Press & Recognition
A Legacy of Peace
A Contemplative Tradition Recognized Around the World
Since 1986, Ruth and Bruce Davis have welcomed people to Assisi and beyond for meditation, spiritual pilgrimage, and the simple practice of returning to the heart. Over the years, their work and the retreats they founded have received recognition from international media, travel publications, and spiritual communities.
As Featured In
The Wall Street Journal
Learn to Embrace the Digital Detox
January 2015
CNN
10 of the World’s Best Meditation Retreats
June 2013
The Better Vacation
Best Spiritual Retreats in the World
June 2026
The Guardian UK
10 of the Best Meditation Retreats in the UK and Europe January 2019
VacationIdea.com: 22 Best Yoga & Wellness Retreats Around the World , 2026
Trips to Discover: 18 of the World’s Most Blissful Meditation Retreats, 2024
Pure Wow: 6 Gorgeous Meditation Retreats That Will Leave You Feeling Like a Million Bucks , 2018
Yahoo News: 9 Vacations That Make You A Better Person, 2014
Mindful Steward: 11 World Renowned Meditation Retreats to Help You Find Your Zen
Savoir Fair: The Best Meditation Retreats Around the World
A Papal Blessing
In August 2001, Ruth and Bruce opened the Assisi East-West Retreat Center as a Temple to the World Religions, creating a contemplative space where people from many countries, faiths, and walks of life could sit together in peace.
Only weeks later, the attacks of September 11 shook the world. In response to the growing divisions and conflict that followed, Pope John Paul II invited religious leaders from around the world to gather in Assisi in January 2002 for a Day of Prayer for Peace in the World. It was the second such gathering he had convened in Assisi, following the historic World Day of Prayer for Peace in 1986.
In advance of the gathering, Pope John Paul II extended his personal blessing to the Assisi Retreat Center in recognition of its ecumenical work and shared commitment to peace among people of different religious traditions. The Meditation Temple was also featured in local news as one of the places to visit during this extraordinary gathering.
The blessing remains a meaningful part of our history and a reflection of the vision that inspired the center from its beginning: that our spiritual traditions can bring us together in peace, understanding, and a shared reverence for the sacred.
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that has welcomed pilgrims from around the world for more than four decades.