David McCormick was until recently the Principal of the Diocese of Lincoln Ministerial Training Course having previously been a parish priest. He is now the Continuing Ministerial Education Officer for the Diocese of Lincoln. He will bring his wealth of experience to this retreat and as someone who is trained to use the Myers Briggs Personality Type Indicator.

This retreat, most appropriately at the beginning of Lent, will allow those participating to explore their journey through the lens of personality type using Myers Briggs. This will illuminate your journey helping you to understand yourself and your relationships with others and God more fully.

David McCormick

This course, which is now in its third year, is designed to enable participants to explore both key elements of their faith and a variety of different Christian traditions of prayer and spirituality. It will allow people to ask the central question of how you relate life and faith to God, through prayer and reflection. Through exploring different traditions of prayer and spirituality, both an encounter with God and spiritual growth will be possible.

There will be time for:

• Prayer — giving time to pray and to reflect on our journey of faith through a range of approaches;
• Reflection — this has two dimensions: firstly, the personal reflection in relation to what has happened and is happening in the participant’s life, and faith in their prayer and relationship with God; secondly, the corporate reflection of how the Christian spiritual tradition can inform and help our understanding of the personal experience;
• Sharing — faith sharing in the sense of sharing with another person something of our experience of prayer and reflection helps us to articulate our lived faith and so deepen our awareness of God in our lives. Done in a ‘safe place’ this can help us to share our faith in more public places.

Each day will begin with morning coffee and finish with afternoon tea. Although it is possible to book each day separately it is strongly encouraged that participants attend all four days to get the most from the course. The outline for the days is usually as follows:

The Quiet Days are open to all and consist of coffee and biscuits on arrival, a talk, midday office followed by lunch and then a second talk, Eucharist and tea and cake.

Jane Franklin is a Reader in the Hackney Marsh Team, London, a Massage Practitioner and a Retreat Leader. She is involved in the Healing Ministry in the Team and leads quiet days and guided prayer weeks. Jane offers various tools to help people understand themselves better and to reconnect with their inner being and with God. She is a Trustee and a member of the Executive Committee of the Association for Promoting Retreats.

These quiet reflective days will provide space for those attending to rest, relax and pray with an opportunity to explore and experience complimentary therapies within a Christian context.

Hildegard of Bingen (19 March)
This will explore in particular healing and medicine with Hildegard.

Rhythms of Life (24 September)
This will explore in particular healing with sound and music.

An opportunity to explore different Christian traditions using prayer, reflection and sharing. See 26 February for more details.

Tim Blewett has been the Warden of Launde Abbey since 2004. Prior to becoming Warden he was Canon Residentiary of St Asaph Cathedral with responsibility as Diocesan Officer for Ministry, Adviser for Continuing Ministerial Education and Diocesan Director of Ordinands. Between the two posts he was mobilised by the Army to serve as a military chaplain in Iraq from December 2003 to June 2004. He has also served as a parish priest. In 2008 he became Chairman of the Association for Promoting Retreats.

Tim Blewett, the Warden of Launde, will lead these two retreats which can be combined into one longer retreat or attended separately dependant upon the needs of the individual. The first retreat will follow the Holy Week story leading up to the agony of the crucifixion of Christ on Good Friday while the second retreat will take us onto the joy of the resurrection. Through the use of the traditions of Holy Week and Easter those on the retreats will explore each day of the week of Christ’s earthly life leading us through the passion and passover to the resurrection. There will be periods of silence during this retreat as well as times for sharing and opportunities to enjoy the grounds.

Tim Blewett

The Working Holiday will involve prayer, learning and working around the Abbey. Each day those participating will have the opportunity to join the daily round of worship in the beautiful Abbey chapel. The work, either in the Abbey or in the gardens, will be done under the direction of the Warden or other members of the Abbey staff. This will provide the opportunity for the group to have both great fun and fellowship within the context of prayer. There will also be time to relax in the company of the rest of the group in the evening.

This Spring Working Holiday builds on the success of the August Working Holidays which are now in their fourth year. It provides the ideal opportunity for all those taking part to have fun while also giving to this wonderful retreat house.

The Quiet Days are open to all and consist of coffee and biscuits on arrival, a talk, midday office followed by lunch and then a second talk, Eucharist and tea and cake.

An opportunity to explore different Christian traditions using prayer, reflection and sharing. See 26 February for more details.

Glenn Martin is an Anglican priest who has spent 18 years serving in the NHS as Hospital Chaplain and for 8 years as trainer and educator for hospital chaplains and NHS staff. He specialized in developing Spirituality and Religious Understanding in the Workforce. He worked for the Strategic Health Authority in developing Spirituality in the Workplace and led over 20 retreats for NHS staff of varying disciplines based across the East Midlands. Alongside this he has led many retreats for clergy and laity alike in varying centres and has a special interest in Ignatian Spirituality and led retreats at St Buenos in North Wales. He is also a spiritual director. He is currently a part time Priest-in-Charge in Southwell and Nottingham Diocese.

A retreat just for you!! A time to be still and a time to reflect. A time to listen and to be listened to. A time for you and a time for God. A time to rest and a time to be refreshed.

An individually guided retreat is an opportunity to enjoy some time apart with a spiritual guide to accompany you each day. The retreat will be silent throughout to enable you to encounter the mystery of God in prayer, Scripture, worship and space.

If you have enjoyed quiet days this could be an extended opportunity to reflect upon your spiritual journey and the presence of God in your life.

Glenn Martin

Andrew Walker was ordained in 1985 and is Director of the Centre for Spirituality and a psychosynthesis trained supervisor and counsellor and his book Journey into Joy is published by SPCK. In his spare time he enjoys gardening, food and the cinema.

The two courses led by Andrew Walker can be combined together or not dependant upon your needs. The Supervision for the Supervisors Day will be a day of reflection for those within the ministry of Spiritual Direction involving meditation, discussion, input and personal experience. The Spiritual Director’s Supervision Course is a training course specifically designed for those working as supervisors of spiritual directors.

The Quiet Days are open to all and consist of coffee and biscuits on arrival, a talk, midday office followed by lunch and then a second talk, Eucharist and tea and cake.

The Quiet Days are open to all and consist of coffee and biscuits on arrival, a talk, midday office followed by lunch and then a second talk, Eucharist and tea and cake.

See above for information about Tim Blewett, the Warden, under the Holy Week and Easter Retreats in March–April.

A retreat is an opportunity to step out of ordinary life to look at life afresh in quiet reflection and prayer deepening our relationship with God. See it, perhaps, as an opportunity to be open and available to God with a range of resources to help you from the house itself and especially its chapel which stands on a site of prayer used for the last 900 or so years. Enter into the welcome, hospitality and pattern of prayer allowing it to wash over you. Allow the silence to resonate with your soul allowing a (possible) reawakening of the memory of the Divine in you. There will be a series of talks by the retreat leader interspersed with silence which aim to give you themes to work gently on during those quiet times. There is the companionship, even in the silence, of the other people on a similar journey. Underlying all that, for busy people, there is the offer of a good rest!

Tim Blewett

The Quiet Days are open to all and consist of coffee and biscuits on arrival, a talk, midday office followed by lunch and then a second talk, Eucharist and tea and cake.

Stella Polashek (Chaplain) is a retired hospital chaplain and currently an associate priest in a joint parish of 4 churches and 5 villages in rural Leicestershire. Stella is also the Spiritual Director for Leicester Anglican Cursillo and has been a CARM chaplain for a number of years. She believes that in the frenetic pace of modern life there is a real danger that quiet space for our own spiritual refreshment is something which is so easily squeezed out by the activities that make up our daily lives.

Annabel Barber (Tutor) began to weave together her passions for textile art and visual communication while training in spiritual accompaniment at St Bede’s pastoral centre in York. Since then she has exhibited her spiritually-themed quilts in several churches. After working in publishing before ordination and parish ministry, she is now a hospital chaplain. But it is the spiritual aspects of working with cloth and thread that sustain her in her busy ministry. Married, she has three children.

With an interesting slant on modern embroidery, this retreat is appropriate for machine and hand sewers, beginners and those with some experience. It will particularly appeal to those who use embroidery with other textile arts, such as patchwork, quilting and fabric painting. We will explore ‘Integration’, using Biblical texts and poetry by the Sufi master Hafiz as inspiration for exploring spirituality with fabric, needle and thread. One evening session will look at the Amish, their quilts, lives and spirituality. Further information will be supplied on booking on the retreat.

Annabel Barber and Stella Polashek

See above for information about Glenn Martin under the Five Day Individually Guided Retreat in April.

See information under the Five Day Individually Guided Retreat in April.

See above for information about Tim Blewett, the Warden, under the Holy Week and Easter Retreats in March–April.

The holiday will be a spiritual journey, involving prayer, meditation and worship. However, the main daytime activity, not surprisingly, will be walking. The East Midlands especially East Leicestershire and Rutland offers a host of walking opportunities. Although some of the walks may start and finish at Launde others may involve car journeys to the start / finish points. It is expected that car wsharing between those coming on the holiday will be mutually agreed. Participants should be able to undertake walks of several hours duration (up to about 14 miles being walked in a full day with breaks although distances will be varied to suit the ability of the group) without suffering from any ill effects and are advised to be equipped with suitable footwear and weather attire. During your stay there will also be time to relax and enjoy the peace and quiet of Launde itself and to join in the cycle of daily worship. There will be the opportunity to read and meditate in private and to enjoy conversation and fellowship in the evening.

Tim Blewett

The Quiet Days are open to all and consist of coffee and biscuits on arrival, a talk, midday office followed by lunch and then a second talk, Eucharist and tea and cake.

Mildred Butterworth (Chaplain) is an Anglican priest in a team parish in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. She was introduced to C.A.R.M. some years ago. She is interested in and is currently exploring creative journaling — leading groups to use this as a way of helping them to grow spiritually. She is looking forward to learning more about both faith and art (in its widest sense) from the people she meets on this retreat.

Ann Parker (Tutor) has been writing for most of her life. Her preference is for poetry which has been her main focus since1 993, but she also writes articles and monologues. Her work has appeared in several magazines and local publications in the Nottingham and Birmingham area, as well as in three ‘real’ books. She has also published four poetry collections, three of them since 2002 and a collection of bible based monologues: The 72nd and other Followers, in 2008. She has been a tutor for CARM (the Creative Arts Retreat Movement) for some years. She is also interested in ecological issues. She sees the value of retreats and quiet days as a means for people to recognize their true ability, purpose and personality, and to notice the pressures which our culture tries to impose upon us.

C. A. R. M. is Christian and Ecumenical. Worship during retreats is open, inclusive and rooted in Christian traditions. The retreat will contain the usual elements of silence, morning and evening worship and a daily talk but, in addition, will provide space for us to reflect on our theme and on God’s goodness using our God-given creativity.

The retreat is open to anyone from very experienced poets and writers to those with no experience at all but who have always longed to try in a safe place.

Mildred Butterworth and Ann Parker

Hope Allen (Chaplain) is a retired Methodist Minister from South Africa, where she spent most of her adult life. As an itinerant minister she ministered to people of various cultures in most of the Provinces. Her family are spread out between South Africa and Australia with one granddaughter living in Bristol. Hope has been living in Durham, a homecoming or ‘call to roots’, for the past three years and is involved as a volunteer at the Cathedral and Hospice.

Martin Cottam (Tutor) has worked for many years as a freelance Book Illustrator using a wide variety of media. He has also taught illustration and drawing at two different art colleges and has been a tutor with CARM since 2000. He welcomes retreatants of all abilities (including those who feel they have none!) and hopes to assist each take further steps of progress along their individual creative journey with a mix of instruction, enthusiasm, and encouragement. Martin has lived in Norfolk since 2003 where he delights in the sight of wide skies, secret reedy places, and the unparalleled multiplicity of medieval church towers.

Retreat gives us the opportunity to draw aside from the activities and busyness of daily life to just “be”. “Being in Nature” at the beautiful Launde Abbey will give you time to be silent, pray, reflect and paint in its comfortable facilities, peaceful garden, woodland and Chapel. There will also be time for worship, meditation, sharing, fun, good food, rest and sleep.

Hope Allen and Martin Cottam

See information above under the Spring Working Holiday for the Fit and Healthy in April.

Peter Ball has an active retirement ministry offering spiritual direction, leading retreats and training workshops and also helping out with services in the churches around Ramsbury where he lives. Work in four parishes in the London Diocese led to his final appointment as Canon Chancellor at St. Paul’s Cathedral. His books include Journey into Faith, Adult Believing and Faith on the Way (on the Catechumenate as a way to accompany people into faith and Christian initiation) and Anglican Spiritual Direction and Introducing Spiritual Direction. He is a member of Spiritual Directors International and of Spiritual Directors-Europe. His wife Angela died in 2004. Peter has two daughters and a son and nine grandchildren. Among his many interests are music, playing bass clarinet in a wind band; painting and drawing; foreign travel and his home and garden.

The retreat offers a good break from the pressures of ministry. Against the background of extended periods of silence, the Eucharist and Offices and the peaceful ambience of the house, people are invited to go deeper into the meaning of their faith and its expression in prayer. Drawing on Biblical stories, the leader’s talks will invite private reflection on their individual journeys. He will also be available for personal conversations.

Peter Ball

The Quiet Days are open to all and consist of coffee and biscuits on arrival, a talk, midday office followed by lunch and then a second talk, Eucharist and tea and cake.

See above for information about Glenn Martin under the Five Day Individually Guided Retreat in April.

See information above under the Five Day Individually Guided Retreat in April.

Jane Franklin is a Reader in the Hackney Marsh Team, London, a Massage Practitioner and a Retreat Leader. She is involved in the Healing Ministry in the Team and leads quiet days and guided prayer weeks. Jane offers various tools to help people understand themselves better and to reconnect with their inner being and with God. She is a Trustee and a member of the Executive Committee of the Association for Promoting Retreats.

These quiet reflective days will provide space for those attending to rest, relax and pray with an opportunity to explore and experience complimentary therapies within a Christian context.

Hildegard of Bingen (19 March)
This will explore in particular healing and medicine with Hildegard.

Rhythms of Life (24 September)
This will explore in particular healing with sound and music.

The Quiet Days are open to all and consist of coffee and biscuits on arrival, a talk, midday office followed by lunch and then a second talk, Eucharist and tea and cake.

See above for information about Glenn Martin under the Five Day Individually Guided Retreat in April.

See information above under the Five Day Individually Guided Retreat in April.

The Quiet Days are open to all and consist of coffee and biscuits on arrival, a talk, midday office followed by lunch and then a second talk, Eucharist and tea and cake.

John Bell, prior to ordination, worked in voluntary capacities in London and Amsterdam. His professional ministry began with a post in youth work in Glasgow. During a subsequent period of youth ministry under the aegis of the Iona Community, John and his colleague, Graham Maule, were drawn to concentrate on the areas of congregational song, liturgy and the sharing of scripture. With his colleagues, John has produced collections of original songs, compilations of music from the World Church, and books of worship resources and sermons. John works throughout Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand for churches of all denominations. He is an occasional broadcaster on BBC radio and television.

In an age when terms like Celtic Spirituality, Creation Spirituality, Women’s Spirituality abound, this retreat ponders what nourished the soul of Jesus. Was it silence or singing, controversy or quiescence? Through music, talk, discussion and personal reflection, participants will be encouraged to discover what Christ-like piety really is.

John Bell

See above for information about Tim Blewett, the Warden, under the Holy Week and Easter Retreats in March–April.

During the weekend retreat the Course will cover a number of different styles of prayer allowing those participating to actively explore them for themselves. The Warden will also lead the group in reflecting upon different Christian traditions. This mixture of input, reflection and experience of prayer will provide an environment in which everyone will be encouraged to explore their relationship with God. The weekend will consist of a mixture of silence and times of sharing. There will also be time to explore the gardens and relax in their tranquillity and the beauty of the Abbey.

Tim Blewett

Margaret Silf is an ecumenical lay Christian, trained in accompanying others in prayer and retreat, and the author of a number of books on the spiritual journey for 21 st century pilgrims, both within and beyond the boundaries of formal religion. Formerly employed in the computer industry, she now devotes her time to writing and to facilitating retreats, workshops and days of reflection both in this country and abroad. She has one adult daughter, and lives in Cheshire.

We are living in times of great flux and transition, in which many of our old ‘certainties’ are breaking down. Where is God in this experience, how can we best navigate the changes we are facing? Can we trust that breakdown become breakthrough, not just for ourselves but for the whole human family? What fears block our journey and what hopes keep us going?

The retreat will include a reflective journey based on the Exodus story, for pilgrims in a 21st century wilderness on a quest for the promised land of God’s kingdom.

Magaret Silf

The Quiet Days are open to all and consist of coffee and biscuits on arrival, a talk, midday office followed by lunch and then a second talk, Eucharist and tea and cake.

Esther de Waal is an Anglican lay woman, gardener and grandmother, who travels, writes and gives retreats and whose life is essentially determined by the Welsh Borders where she has always lived — and whose landscape she says has shaped her spirituality. She has written on the monastic tradition — on the Rule of St Benedict, the Cistercians and the Celtic world.

She believes that many of us feel battered by too many words. She feels that it is time to recover the religious imagination, to feed the visual and the nonverbal, to deepen our awareness of the importance that image and symbol can play in our understanding of God

There is a danger of writing and talking a lot about silence these days without really taking the time to really practice it. But perhaps we need to go even deeper and recognize that we should try to cultivate the art of stillness. St. Bernard used this small phrase: Tranquillus Deas tranquillat omnia, the tranquil God tranquillises everything in us. The early Cistercians have much to teach us, as does Michael Ramsey who wrote ‘Be still and know’. The wisdom of the past, together with the insights that come from ikons, and time for quiet walks of awareness, will all come together during this short time of retreat — so that as Christmas approaches we shall be ready to welcome once more the coming of the Christ child into hearts and lives that are not frenetic and overbusy, but uncluttered, silent and still.

Esther de Waal

Adrian Holdstock is a business coach, mentor and life coach trading as Galilee Coaching and Mentoring. Adrian builds his expertise on thirty years of leadership and management in the Royal Air Force and Severn Trent Water. He holds diplomas in both life coaching and business coaching. In 2003 he gained an MA in Theology and Pastoral Care, was ordained and serves in the Benefice of Market Bosworth. He has recently been accepted by the Diocese as a Spiritual Director. For further information about Adrian and his work please go to: www.galileecoaching.co.uk.

Is your life running YOU? Are you burnt out? Facing a life-changing decision? Do you want to turn your dreams into reality? Let accredited consultant in life and business coaching and Spiritual Director Adrian Holdstock, take you on a life-changing journey here, at Launde Abbey’s annual life coaching retreat, on 4–7 January 2011. Explore all possibilities and more through an effective combination of group input and confidential one-to-one sessions, with plenty of opportunities for quiet contemplation. Learn about life coaching principles and their fit to the christian faith. Leave with a new sense of determination and direction!

Adrian Holdstock

See above for information about Glenn Martin under the Five Day Individually Guided Retreat in April 2010.

See information above under the Three Day Individually Guided Retreat in April 2010.

This course, which is now in its fourth year, is designed to enable participants to explore both key elements of their faith and a variety of different Christian traditions of prayer and spirituality. It will allow people to ask the central question of how you relate life and faith to God, through prayer and reflection. Through exploring different traditions of prayer and spirituality, both an encounter with God and spiritual growth will be possible.

There will be time for:

• Prayer — giving time to pray and to reflect on our journey of faith through a range of approaches;
• Reflection — this has two dimensions: firstly, the personal reflection in relation to what has happened and is happening in the participant’s life, and faith in their prayer and relationship with God; secondly, the corporate reflection of how the Christian spiritual tradition can inform and help our understanding of the personal experience;
• Sharing — faith sharing in the sense of sharing with another person something of our experience of prayer and reflection helps us to articulate our lived faith and so deepen our awareness of God in our lives. Done in a ‘safe place’ this can help us to share our faith in more public places.

Each day will begin with morning coffee and finish with afternoon tea. Although it is possible to book each day separately it is strongly encouraged that participants attend all four days to get the most from the course. The outline for the days is usually as follows: