Intellectual Retreats

First Things held its first-ever Intellectual Retreat in August of 2015 on “The Paradox of Freedom” in New York City. Since then, First Things has hosted fourteen retreats. Previous retreats have spanned the conceptual sphere and the country, ranging from the common good in Washington, D.C.; the search for happiness in Los Angeles; economics and the human person in Philadelphia; and the good of marriage in Waco, Texas.

Our 2024 New York City First Things Intellectual Retreat will be held at the Union League Club on August 9-10. Our topic: Faith and Civic Responsibility. For more information and to register, visit firstthings.com/retreat. Please contact Ellie Hancock, Programs Manager, at ehancock@firstthings.com with any questions.

At their core, Intellectual Retreats invite participants to step back from their phones, email notifications, and other distractions that vie for attention and spend a weekend in study, fellowship, and reflection. We begin in fellowship with a Friday night cocktail reception, followed by dinner and an opening lecture by a prominent First Things editor or contributor. Having made initial introductions, First Things divides participants into small discussion groups for four Saturday seminars facilitated by expert tutors from a rotating cohort of excellent Great Books colleges. The retreat concludes with dinner and a panel discussion, sending participants back out into the world eager to devote more time to our three prerogatives: study, fellowship, and reflection. To ensure the quality of our Intellectual Retreats, First Things charges participants a tuition fee of $650. We award a select number of scholarships to seminarians, graduate students, and classical school teachers, a program we seek to grow for future retreats.

Here are a few testimonials from attendees of recent Intellectual Retreats:

“This gathering was wonderful, and, Lord willing, I will remember it and apply its insights for many years.”

“First Things kindly gives its readers and supporters room to live as they are each called by our Creator—it issues no marching orders to minions and trusts that the Spirit is moving as it will.”

“It was a gift to have the opportunity to join in conversations about the texts on the topic of death and mourning with people from so many different backgrounds. We found the Magdalen tutors to be excellent in providing context and helping to guide the conversation and ask thought-provoking questions.”

“My first First Things Intellectual Retreat was grand! The accommodations were comfortable, the food scrumptious and the conversation deeply satisfying.”

UPCOMING RETREAT:

Faith and Civic Responsibility

Union League Club of New York
August 9–10, 2024

PAST RETREATS:

Creation and Fall
Union League Club of New York
August 11–12, 2023

Death and Mourning
Penn Club of New York
August 19–20, 2022

Freedom
Phoenix, AZ
March 25–26, 2022

Solidarity
The Union League Club
August 13–14, 2021

Faith, Hope, Love
Virtual, via WebEx
June 16–19, 2020

The Virtuous Life
New York University
August 9–10, 2019

The Common Good
Washington, D.C.
June 7–8, 2019

Economics and the Human Person
Philadelphia
October 12–13, 2018