Community, Commitment and Care: Brother John’s Retreat Ministry

Br. John has put his God-given gifts to use in his retreat ministry since 1980

A Passionist brother stands beside an outdoor stone shrine marking the Eighth Station of the Cross, speaking to two people facing the shrine adorned with flowers.
Br. John Rockenbach, CP, leads the Stations of the Cross on at Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center in Sierra Madre, CA

I was born in Los Angeles, attended my first retreat in high school, and, after secular work and military service, I was accepted and professed vows to the Passionists.

Since 1980, I have lived in community as a lay brother, and in my service to Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center and its retreatants, I put my God-given gifts to use.

From our Passionist Constitutions: “Our involvement in the apostolic flows directly from our life in community.”

Hospitality motivates me to welcome guests on retreats and perform services to make their retreat experience beneficial. The mechanical aptitude I inherited in my youth helps me perform the maintenance of the facility. And along the way, I relate with people and experience challenges with my work. 

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