What is Iona House?
Iona House is a 71 acre center for contemplation and Christian formation located in Placerville, CA. It is currently under development and operational. Iona House offers a unique experience of formation within a communal setting, rooted within the Great Tradition of Christianity, in which all of life is structured in reference to Christ.
Iona House is inspired by, and operated in the spirit of, a monastic abbey, offering guests an experience of daily life within a rhythm of liturgical worship and prayer, silence and study, discussion and learning, as well as formative agricultural experiences. The whole experience is designed to capture imagination for what it could look like to live life differently when guests return to their ordinary lives at home. In this sense, Iona House is best understood not merely as a place of retreat, but as a place of strategic missional formation. The essence of what we are doing echoes the ancient celtic model of Christianity called the “Monasterium”
Iona House is a place created specifically to offer separation from ordinary life precisely in order to make possible an experience of intensification of one’s identity in Christ. Read more about how this works…
A Colony of Heaven: The Roots of Iona House
A short (4 min) video articulating our vision
Key Elements of the Iona House vision
The following major features, once fully developed will work interdependently together to contribute to our mission of creating a place to reimagine all of life in reference to Christ.
What is described below is a mixture of what is already in development and what we are prayerfully dreaming about.
The Abbey: A Monastic-Inspired Retreat Setting for Groups
Once constructed, facilities for up to 40 guests featuring a central lodge with a study/library, fireside lounge, meeting space, a commercial kitchen, dining room, star-gazing deck, and a prayer chapel utilized for fixed hour prayer and silent contemplation. Beyond this we offer beautifully manicured grounds, prayer trails, and lots of places designed for contemplation and prayer.
(Picture to the left is only an example of what we imagine)
Hermitage Cabins
Iona House will offer 4-6 hermitage cabins that are self-contained for guests looking for a silent retreat shaped by solitude and silence. In addition to these hermitage cabins, rooms in the Abbey Lodge (when not utilized by groups) and family sized cabins in the Village may also be used for guests on a personal retreat.
The Village
The Village consists of the western portion of the campus which includes the Resident House, several small guest cottages, the Village Prayer Chapel, the Spiritual Direction room, the Village Barn, a half-dozen prayer huts, the Village Garden, and our animals. Currently our animals include a horse, 17 goats, a llama, a mini-mule, and a duck. This portion of the campus is the residential core of Iona House from which the rhythm of life emerges for the whole campus.
A Working, Experiential-Learning Farm
Currently we have a 1/2 acre garden plot in the Village that we are cultivating. We have a variety of fruit trees, flowering trees and shrubs, vegetables, and more. It’s a favorite spot for many guests.
In the coming years Iona House envisions having approximately 3 acres of land devoted to regenerative agricultural production. The organic vegetable garden will provide produce utilized by the kitchen to feed guests. The farm will feature a vineyard, berries (raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, etc.) and orchards consisting of a variety of fruit trees (apples, pears, peaches, nectarines, apricots, plums, persimmons, cherries, etc.). In addition to the fruits & vegetables, our farm will include chickens, goats, donkeys, and horses. The farm experience is vital to the vision of Iona House and will serve as a strategic component of the Christian formation “curriculum”, allowing guests to experience the joys (and challenges) of growing fruits and vegetables as part of their Iona House experience.
Local community members will be invited to workshops and classes designed to educate the public about regenerative farming techniques and to establish a greater sense of wonder and dignity for God’s creation. The farm may also offer a simple nursery allowing guests and visitors to take home garden starts, vines, plants, and trees.
Learn more about the Farm…
The Residency Program
We offer a unique extended, communal formation experience through our Residency program that comes the closest to the actual experience of monasticism. The Resident House has room for up to 12 residents who remain a part of the community life for a more extended period of time. Each year three cohorts of residents will have the ability to experience a multi-month journey in an intentional community - learning, praying, serving, being mentored and poured into. The Residents hold the rhythm of life at Iona House and form a key part of the ongoing staff of Iona House. Resident life consists of three times of structured prayer/worship each day (morning, midday, evening prayer), as well as a mixture of study, work (agricultural, hospitality, maintenance, etc.), recreation, and rest.
The Residency experience includes elements of a tailored approach for each Resident, designed in conversation with the Director of Soul Care, for healing, spiritual formation, and growth in Christ. For more information check out our Residency page.
A Great Tradition Study Center
Iona House offers a unique place to learn, grow, experience, be stretched, and otherwise discover the fullness of the Christian faith. In particular we offer an invitation into learning the Christian faith of the first 1,000 years of the church (prior to the Great Schism between East and West and prior to all of the Protestant divisions). As a resource for guests and local community members we offer what we hope will become a world-class private theological library for study. We already have approx. 3,000 books donated (and more pledged). We anticipate a library of 7,000-10,000 books. We offer workshops, classes, and vibrant discussions; we look forward to the future when we will training catechists, spiritual directors, and host experts in various fields of study as Iona House matures into its full vision. All of this will be in service of cultivating a vibrant mission to what is increasingly a post-Christian mission-field here in North America.
Other Ongoing Ministries of Iona House
Day use
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Iona House offers a sacred space for local community members and for any guests within driving distance to utilize for day use. The library, garden, and grounds are available for day-use guests. Day use guests are invited to participate in the collective prayer rhythms of morning, midday, and evening prayer.
Spiritual Direction
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Spiritual Direction sessions are available to be arranged upon request for guests. Spiritual Direction will also be an essential part of our Resident Program and incorporated into our structured retreats. Local community members may also arrange Spiritual Direction upon request.
FRIDAY Night FEASTS
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Each Friday Evening our residents, staff, guests, volunteers, and friends gather for a shared meal. It’s a time to meet new folks, reconnect, listen, share, and express gratitude as we enter into a joyful time of holy leisure together.
Saturday CHORAL Evensong
(COMING Soon)
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All will be welcome to join our weekly traditional evensong service each Saturday at 4:30pm. This beautiful service from the Anglican Book of Common Prayer combines ancient elements of liturgy, music, prayers, and scripture. Currently we offer a more simple Evening Prayer service at 4:30pm (each day Tues-Sat).
The background and inspiration for Iona House
In a dark and confusing time, St. Columba and his companions established a monastery on the Island of Iona off the coast of present-day Scotland. This monastery went on to spur one of the greatest missionary movements in the history of Christianity.
Iona House… Continuing the legacy of St. Columba