THIS PAGE CONSTANTLY EVOLVES
as newly advertised events and newly published books are added:
Please check back again every few weeks

Please scroll down the page to access all the things listed below.

At the top of the page you'll find mostly FREE resources you can access any time on-line to support you during the Covid-19 pandemic, including
  • ​an on-line Meditation Chapel to pray with others
  • a link to a free streaming of the film In Pursuit of Silence 
  • Sources of Wisdom: an access any time seven part retreat with Fr Laurence Freeman of WCCM
  • multiple podcasts from the Encountering Silence series
  • a new Turning to the Mystics podcast series with James Finley from Centre for Action & Contemplation
  • a brand new and free on line self-study course, The Monk Within, written by Dr Beverly Lanzetta
  • all the World Community for Christian Meditation's (WCCM) Sound Cloud talks and lectures
  • a new Contemplative Path through the Crisis website from WCCM
  • three videos with Cynthia Bourgeault on Oneness: The Secret Embrace, poems by Thomas Keating
  • a series of lectures on The Wisdom of Julian of Norwich in Times of Isolation with Stefan Reynolds
  • and more, including several talks by Rowan Williams, Sarah Bachelard and Thomas Keating ...
Beneath these you'll find information on the small number of residential retreats that are now beginning to be advertised for early 2021. These include:
  • A mid-week IGR at the House of Prayer, East Molesey
  • Intensive Centering Prayer retreat with Jill Benet at East Molesey, early February- 6 participants only​
Beneath these you'll find information on on line events, retreats and webinars to be live-streamed in early 2021 on specific dates.
​Many are free or suggest a small or discretionary donation.
  • These will begin to be added in the next week​
Underneath these you'll find a range of recent books about silence and meditation, including the just released Frankie the Still Fox -
​a book teaching meditation to young children - and many more by
established and emerging authors in this area.
Further down the page you'll find the 2019-2020 pogrammes of events and retreats for several
​organisations that support developing a spiritual discipline of silence in different ways.
All of these are probably postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic but give you ideas for 2021!

Coronavirus:
Resources for these uncertain times

On the Covid-19 menu tab you'll find a button taking you to some recently written poems and prayers that can speak to us all in the current situation.
There are also tips on an at home retreat as well as for dealing with family tensions when we're all suddenly living with each other all day, every day, along with a variety of other resources to help in the pandemic.

As retreat centres, church services and meditation groups are very limited in their ability to meet face-to-face for the moment, below are some on-line links that can help to support and sustain you in the months ahead.
Try the on-line Meditation Chapel, offering a way to keep meditating in groups with others. Just register as a Chapel user, find a group and time that suits you and away you go! For help and information go to the 'Using the site' and then 'Getting started' tabs.
In this on line meditation chapel you can meet together with people from all over the world for regular meditation at a time that's convenient to you. There are groups based in WCCM or Centering Prayer practices as well as different faith traditions.

On line Retreats, Videos, Lectures and Podcasts that are available to access at any time:

​A NEW website from WCCM:
A Contemplative Path Through the Crisis
This new website is WCCM's response to Covid-19 or Corona virus. It seeks to meet people's needs in a variety of different ways. It looks at each of the following: Meditation; Spirituality; Health; Education; Business; Science; Environment.
For many who have a meditation practice of prayer, this crisis is a call to deepen it.
For those who never had time to develop a path before, this is an opportunity to begin. 
​A NEW series of talks addressing Covid-19 from
The Centre for Action and Contemplation (Richard Rohr et al):
​Wisdom in Times of Crisis
CAC have created a series of 20 freely accessible videos featuring Richard Rohr, Cynthia Bourgeault, Brian McLaren, Barbara Holmes, and James Finley speaking on the pandemic. They share what this moment has to teach us, relevant practices, and the contemplative wisdom to be found in death.
Five free to access webinars
Inter-Contemplative Dialogues
A series of conversations between Allan Wallace, Eva Natanya and Lawrence Freeman - three spiritual friends and teachers from different traditions, with long-term meditation practices and a shared love for unity found amongst all sources of wisdom.
Originally planned to take place at Bonnevaux, WCCM's retreat house in France, but eventually taking place on line due to Covid-19, they are now freely available to all.
Free to access conference recordings on line
Oneness: The Secret Embrace
with Cynthia Bourgeault
In these three video recordings from early May this year Cynthia Bourgeault presents “Oneness: The Secret Embrace,” Thomas Keating’s final gift to the world, expressed through the poetry of his later years. Cynthia deftly and gracefully presents an evolved view of the being and theology of Fr. Thomas through a review of eight poems from the book, The Secret Embrace, available to buy here.
See further down the page for a new opportunity to explore these poems in greater depth in an interactive e-course on these poems, taught by Cynthia, from 31st August to 25th September.
An on line retreat in 7 flexible sessions
Sources of Wisdom
with Fr Laurence Freeman OSB, Director WCCM
​Designed so that you can participate in a way that suits you!
The retreat is structured into one-and-a-half hour sessions: meditation, video of a talk, followed by a time for personal reflection. It doesn’t involve setting aside lots of time, but will work best if you designate a period during which you are on retreat: a morning, an afternoon, a day, a weekend, a week or a month.  ​Cost £40
 A series of three on line talks
The wisdom of Julian of Norwich
in times of self-isolation
with Stefan Reynolds - listen any time!
 The lives and teachings of the mystics transmit the timeless wisdom we all may have lost and need to recover. In this new series we are introduced to wisdom from the mystical tradition relevant for our time. They reflect on what it could offer us spiritually to be isolated and slowed down by uncertainty and anxiety. 
Encountering Silence: Multiple Podcasts
Over 100 podcast interviews explore the wonder of silence from spiritual, mystical, religious and philosophical perspectives, as well as reflecting on the psychology of silence, silence and the arts, silence and education, and far more!
The list of interviewees contains many names that are familiar to
Christians with a discipline of silence, including Martin Laird, Richard Rohr,
Cynthia Bourgeault, Mirabai Starr, James Finley, as well as well-respected meditators from other traditions involved in interfaith dialogue about silence.
A podcast series
Turning to the Mystics
A weekly podcast for those searching for something more meaningfully, intimate and richly present in the divine gift of their lives. James Finlay, clinical psychologist and part of faculty at the Centre for Action and Contemplation's Living School, offers a modern take on the historical contemplative practices of Christian mystics like
​Teresa of Avila and Thomas Merton and many more.
Free on line self-study courses:
The Monk Within with Dr Beverly Lanzettta
A brand new series of online courses based on Lanzetta's teachings of the universal call to contemplation. The author of many books on new monasticism and emerging universal spirituality, Lanzetta is dedicated to a vision of theological openness and spiritual nonviolence. Her work is considered to be a major contribution to what theologian Ursula King called “a feminine mystical way for the 21st century.” 
Courses are 5 to 8 on line sessions each. Titles include: The Monastic Personality; The Cloud of Unknowing; In the Beginning; and Christian-Sanyassa: A Path of Mystical Union in Bede Griffiths and Abhishiktananda
Listen now: WCCM Sound Cloud
The World Community for Christian Meditation's audio channel, with interviews, lectures and  talks. It holds over 1,000 tracks, including the John Main Memorial Lectures from recent years, teaching from WCCM's Director, Laurence Freeman, and other well-known meditation teachers.
Listen now: What The Body Knows
​Rowan Williams at WCCM's Annual Conference
The former Archbishop of Canterbury was the guest speaker at the WCCM annual conference in July 2019. You can download all four of his talks on the body and meditative practice by clicking the button. They are well worth listening to!
Listen now: A Contemplative Christianity for Today
The John Main Seminar, August 2019
with Sarah Bachelard
Sarah Bachelard, internationally respected theologian, retreat leader, priest and founder of the Benedictus Contemplative Church in Canberra, Australia, gave five talks at this August's JMS in Vancouver this August. Contemplative experience increasingly looks like our best hope for the world. But what does this mean for Christianity itself? In an age where many say ‘just meditate', who needs religion? Hear her thoughts here.
Watch now: The Spiritual Journey
Multiple video teachings by Fr. Thomas Keating
All of the videoed recordings of Thomas Keating (1923-2018) on Centering Prayer and spiritual journeying have now been made freely available on youtube.
Overall, there are 75 different recordings, ranging from initial teachings about the method of Centering Prayer via teaching on prayer as resting and relating to God to his videos on liberation from the false self and contemplation and action - with a whole lot else in between! Most are between half an hour and an hour in length.

Face-to-face and/or Residential Retreats
A small number of retreat  in retreat houses, with very limited numbers of participants to allow social distancing are now beginning to be advertised. Others are offering accommodation but using laptops for accessing content.

Residential and/or On Line mid-week IGR Retreat 
House of Prayer, East Moleley KT8 0PB
6pm Tues 2nd Feb - 4pm Thurs 4th Feb
An opportunity to step aside from the busyness of everyday life and spend time in quiet prayer and reflection, with a retreat guide for daily individual meetings. 
All communal prayer and spiritual direction will be online but within the House of Prayer retreat centre, using Zoom platform. Please bring a laptop or device with you.
The retreat can also be non-residential using Zoom at a reduced cost.
Cost:
£180 residential
£60 from home
Residential and/or on line retreats: 
St Bueno's, Flintshire, Wales
From September, 2020 St Bueno's will resume offering both residential and on line 6 or 8 day Ignatian Guided Retreats (IGR's) as well as full, 30 day Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius  retreats, There are a a variety of dates already published into 2021 and early booking is advised to avoid disappointment, especially for the residential retreats as places limited to allow for social distancing. Many already fully booked!
Residential and/or On Line 8 Day Intensive CP Retreat 
That We May Be One  -  led by Jill Benet
House of Prayer, East Moleley KT8 0PB, Sun 14th Feb - Sun 21st  Feb
Intensive Retreats are an opportunity  to immerse yourself in the practice of Centering Prayer. There will be up to 3 hours of Centering Prayer each day. Time outside meetings is held in silence. We will draw on material from Thomas Keating’s last teaching videos, ‘That We May Be One’. Recommended for those who have practised Centering Prayer for at least 6 months. All meetings will be online using Zoom in the House of Prayer, so please bring a laptop or device with you.
This retreat can also be non-residential via Zoom at a reduced cost.
​Cost:
Residential: £630
From home: £290

Early 2021 On line Retreats & other events
As new event details are available these will appear below.

Please check back every week or so for new listings as 
2021 plans are gradually emerging as organisations and
​retreat centres work out how to operate in Covid. 
On line 'Retreat from Home'
Epiphany Retreat,
Hosted by the House of Prayer, East Molesey, 
Fri 8th Jan-Sun 10th Jan, Led by Sisters Anne Dunne & Melanie Kingston 
For many of us 2020 has been a dark time. Over this weekend we will explore how we might emerge from the darkness into God’s marvellous light. Have the Magi anything to say to us about our own journey? Using the Magi as our inspiration, we will explore our experiences through prayer, creativity, and sharing. Retreat using Zoom platform.
Cost: £60
On line 'Retreat from Home'
Time Aside: Weekend Individually Guided Retreat
Fri 15th Jan - Sun 17th Jan, led by members of the House of Prayer team
This retreat is an opportunity to step aside from the busyness of everyday life and spend time in quiet prayer and reflection.  A retreat guide will be available for daily individual meetings to accompany you. Above all, this retreat is a time of listening to God who is present in the experiences of prayer and daily living. All communal prayer meetings and spiritual direction will be online using the Zoom platform.
Cost: £60
On line 'Centering Prayer Retreat from Home'
A Time for Renewal
7pm Fri 22nd Jan - 4pm Sun 24th Jan, led by Jill Benet
A weekend to refresh and renew commitment to Centering Prayer. This weekend is suitable for those establishing a practice of Centering Prayer and those who wish to refresh or renew their practice. There will be extended periods of prayer and silence. All meetings will be online using the Zoom platform. 
Cost: £90
  On line silent IGR's throughout 2021: 
Silent Individually Guided 4, 6 or 8 day Retreats
Led by team members of the St Bede's Pastoral Centre, York
Any dates where there is capacity to accommodate within programme.
For those who have previously experience of extended times of silent prayer.
​Be guided through a silent individually guided retreat. Retreatants will need to remain undisturbed and in silence for the full length of the retreat and have access to an internet connection for the daily spiritual accompaniment meeting. 
Cost: £25 per day Please email St Bede's office for more information.
  On line Lent Retreat: 
Retreat in Daily Life
Opening Tues 16th Feb, 7-9pm, Closing Tues 13th April, 7-9pm
This Retreat in Daily Life in Lent is a time of either being accompanied one-to-one or meeting in a sharing group once a week. You will be  supported in: exploring ways of praying; reflecting on how & where God is present to you in your everyday life; and, how God might be inviting you into greater freedom & fullness of life. 
Cost £50  Please email St Bede's for more information & a simple application.

New or recent books on silence & meditation
​

New book in May 2020 on meditation for Children:
Frankie the Still Fox
by Ernie Christie & Mary Hosking
In this book children make friends with Frankie and learn meditation along the way. It begins, "When you turn the pages of this book you will learn how to become still and silent. Even when the world around you is so noisy and busy and distracted, you, like Frankie, can choose another way of being and learn to be attentive. By being still, really still and being silent, really silent, you will learn to just 'BE'. "
Cost: $14.00 (US dollars), including shipping to the UK, or $18.75 outside the UK.
New book: 
God is All in All: The Evolution of the 
Contemplative Christian Spiritual Journey
​by Thomas Keating
In July 2018, approaching the end of his life, Fr. Thomas gave permission for the editors to publish in book form a keynote talk that he gave at the 2012 Annual Conference of Contemplative Outreach in Snowmass, Colorado. It addresses the infinite compassion and the mercy of God; the three stages of the transformational spiritual journey; the new cosmology, human nature, science and their relationship to spirituality; the message of the cross for our times; and the meaning of redemption.
New book: published 2019
​Women Choosing Silence:
Relationality and Transformation in Spiritual Practice
by Dr Alison Woolley
This book discusses Alison Woolley's research findings about the role, value and impact of chose practices of silence in the faith lives of contemporary Christian women.
Based in her in-depth interviews with 20 women in the UK, conducted as part of her theology PhD, it explores how their engagement in silence-based prayer brings about transformation in the women's relationships with God, with themselves and with others.
Available in hardback and ebook formats.
20% discount at routledge.com with code FLR40 at checkout
New book: published January 2019
Good Work: Meditation for Personal and Organisational Transformation 
by Fr Lawrence Freeman
This book is about how meditation helps to make work good work, while transforming the workplace environment through more humanly rich and enjoyable encounters. The spark for this book came from a series of talks Laurence Freeman gave to the staff at DP Architects, Singapore in January 2017, where they now continue to meditate every morning before work begins.The emphasis throughout is on practice rather than theory. The language is inclusively secular. 
New book: published March 2019
​Giving Up without Giving Up:
Meditation and Depressions by Jim Green
Drawing on extensive experience of meditation within Christian and Buddhist contemplative traditions, as well as his own times of personal loss and bewilderment, Jim Green offers a moving account of how this wisdom practice can accompany those who make 'the gentle pilgrimage of recovery'. Guiding readers through 'the invention of depression' in the mid-twentieth century, he questions the increasing tendency to medicalise human suffering. 
New book, published May 2019: Searching for a Silent God
by Sarah Parkinson
Following a bereavement, Sarah found herself searching for a God who no longer seemed to be there. Through prayer, exploration and spiritual direction, gradually her relationship with God grew into one that was more profound and mature. Searching for a Silent God, combines autobiographical reflection with poetry written during her experience of divine silence, enabling others to engage with their spirituality in a new and different way.
New book, published June, 2019
Mindful Silence: 
The Heart of Christian Contemplation
by Phileena Heuertz
This will be our new book for the Bradford Silence Book Group in January 2020.
​Contact Seeds of Silence for info on joining us.
The hallmarks of contemplative spirituality — solitude, silence, and stillness — have never been more important for our fast-paced society. Filled with insights and wisdom from personal experiences, Phileena Heuertz introduces us to themes and teachers of contemplative spirituality, as well as several prayer practices, and invites us to greater healing and wholeness by learning to practice faith through prayer.
New book on depressions and meditation:
​Giving Up Without Giving Up:
Meditation and Depressions by Jim Green
Depression is a feared contemporary epidemic. Yet this book explores the idea that we have much to learn from the desert times in our lives, when it feels as though we are losing any sense of who we are. Green guides us through 'the invention of depression' in the mid-twentieth century and questions the tendency to medicalize our suffering. Based on the insight that 'Life is the Treatment', he offers a practical approach to times of desolation, showing how we can treat each other with care and compassion. 
Picture
New book by Martin Laird, OSA:
​An Ocean of Light:
Contemplation, Transformation, and Liberation
This is Laird's third book about a spiritual discipline of silence.
It is aimed at those already well-established in a daily practice of silence and is full of wonderful wisdom. I love this sentence from the end of page 55: "Our created, creative identity flows from and is consummated by the eternal splendour of the ineffable, divinizing humanity of the mystery of God in Christ." I recommend it!
New book by Liz Watson, WCCM
Images of Meditation
If God is beyond our understanding, impossible to describe and always overflowing the limits of our most elevated thought, it might seem that we can only speak with imprecise, vague, misty ideas and concepts. But paradoxically, the best metaphors for the spiritual life are drawn from the concrete things we see around us: bikes, flowers, violin strings, clouds, monkeys, wavelengths, paddling a canoe, coming home. With such images Liz clarifies our understanding of what we are doing when we meditate.
New book with chapters by various authors:
Richard Rohr, Thomas Keating, Sarah Bachelard, Phileena Heuertz & more
Contemplation and Community:
A Gathering of Fresh Voices
for a Living Tradition
This collection brings together the diverse voices who have emerged as new leaders of the contemplative movement. Exploring a multitude of themes, such as silence, imagination, meditation, embodiment, community and social action, this volume introduces the new voices who reflect globally on the gifts, challenges, differences and commonalities of Christian contemplation today for communities and people of faith.
New book: Silence in the Age of Noise
​by Erling Kagge
A former BBC Radio 4 'Book of the Week'
Behind a cacophony of traffic, Phone alerts and our ever-spinning thoughts, an elusive notion - silence - lies in wait. But what really is silence? Where can it be found? And why is it more important now than ever? This meditative, charming and surprisingly powerful book explores the power of silence, from which grows self-knowledge, gratitude, wonder and much more. A secular perspective but with many helpful insights.

Events and Retreats around the UK
Many of these events are now postponed or running via on line channels. Some later in 2020 may be able to go ahead, and so details are retained below.

Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius Loyola: 
Full 30 day retreat or in four parts of 8 days
NEW dates for 2021:  Llanerchwen, Brecon.
Complete the full Spiritual Exercises in either 30 days or four separate 8 day retreats. Prior familiarity with Ignatian types of prayer is essential for these retreats. ​All accommodation is in separate, wooden chalets, or private sections of a building. With a chapel for shared evening prayer and a brand new Art Cabin,
Llanerchwen is set in beautiful countryside  overlooking the Brecon Beacons. 
Full 30 day retreat: Feb-March only, £1,800, self-catering, daily spiritual direction.
Each part, with cooked lunch £675; or self-catering £595, daily spiritual direction.
Silence Clinic 
with Alison Woolley, Director, Seeds of Silence
Next Silence Clinic: Wednesday 24th February , 7.30-9pm.
​Now running on Zoom: please email for Zoom link
Are you curious about silence?  Is silence already an intentional part of your prayer life, but leaves you with more questions than answers?  Would you like an opportunity to talk about the difficulties and challenges of sustaining silence-based prayer?  Or maybe you rarely have opportunities for more extended periods of silence-based prayer with others? 
If so, come to the next Silence Clinic​: now running on Zoom.
Find more info and the five other 2020 Silence Clinic dates by clicking the info button.
Please email Seeds of Silence if you plan to come so we know numbers. Thanks.
New film release, Autumn, 2020:
Day of a Stranger

A film about Thomas Merton by director, Cassidy Hall.

An intimate film about the final years of the Trappist monk, Thomas Merton, from 1965 until his untimely death in 1968. Interweaving meditative images of his hermitage at Gethsemani Abbey with selected material from over 150 hours of rarely heard audio recordings that Merton made in the space. 
Now running via Zoom:
​Please email via contact page for Zoom link
Silence Book Group in Bradford
Next evening: TBC, February 2021, 7.30pm, on Zoom.
We meet every 6-8 weeks to discuss our slow reading through two books about silence based prayer and meditation; a chapter of each between meetings.
​ Each book group meeting also includes 20 minutes of shared silence.
POSTPONED: new date TBC​
Silent Ways of Knowing
A British and Irish Association of Practical Theology (BIAPT) day conference
 Cherwell Centre, Oxford
Keynote: Maggie Ross, author, Silence: A User's Guide
Hosted by the BIAPT Spirituality Special Interest Group (SIG), in addition to Maggie Ross' keynote address, BIAPT members Ian Stirling and Alison Woolley will share research perspectives. The day will include experiential as well as seminar approaches to exploring silence as a way of knowing. For information on joining BIAPT, click HERE.
Cost, including lunch: £30 for BIAPT members, £35 for non-members.
Martin Laird OSA leads Sunrise of Wonder:
A Contemplative Prayer Intensive Retreat
Launde Abbey, Now planned to run 27th-30th June 2021
Space to deepen the practice of contemplative prayer and overcome the stumbling blocks on the contemplative path. We will discuss the barriers of afflictive thoughts, intractable depression, judgement of our practice, and other topics. In tme sitting together in silence, we'll learn to release more generously into contemplative prayer. 
Cost: £305 if booked before 4th April, £325 thereafter.
POSTPONED: new date TBC​
Silence as Gift?
A WCCM Yorkshire Day, Saturday 4th July, 2020
 with Dr Alison Woolley
Leeds Trinity University Chapel, Brownberrie Lane, Horsforth LS18 5HD
Based on research for Alison’s recent book, this day will explore the potential of practices of silence for profound relational transformation in our spiritual journeys.
It will invite us to re-examine silence’s role in developing increasingly authentic selfhood, kenotic self-emptying and more responsible relationality in our own lives.
​The day will include two times of 20 minutes silent meditation together.
Minimum donation £5. Bring a packed lunch. Refreshments provided.
Praying without Words
7.30pm Thursday evenings, monthly at Whirlow Spirituality Centre, Sheffield
This group will explore questions such as 'am I doing this right?', 'nothing is happening, why bother?', 'how can I stop my thoughts?' and provides opportunity to practise and share in our journeys. Open to people with all levels of experience and all faiths or none. 
Silence Retreat Programme 2020:
House of Prayer, Kingston-upon-Thames
The House of Prayer is a space for prayer and meditation run by the Sisters of the Christian Retreat. As well as providing a tranquil environment close to London, the House of Prayer has a program of silence-based retreats, courses and regular groups to help people on their spiritual journey. Click button to see their retreats programme.
The Meditatio Centre Programme, 2020
The Meditatio Centre is part of the outreach of the World Community for Christian Meditation. Inspired by the vision of the Benedictine monk, John Main, it seeks to teach meditation to help restore the contemplative dimension of life.

The Meditatio Centre shares the fruits of meditation with the wider world and directs its wisdom towards the crises of our time with wide-ranging programmes addressing education, interfaith, mental health and social justice.
 ​World Community for Christian Meditation
2020 Events Programme
This lists events with key figures from WCCM
​in the UK, Europe and globally in 2020.
​
A 2020 Highlight:
29th January - 15th February 2020: WCCM Pilgrimage to India:
"Christian Ashrams and St Thomas Churches"
Parceval Hall
 Retreats Programme for 2020
A variety of retreats and opportunities to deepen your faith in a beautiful rural setting in the Yorkshire Moors.  From single days to longer weekend or mid-week retreats, from silence to making music, or exploring literature to walking in the stunning countryside, there's something for everyone.
St Beuno's Centre, North Wales,
Retreats Programme for 2020

Guided silent retreats from a few days to the full classic 30 day Ignatian retreat in the gorgeous surroundings of North Wales. Self-guided retreats also available.

Includes twice yearly special 'Budget Retreats: 
​£220 for 6 days and £90 for 3 days for those under 30.
Priority given to young and those on low incomes.  
April & July budget retreats have places available, but book soon! 
Bonnevaux News​

In this video Giovani Felliconi from the World Community for Christian Meditation (WCCM) discusses the three levels of silence that WCCM hope to offer at the new Bonnevaux retreat centre in France.
THIS PAGE WILL CONSTANTLY EVOLVE:
Please check back again every few weeks
If there are events - local to Bradford or elsewhere in the UK- that
you think it would be good to link to from this page,
​please use the Seeds of Silence contact page to suggest this.
Thank you