Mission Retreats at Penhurst

Penhurst Retreat Centre in East Sussex has a heart for mission – and this summer is hosting a number of retreats specifically catering for the needs of those involved in this ministry. These include:

New Directions: Transitions and change retreat: 4-7 July

Running the race: Preparing for retirement: 7-10 July

Grace space for mission partners: 8-12 August

Rooted and Grounded in Love: 12-16 September

More information can be found on Penhurst’s website, or by downloading this leaflet. Why not join them?

Do you want to go on retreat, but are anxious about what might be expected of you?

Many people are nervous about going on retreat for the first time – but there’s really no need! All retreat houses welcome ‘first-timers’ through their doors, for all their retreats, but some also offer retreats specifically for people who haven’t been on one before.

This year, you could choose from the Coach House Kilmuir (near Inverness) or Launde Abbey from 16-18 September?

Or Penhurst Retreat Centre in East Sussex from 28 Nov – 1 Dec?

Or why not try a ‘Taster Quiet Day’ on the Hampshire/Wiltshire border with Petite Retreats on Friday 8 July?

And many of the individually guided retreats at the House of Prayer, East Molesey, are suitable for beginners too – including retreats from 8-15 July, 9-13 Sept or 7-9 Oct.

Looking for a retreat? Do you have a window of opportunity in your diary, but don’t know what’s on offer? Or where?

Take a look at our new Diary page – there are dozens of in-person and online retreats happening at our member houses across the UK, listed according to date – you’re bound to find something suitable!

‘Make Space for Encounter’ – Individually Guided Retreats at Letton Hall in Norfolk from 19-22 September 2022.

Take time out of your busy schedule to draw near to God, to think, to reflect, pray and grow, noticing and finding God in all things. 1:1 sessions with a Spiritual Director are available (booking in advance required).

The retreat will cost £260, all meals included. Booking forms are also available from the Revd Deborah Hamilton-Grey, (Email: rev@guidedretreats.org.uk, or telephone: 07896 658373) www.guidedretreats.org.uk

Private self-catered IGR’s are also available to book at any time between June and December 2022 – contact Revd Deborah Hamilton-Grey directly to arrange your own!

These are just a selection of the online retreats offered by Donna Worthington. For bookings and further information, please visit www.christianretreats.live, or contact Donna directly: drworthington@live.co.uk

ST JOHN OF THE CROSS’ SPIRITUAL CANTICLE: 18th June (10am-1pm)

ARAMAIC LORD’S PRAYER: 22nd June (6.30-9pm)

‘WE HAVE THE MIND OF CHRIST’: Wed 22 June (10am-1pm)

FAIRY TALES: Thursdays – 8th, 15th, 22th September (6.30-9pm)

DESERT FATHERS: Sat 17th September (2-5pm) or Mon 19th September (10am-1pm)

Our AGM at St Columba’s House, Woking in early November was well-attended, both in person and online via Zoom – and we were very grateful to the St Columba’s staff for making the technology of our first ever ‘hybrid’ meeting work so smoothly.

We also bade a fond farewell to Revd Barry Preece who has served as a Trustee of the APR for 9 years, and 6 as Chair – and we welcomed Revd Carol Smith as our new Chair.

You can download the Minutes of the meeting by clicking this link.

Soul Desire is a timely publication, written for those who are new to contemplation. Author and Spirituality Adviser, Cameron Butland, writes, ‘If we are to value silence and meditation, we need to trust in the contemplative relationship and allow ourselves to experience the love of God. This experience will teach us everything we need to know. God’s love taught St Anthony of Egypt and in the same way this love alone can transform our lives’.

To order your copy, cost £12 (free p&p), please email booksosp@gmail.com, or contact Cameron Butland directly at cdsa03@gmail.com.

Published in March 2020, this beautifully-produced guide offers some practical ideas to help Retreat Houses of all denominations reach out to a wider audience. These include ideas on how to best utilise online and social media promotion, as well as how to promote the value of retreat through more traditional local, regional and national channels.

Spreading the Word is available to download for free here as a pdf file, and comes with our blessings for your ongoing ministries. However, if you would like a hard copy, you can purchase one online (using Paypal) through this link, or by emailing the APR Administrator on promoting.retreats@gmail.com.

The Archbishop of Canterbury invited Trustees of the APR to Lambeth recently, for a conversation about how to better promote retreats throughout the Church of England. It was a very positive meeting. Archbishop Justin spoke both of his enthusiasm for encouraging prayer, and of his support the work of the APR as we promote the benefits of both retreats and Quiet Days, and support the work of Retreat Houses across the country, and beyond. In particular, he emphasised the value to everyone in ministry of taking regular time out to nurture their own relationships with God, saying that, ‘Evangelism or witness can only be genuine when it comes from an overflow of the love of God’.

The APR website is expanding, with a range of new resources soon to be available – the first of these are already published under the tab, ‘Signposts for Spiritual Growth’. These ‘signposts’ direct readers to a wealth of top-quality pages across the internet, concerning all aspect of prayer, spiritual formation, and growth in faith.

The pages, ‘Encountering Spirituality’, will be a virtual library of documents exploring both traditional spiritualities, contemporary role models and ‘life moments and transitions’, and are due to be published soon. Later this year, we will also be publishing a ‘Marketing Tool-Kit for Retreat Centres/Houses’.