| Grailville, a 300-acre environmental,
education and retreat center in southwestern Ohio,
is the U.S. headquarters of The Grail, an international
women’s movement dedicated to global solidarity;
environmental sustainability; social, economic,
and racial justice; and spiritual search. Present
in approximately 20 different countries around
the world, the Grail is a diverse community of
women united by a shared commitment to empower
women, build justice and solidarity, protect the
earth, and celebrate spirituality and religion.
The central home of the U.S. Grail since the 1940s,
Grailville consists of organic gardens, nature
trails, ponds, outdoor labyrinths, and a number
of old and more recent buildings to house guests,
program participants, and community members. Grailville
offers a variety of programs and workshops on topics
relating to environmental sustainability, women’s
empowerment, spirituality, and global justice.
A constructed wetlands has recently been installed
on site to clean and recycle the wastewater of
several large buildings using a natural filtration
system. Grailville staff hope that this system
will serve as a model of environmentally sustainable
living systems. Under the name of Grailville Renewing
Our Water (GROW), a series of educational programs
are being implemented around water and environmental
issues related to the wetlands. In addition to
serving as a retreat center for individuals and
groups, Grailville houses the Grailville Store
and Coffeehouse and publishes a newsletter. |
| Christianity |
| United States of America (Loveland, Ohio) |
| 1944–Present |
| Originally named The Women of Nazareth, The Grail
was founded in Holland in 1921 by Jesuit priest
Jacques van Ginneken. As a [then] Catholic lay
organization, the Grail quickly gained popularity
among young women, and spread to England, Germany,
and, in 1940, the United States. Dutch Grail members
Lydwine van Kersbergen and Joan Overboss established
the first U.S. Grail center at a summer camp in
Libertyville, Illinois, but soon moved to a permanent
site in Loveland, Ohio. Influenced by Monsignor
Luiggi Ligutti of the National Catholic Rural Life
Conference, Lydwine van Kersbergen helped to introduce
an agricultural dimension to Grail life and philosophy
in the United States by settling on a working farm.
This agricultural dimension has been reflected
to various degrees in the liturgies, communal life,
and educational programs of Grailville since its
founding. During the turbulent 1960s and 1970s,
the Grail was deeply affected by Vatican II, the
women’s movement, and Latin American liberation
theology. As a result, the Grail opened itself
to women of other religious traditions, and Grailville
became a center for the emerging feminist theology
movement. In the 1980s and particularly the 1990s,
concern for the environment and sustainable agriculture
reappeared as Grailville established its “Earth/Land
Group” and launched several programs on self-sufficiency,
sustainability, earth spirituality, and ecofeminism.
An Organic Garden Internship program and Community
Supported Agriculture project were initiated in
1994, and the Wastewater Environmental Treatment
project became operational in 2003. |
Grailville is an environmental,
education and retreat center of The Grail, an
international
movement of women committed to spiritual search,
social actions, ecological sustainability, and
the release of women’s creative energy
throughout the world.
Located on an organic farm in southwest Ohio,
Grailville is a diverse community offering
spiritual, cultural
and educational opportunities for the public,
as well as providing guest facilities for
meetings,
lodging, dining, and special events.
“At the heart of Grailville’s mission is respect
for the dignity of each person and the conviction
that people are called to work together to
create a hope-filled future for all….It strives
to be a crossroads where people meet in their
diversity, a gathering place where they are nurtured in listening
to the spirit and challenged to share their
talents in the service of others. Because we envision ways
of living that promote wholeness for people
and for the planet, we at Grailville are committed
to living in ongoing, productive harmony with
the earth’s own systems, with the land as a cooperative
partner in our overall mission….” |
IMAGO
The Nature Center
Art Services Office of the [Cincinnati] Fine Arts
Fund
Women Writing (For a Change)
NCRLC (National Catholic Rural Life Conference) |
| None Listed |
| None Listed |
| None Listed |
Grailville
932 O'Bannonville Road
Loveland, OH 45140–9710
Phone: 513.683.2340
Email: grailville@fuse.net |
