Enlivening Calling Through Spiritual Attentiveness
Nautilus is a seven-month formation excursion shaped by stillness, listening, sowing, and joyful gathering. It’s a path that follows the abounding love of God calling us back to ourselves, to one another, and to the healing of our world. Embark on a journey of becoming spiritually rooted and vocationally alive with vibrant individuals from diverse life stages, industries, and cities nationwide.
As the capstone program of the Spiritual Formation Stream in the Goldenwood Institute, this unique experience is designed to develop the spiritual competencies that awaken us to the reality of God’s presence in our world and discover how hearing His voice shapes the way we respond to all of life, enlivening our calling.
Key Information
What’s Included:
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Five Thematic Listening Books
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Weekly Virtual Group Sessions, Tues evenings 7:30-9p EST)
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Three In-Person Retreats: Sep, Jan, Apr
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Listening Prayer & Discernment Quads
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Monthly Spiritual Companioning, 1 hr
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Selection Process: Designed for 16-24 participants, Nautilus Quads are groups of four people, intentionally diversified and curated using a specialized Enneagram tool so that each participant might journey alongside three others to reveal blind spots and clarify vision.
Program Fee: $350/month over 9 months starting Aug 2026 and ending April 2027 OR $3000/one time. [Married couples: $450/month or $4000/one time. Goldenwood Collective Members receive a special rate of $290/month or $2500/one time.] Financial aid is available. Email info@goldenwoodnyc.org to request.
Application Fee: $65 covers the cost of the Integrative Enneagram Questionnaire [iEQ9]. All applicants will gain the benefit of receiving their personalized report upon submission. If you have taken this particular Enneagram Questionnaire [the iEQ9], please email your Report to info@goldenwoodnyc.org and your application fee will be waived. If you have taken other Enneagram assessments, Nautilus requires the iEQ9 as part of the application process.
Important Dates for 2026-27 Cycle:
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Apr 1 – Applications open
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May 15 – Initial Application Deadline
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Jun 1 – Extended Application Deadline, if spots available
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Jun 15 – Initial Participants Notified
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Jul 15 – Commitments Due
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Sep 11-13 or 25-27, TBD ASAP – Retreat 1 : Princeton NJ
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Jan 15-17 or 22-24, TBD ASAP – Retreat 2 : Princeton NJ
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Apr 16-18 – Retreat 3 : Princeton NJ
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2026-27 Program Calendar
Nautilus runs from Sept – April and is designed for individual and communal participation from wherever you are. All weekly plenary sessions are held online on Tues evenings from 7:30-9:00p EST. Open to local spiritual communities participating together. Email info@goldenwoodnyc.org to discuss.
Components
Drawing upon the breadth of historic Christian practices and experiences, the following components are integrally woven together to shape the seven-month journey.
Components
Drawing upon the breadth of historic Christian practices and experiences, the following components are integrally woven together to shape the seven-month journey:
Important Dates
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- May 1, 2024 – Applications open
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- Jun 15, 2024 – Application deadline
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- Jul 15, 2024 – Participants Notified
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- Sept 20-22, 2024 – Opening Retreat
Daily Pages + Guided Stillness
An innovative Listening Book facilitates patterns for hearing God in the midst of hectic days, incorporating a variety of spiritual practices and ancient styles of prayer adapted for daily integration.
Spiritual Companioning
Creating monthly opportunities to journey with another allows the Spirit to speak into our life through the voice of another. We’ve designed a guided structure to enhance listening and regularly process life’s events.
Listening Quads
A unique communal practice, these 90-minute sessions punctuate each month, providing space to listen for God’s voice on behalf of one another, bringing key questions into dynamic conversational prayer with the Spirit of God and each other.
Group Sessions
Twice a month, vibrant two-hour sessions of stimulating theological training paired with eye-opening exercises and robust dialogue around themed reading material serve to anchor each month in a rich progression of vision development.
Why Nautilus?
Life often pulls us in directions that leave us fragmented, hurried, and disconnected—from God, ourselves, and others. Amid the noise of endless demands and distractions, it can be challenging to discern our calling, deepen spiritual roots, or embody a love that reflects Christ. Nautilus creates intentional space to slow down, reimagine our lives through a dynamic relationship with God, and cultivate rhythms of spiritual attentiveness that ground us in God’s presence. It’s an invitation to integrate faith, work, and relationships in a way that brings clarity, purpose, and transformation to every area of life.
How do we process the challenges that we’ve experienced, both as individuals and as a society? How do we shape the kind of future we want to live in? How is God able to take the pain in our world and create a Newness characterized by abundance and gratuitous love? As our world changes with increasing velocity, what lies before us is the possibility of being intentional about the hope that informs our participation in the world.
Do you long to reimagine your calling and develop a clarified vision for the whole of life that engages your entire being? Through Nautilus, you will come away equipped to live with intentionality, love deeply, and engage the world with hope and purpose, reimagining what it means to be called by God in every area of life.