June 2022, he received a certificate as an Associate Scholar in the Hebraic Context of the Bible program from the Israel Institute of Biblical Studies (accreditation with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem).

After practicing law for a few years, he entered the Dominican Order in 1982, made solemn profession in 1986, and was ordained a priest in 1988. He has served as a priest, pastor, and preacher based for 36 years in Ohio and Kentucky. Fr. Hayes currently enjoys the priestly faculties of the Diocese of Columbus, Ohio.

In addition to parochial service, Father Hayes has had experience in retreat work, parish missions, pilgrimage direction, as a spiritual director and confessor, and in Catholic radio and print media.

He has served as a National Eucharistic Preacher for the National Eucharistic Revival conducted by the National Conference of Catholic Bishops.

He has for many years been active in the Knights of Columbus and the Ancient Order of Hibernians. He is particularly interested in Holy Scripture, Sacramentology, and medieval Christian history.

October 12-16, 2026

A Priest Is An Icon of Christ

Led By Fr. Larry Richards

This retreat invites priests to reflect more deeply on their call to embody Christ the Good Shepherd—not only in their ministry, but in the very way they live, pray, and love. Beginning with the priest’s identity as a beloved son of God, the retreat explores the spiritual foundations of priestly life and the ways a priest is called to become a living reflection of Christ.

Through a series of reflections, we will consider the priest as an Icon of Mercy, Joy, Peace, Love, and Holiness, exploring how these qualities flow from a life surrendered to the Holy Spirit and rooted in prayer. As priests grow in intimacy with Christ and surrender more fully to the will of the Father, they become more capable of bringing Christ’s mercy, peace, and joy to those entrusted to their care.

At the heart of the retreat is a simple yet profound invitation: to become more fully the priest God has called you to be by becoming more fully an icon of Christ.

Father Larry Richards was ordained to the priesthood in 1989 and has been a pastor in Erie, Pennsylvania, since 2002. He currently serves as pastor of St. Luke Church and Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church. He has conducted thousands of Parish Missions, Conferences, and Retreats. He is best known for making the love of God real in his talks. Father Larry is the founder of The Reason for Our Hope Foundation and has many Media presentations, including The Truth, The Mass Explained, and Confession, with hundreds of thousands of copies distributed worldwide and now available for FREE on OurHope.TV. He is the author of Be a Man! Becoming the Man God Created You to Be, a #1 best seller for Ignatius Press, having sold over 160,000 copies. He authored a second book called Surrender! The Life-Changing Power of Doing God’s Will, published by Our Sunday Visitor, which has sold over 55,000 copies. You can see him on EWTN Global Catholic Television on Living Right with Dr. Ray. He is the Spiritual Director for the Catholic Men’s Leadership Alliance and hosts a weekly podcast titled Anchored In Hope. His daily homily can be heard on your favorite podcast app.

October 19-23, 2026

The Face of Christ, God’s Glory Revealed

Led by Fr. Dominic Buckley

This October retreat week offers an opportunity to contemplate the human face of Christ as the revelation of God’s glory and the path to ecclesial communion. The talks will support a fraternal week of growing in our desire to live face-to-face with Christ and His flock, while reflecting on the common challenges and blessings we encounter along the way. Whether we encounter the face of truth and suffering or of life and death, we experience divine communion when we turn our faces toward the Lord, and its absence when we turn away. There will also be opportunities for optional daily Eucharistic Adoration and a daily Scriptural Rosary to help us contemplate the face of Christ.

Fr. Dominic Buckley is a priest of the Diocese of Orlando. Ordained in 2013, he served as parochial vicar of Most Precious Blood in Oviedo before Bishop Noonan sent him to Rome in 2016 to study moral theology and eventually philosophy at the Angelicum, obtaining a Pontifical Licentiate in philosophy and beginning a pontifical doctoral degree in Thomistic metaphysics. Since 2020, he has worked full-time at St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary in Boynton Beach as a seminary formator, philosophy professor, Director of Pre-Theology, and now Dean of Human Formation. Fr. Dominic has found great joy accompanying hundreds of priestly vocations from many dioceses and living priestly fraternity with the 14 resident priests at SVDP. In his free time, he enjoys playing his guitars and solving the world’s problems with friends.

October 26-28, 2026

Aging With Grace: Aging Gracefully

Led by Fr. Ken Metz Ph.D.

This is a directed retreat for Retired Priests and Active Priests age 70+, in the Diocese of Orlando to spend time in prayer, reflection and fellowship.

What does it mean to grow older gracefully as a priest? This retreat invites priests to embrace the wisdom, freedom, and new opportunities that come with this stage of life. Fr. Ken will guide participants in reflecting on the practical and spiritual realities of aging, including financial planning, health and well-being, and the natural changes that accompany growing older. A financial planner will also join the retreat to offer practical guidance for navigating the financial considerations of this stage of life.

At the heart of the retreat is the deeper invitation to recognize and live the wisdom gained through years of priesthood and experience. Drawing on Scripture, previous Aging with Grace retreats, and Father Ronald Rolheiser’s Insane for the Light: A Spirituality for Our Wisdom Years, we will reflect on how priests can continue to live fully, fruitfully, and faithfully—not retired from life, but embracing the grace and wisdom of this new season.

If Retired: All Retreat Fees Are Paid By The Diocese

To register offline, call our office at (407) 671-6322 ext. 115

Fr. Kenneth J. Metz was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee in 1965 and has more than six decades of experience in pastoral ministry, counseling, spiritual formation, and Catholic Charismatic Renewal. He holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Counseling and Guidance from Marquette University, as well as a degree in Philosophy from St. Francis Seminary.

Throughout his priesthood, Fr. Ken has served in a variety of pastoral and leadership roles, including pastor of St. Mark Catholic Church in Kenosha, Wisconsin, where he served a multilingual parish of more than 2,000 members. He also served as Executive Director of the International Catholic Charismatic Renewal Services in Vatican City, acting as a liaison between the worldwide Catholic Charismatic Renewal and the Vatican. Earlier in his ministry, he served in Catholic campus ministry at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and established and directed a residence for priests in transition.

Fr. Ken has also served in leadership roles within the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and the Catholic Charismatic Renewal and taught courses in counseling in Creighton University’s Master’s Degree in Christian Spirituality program. He has contributed to Catholic publications and presented numerous talks on topics related to faith, spirituality, counseling, and priestly life.

Since 2023, Fr. Ken has resided at Emmaus Residence in Winter Park as a retired priest, where he continues to assist pastors in parishes throughout the Diocese of Orlando. Drawing from his extensive experience as a priest, counselor, pastor, and retired priest, Fr. Ken brings a unique perspective to the joys and challenges of living faithfully and fruitfully in the later years of priesthood.