Burgundy, France • May 2027
The Gathering Place
We will be hosted at the Château de Mailly in Burgundy, France.
Château de Mailly sits on the edge of a cliff above the Yonne valley in Burgundy, and it does not let you forget that. The 19th-century residence looks out across the waterways and the village below from every room. The pool is built onto a jutting promontory at the cliff's edge, heated and open to the sky, with the Burgundian countryside stretching as far as the light allows. There are stone terraces for meals and for sitting, a courtyard that the old stables ring on three sides, and a separate annex through the garden for those who want a little more quiet. Enough room to explore, yet intimate enough that you learn everyone's name by the second morning.
Twenty minutes up the road is Vézelay, the Basilica of Saint Mary Magdalene has held the relics of the first resurrection witness since the 9th century. Pilgrims have been climbing the sacred hill since the Middle Ages. Bernard of Clairvaux preached the Second Crusade from its steps, Richard the Lionheart gathered his armies in its shadow before setting out for Jerusalem. We chose Burgundy because the landscape holds a deep story of the courage of the first witness.
The Itinerary
Not everything at Makom is scheduled. Not everything scheduled is mandatory. Here is how this gathering moves and how the space between the moments makes it work. This is the core schedule, but we build in a number of surprises and leave room for the Holy Spirit.
We have 3 categories of programming:
Expected
The communal heartbeat of the gathering. This is shared meals, the Sunday worship service, the worship night, the farewell banquet, the blessing jar reading. Not mandatory, but the gathering is shaped around them and you will want to be there.
Encouraged
The core programme to have the full experience. This is morning teaching, guided movement, small group discussion, vespers, the chef's demo evenings. Most guests attend most of these. They are where the depth of the week is built.
Optional
Everything else. Enjoy the spa, spiritual direction, fishing, horse riding, excursions, the letter writing station, the dawn prayer walk, the conservatory, the puzzle table, the courtyard fire, and several surprises along the way. Available always, required never.
Our Theological Frame: The Courage of the First Witness
Saturday
Welcoming Day
12:00 PM -- Private transfers from the station begin.
12PM-6PM -- Arrival, check-in, and explore the house. (Expected)
6:00PM -- Welcome talk. Opening blessings, vision, rhythm, and permissions. (Expected)
6:30PM -- Welcome dinner. (Expected)
9:00 PM -- Evening in the salon by the piano with worship. (Encouraged)
Sunday
The Lord's Day
7:00 AM -- Dawn prayer on the terrace. (Encouraged)
8:30 AM -- French breakfast overlooking the cliffs. (Expected)
10:00 AM -- Morning worship service in the castle. (Expected)
10:45 AM -- Session One -- The One Who Stayed (Expected)
12:30 PM -- Sunday lunch on the terrace. (Expected)
Free Afternoon -- The pool. The grounds. Connect with community. (Optional)
6:30 PM -- Worship under the setting sun. (Encouraged)
7:30 PM -- Plated dinner with expert sommelier and nonalcoholic pairings. Communion. (Expected)
Evening -- Compline by the fire. (Encouraged)
Monday
The First Witness
7:00 AM -- Lectio divina contemplative morning bible groups. (Encouraged)
7:30 AM -- Morning movement session in the garden. (Optional)
8:30 AM -- Family-style breakfast. (Expected)
9:30 AM -- Vézelay Pilgrimage -- Basilica of Saint Mary Magdalene, time in the nave, and lunch in the medieval hilltop village. (Expected)
4:00 PM -- Session Two -- The Courage of the First Witness (Expected)
Free Moment -- 1:1 spiritual direction available. (Encouraged)
7:30 PM -- Dinner with demonstration of Hospitality as Ministry. (Expected)
Evening -- Worship, compline, fireplace, and community. (Encouraged)
Tuesday
Extravagant Love
7:30 AM -- Morning movement session in the garden. (Optional)
8:30 AM -- Family-style breakfast. (Expected)
10:30 AM -- Session Three -- Love Without Return. (Expected)
11:30 AM -- Small group discussions. (Encouraged)
12:30 PM -- Lunch at the long table. (Expected)
Free Afternoon -- Walk to the village below. Hike the forest trails above. (Optional)
7:00 PM -- Family-style dinner of Burgundy produce. Local Burgundy wine available. (Expected)
9:00 PM -- Worship by the fire. (Expected)
Evening -- Continue the fire and community. (Encouraged)
Wednesday
Steady Love
7:30 AM -- Morning movement session in the garden. (Optional)
8:30 AM -- Family-style breakfast. (Expected)
10:30 AM -- Session Four -- Love That Stays.(Expected)
11:30 AM -- Small group discussions. (Encouraged)
12:30 PM -- Lunch on the terrace.(Expected)
Free Afternoon -- Tonnerre market town outing and letter writing. (Encouraged)
6:30 PM -- Dinner with demonstration of The Table as a Gift. (Expected)
8:30PM -- Guest Talent Night -- Worship set, instruments available, and the unknown.(Expected)
Evening -- Compline, fire pit, and community. (Encouraged)
Thursday
Go and Tell
7:00 AM -- Dawn prayer on the terrace. (Optional)
7:30 AM -- Morning movement session in the garden. (Optional)
8:30 AM -- Family-style breakfast. (Expected)
9:30 AM -- Auxerre Market — One of the finest provincial markets in Burgundy. (Expected)
1:00 PM -- Provincial lunch on the lawn. (Expected)
3:30 PM -- Session Five -- Our Testimonies as a Gift for Others.(Expected)
Free Moment -- Explore Mailly, discuss the session, write a letter, do nothing. (Encouraged)
7:00 PM -- A banquet dinner of the chef's finest. (Expected)
Evening -- Compline, worship, fire pit, and reading of the blessing jar. (Encouraged)
Friday
The Commission
8:00 AM -- Breakfast enjoyed at your leisure. (Encouraged)
9:00 AM -- Sending Ceremony -- Our leaders will pray over each person.(Encouraged)
11:00 AM -- Property closes.
A note on unscheduled hours:
The most significant moments of the gathering often happen in the gaps. A conversation after dinner that nobody planned, an afternoon in the conservatory that turned into something else, a dawn walk where the silence said more than anything the speaker offered. While we provide many ways to use your free time, we want to honor the gaps, not simply fill them.
A note on our table and expressions:
We set a generous table. All of our food is prepared by a renowned local chef who will share history, story, and flavor that can only be experienced in this way from whole ingredients sourced as locally, organically, and regeneratively as possible. Often the food is grown on the land where we stay. We never allow seed oils or artificial ingredients of any kind, and will gather dietary restrictions from each guest prior to arrival and accommodate those needs as fully as possible.
Wine & alcohol is offered at dinner on selected evenings as part of our hospitality, in the tradition of Christian fellowship around a meal. It is never the focus, it accompanies the food and the conversation. Non-alcoholic options are given the same care and intention as the wine. Nobody is forgotten at the Makom table.
We celebrate that the Lord is risen. Joy is theology. The people of God are the most free, most alive people in any room. We intend to act like it... Which sometimes includes dancing, singing, and celebration. We are Easter people.
Why don't you name your guest lineup?
Makom doesn't publish the names of its teachers, musicians, or chefs before you arrive. We do this on purpose. In short, we want you to come for the presence of God, not the people guiding you there.
The tradition we draw from does not seek platform or reputation. We have found that names create expectations, and expectations get in the way of presence. What we are after is something older and quieter than that. We hope for encounter, shared tables, the moment when someone says something true and you feel it land. That doesn't require a name you already know.
Our chefs are renowned, our speakers are extraordinary, our instructors are gifted, and our musicians have played large stages, but you are the focus, they just make room.
The people we invite to lead may choose to announce their involvement on their own. And that is ok.
Join the community to stay in touch about upcoming gatherings.
A Place at the Table
Everything at Makom is all-inclusive. One price covers everything.
Six nights accommodation in your chosen room type with carefully selected gifts. All meals including breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day prepared by a local chef, plus morning coffee and afternoon refreshments. All teaching sessions, worship services, one-on-one counseling, and advisors. Morning movement sessions with specialized trainers. Guided lessons and classes by local artisans. All supplies for our unique experiences. Curated wine, local beer, and zero-proof crafted options on designated evenings. The local excursions with the staff and transportation to off-site locations. Exclusive access to the entire estate grounds and its amenities. Private transfers from nearby stations on arrival and departure. And much more that is hidden until you arrive and experience it first-hand.
Everything means everything, there are no unwanted surprises.
King Suite
$5000
for primary guest
$1,500 for a companion.
A king bed with ensuite bathroom. Full access to every part of the Makom program including the food, the worship, the excursions, and the community. Nothing is withheld. Bed can be divided to two singles if needed.
Happening:
May 8, 2027 - May 14, 2027
Ministry Scholarship
$1,500
for each recipient
A small number of scholarship places are available at each gathering for those in pastoral ministry who could not otherwise attend. We offer this openly and without condition. If this is you, please apply by the link below. It is first-come. We are also working with a few sponsors to bring the cost to $0 and cover airfare, but cannot promise this yet. We will notify you if this happens.
A note about pricing:
We have priced Makom honestly, not cheaply, and not for excessive margin. The cost reflects what it actually takes to gather 20 to 40 people in a sacred space with a world-class chef, exceptional teachers, staff to run everything, quality goods, thoughtful touches, and the care this experience deserves. We believe beauty, quality, and care are an act of worship and want to express them fully to our very best ability. We recognize this will create a barrier for some, and we do our best to create scholarships and sponsorships to help all we can.
Common Inquiries
If we haven't answered what you're asking, please write to us at gather@makom.house. We read every message and will reply.
If you have any questions at all, please get in touch.
Contact us
"Surely the Lord is in this place — and I did not know it." — Genesis 28:16
The Pillars
Rest is Not a Reward
It is a design principle. The world was made with a pause written into it. We are not inventing the sabbath, we are recovering it.
Makom (מָקוֹם) means "place" in Hebrew. Shortened from HaMakom, which refers to "The Place," another name for God. It notes that the space we occupy is not where God is, but what God is.
We are rooted in the Reformed tradition and in the conviction that scripture is the word of God, that Jesus Christ is Lord, that the Spirit is present and active, and that the resurrection is a historical event with present consequences. We take the resurrection seriously enough to believe that joy is not incidental to faith but central to it.
Tables Are Thin Places
Some of the most important moments happen around a shared meal, in an unscripted conversation between strangers who become less strange.
Excellence is Worship
We believe that excellence, whether in food, hospitality, or art, is itself an act of worship. You are worth a generous table and beautiful things.
Joy is Theology
The resurrection means the people of God are the most free, most alive people in any room. We intend to act like it.