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Our events

Our day events are organised around a theme with some input provided and time for personal reflection. They usually – though not always – run from 10am till 3pm; arrival from 9.30am for coffee.

Refreshments are included but please bring your own lunch.

We tend to finish by 3pm to ensure everyone has the full benefit of the day’s programme, but participants are welcome to stay beyond this time to enjoy the Centre’s beautiful grounds and quiet spaces, including a study room if available.

If you are simply looking to spend a day with us to rest, reflect or study, you can also book an individual study room for the day. Please contact bookings@stbenedictscentre.org to book.

We look forward to welcoming you at the Centre!

March and Holy Week programme

Weekly Wednesday Eucharist

Our pattern of 30-minute weekly Wednesday Eucharist services continues throughout the year.
Join us in the Pilgrim Chapel at 12.15 pm, everyone is welcome, no booking required.

Lent course 2023 – 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd and 29th March

This year’s Lent course is taking place on Wednesdays 10 for 10.30am till 12, with an option to attend the Wednesday Eucharist at 12.15pm.

Led by Rev Jane Winter, and using The Falling of Dusk by Paul Dominiak, we are invited to explore the seven last words or phrases of Jesus from the Cross through the experience of doubt, taking us to the heart of the humanity of Jesus’ cry: ‘My God, My God why have you forsaken me?’

Doubt is a very human condition, which can lead us to God through our questioning. It can hone our faith rather than stand against it.

Cost: £20.00 for the whole course, including hot drinks. Please bring your own lunch.
To book: bookings@stbenedictscentre.org

The Passion according to Rembrandt – 7th March

For many of us art gives us a way of encountering the Christian story afresh. Our day exploring Rembrandt’s will do just this.

Rev Canon Dr Neville Emslie will help us to explore the Passion through the eyes of an artist who had a deep Christian faith best expressed through a paintbrush.

The day will focus on:
The Passion in Black and White: Rembrandt’s Etchings
The Passion in Colour: Rembrandt’s Paintings
The Passion in Us: Rembrandt and Believers

Join us at 9.30 for a 10am start, the day finishes by 3pm. Cost £20.00 (pay on the day) including hot drinks. Please bring your own lunch.
To book: bookings@stbenedictscentre.org

Walking with Jesus – 16th March

Our regular walk, during which we reflect on a theme of Jesus’ ministry, falls on the eve of St Patrick’s Day this month.

Following Patrick’s example we will think about what it means to be missionary in our own contexts, abiding with Christ who walks with us in all our circumstances and situations.

Join us at 9.30 for a 10am start, the day finishes by 3pm. Cost £20.00 (pay on the day) including hot drinks. Please bring your own lunch.
To book: bookings@stbenedictscentre.org

St Benedict and Silence – 21st March

Silence is one of the cornerstones of the Benedictine tradition.

The Rule of St. Benedict tells us: “Speaking and teaching are the master’s tasks; the disciple is to be silent and listen.”

Led by Sr Julian we will explore how, in a wordy world, we can begin to listen with the ears of our hearts.

Join us at 9.30 for a 10am start, the day finishes by 3pm. Cost £20.00 (pay on the day) including hot drinks. Please bring your own lunch.
To book: bookings@stbenedictscentre.org

In sure and certain hope…23rd March

A Quiet Day led by members of the Prayer Book Society.

As we prepare to remember Jesus’ death and resurrection, we will reflect on our own earthly mortality and promised resurrection, drawing on the Book of Common Prayer’s Order for the Burial of the Dead.

The day will begin and end with Prayer Book Matins and Evening Prayer and will include both guided reflection and quiet time for your own thoughts.

This day is open to everyone; non-Prayer Book Society Members welcome!

Join us at 9.30 for a 10am start, the day finishes by 3pm. Cost £20.00 (pay on the day) including hot drinks. Please bring your own lunch.
To book: bookings@stbenedictscentre.org

Ministry of Administration

This is another opportunity for church administrators to pause, meet and reflect together for a day during Lent, led by Ven Andy Wooding Jones.

We will be particularly thinking about our boundaries. How can we use our time and our talents and yet ensure that we experience what Jesus calls ‘life in its fulness’?

What can prevent us from striving rather than flourishing?

Join us at 10 for a 10.15 am start, the day finishes by 3pm. Cost £20.00 (pay on the day) including hot drinks. Please bring your own lunch.
To book: bookings@stbenedictscentre.org

Holy Week at St Benedict’s

Praying the Sorrowful Mysteries – 4th April

Praying using a rosary is often assumed to be a Catholic practice, but while it is a very strong tradition within the Catholic church it is also widely used in other Christian spiritual traditions. 

Doing something physical can help us concentrate deeply and stay focused; using a rosary can also help us to slow down in prayer.  

On this day in Holy Week, Rev Jane Winter will take us through the sorrowful mysteries of the events of Jesus’ death using the rosary as an aid to prayer. 

If you have a rosary please do bring it. We will have rosaries for you to use if you do not have your own. Join us at 10 for a 10.15 am start, the day finishes by 3pm.

Cost £25.00 (pay on the day) which includes hot drinks. Bring your own lunch. To book: bookings@stbenedictscentre.org

Lent Course 2023 – 5th April

Over the past six weeks Rev Jane Winter, using The Falling of Dusk by Paul Dominiak, has led us into exploring the seven last words or phrases of Jesus from the Cross through the experience of doubt.

In this final session we will be thinking about the words ‘Father into your hands I commend my Spirit.’

Join us for coffee and Hot Cross buns at 10 for a 10.15 am start, the day finishes by 3pm. Everyone is welcome to stay for the Eucharist at 12.15pm. Cost: £20.00 for the whole course, including hot drinks.

To book: bookings@stbenedictscentre.org

Walking with Jesus – 18th April

In this season of Easter we will focus on Jesus’ walk to Emmaus and consider how we recognise Jesus who continues to walk with us, revealing fresh insights into ancient truths.

Led by Jane Winter, we will stroll through the wonderful West Malling countryside. Join us at 10 for a 10.15 am start, the day finishes by 3pm. Weather (and mud)- proof clothing advisable!

Cost £25.00 (pay on the day) which includes hot drinks. Please bring your own lunch. To book: bookings@stbenedictscentre.org

Living life using the rhythm of the cloister – 25th April

The monastic life is structured around prayer and worship, work, rest and recreation. These four elements are visual, set around the cloister with the Abbey for worship, rooms for work, cells for rest and gathering space for recreation.

Walking a cloister reminds us that these four elements provide a healthy balance to the rhythm of the day. Most of us do not live in a cloistered community. We find our days often out of kilter with the pressures of work, meeting demands and squeezing out time for prayer, rest and recreation. The cloister still offers us a balanced rhythm to our days.

Bishop Laurie will help us discover our own cloister rhythm and lead us through a cloister journey. Join us at 10 for a 10.15 am start, the day finishes by 3pm.

Cost £25.00 including hot drinks. Please bring your own lunch. To book: bookings@stbenedictscentre.org

Further ahead: Events in May

10th – Our next Benedictine wisdom day Holy Spirit, led by Sr Ruth

16th – Walking with Jesus, led by Jane Winter

22nd – Neurographic Art, led by Trudi Oliver

Cost £25.00 including hot drinks. Please bring your own lunch.

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