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Director:
Alison Woolley
Having lived in Bradford since 1996, I moved to the Scottish Borders in 2021. I became Director of the Seeds of Silence project in 2016, after completing a theology PhD researching contemporary Christian women's spiritual practices of silence at the University of Birmingham through the Queen's Foundation for Ecumenical Research in 2015, where I am now a Research Fellow. I continue to write about silence for general and academic publishers.
During my studies I spent two years training as a spiritual accompanist and now offer this ministry to people across the UK using zoom. I also offer specialised support to women beginning theology PhDs and I am currently undertaking research into this work through a University of Birmingham Fellowship programme funded by a John Templeton Foundation. For 25 years I worked as a Music Therapist with young people with complex learning difficulties and autism. Outside work, I'm sustained by my long-term practices of Centering Prayer and 5Rhythms dance, seaside walks, photography, poetry, involvement in two feminist theology research groups, and time with my partner and in our garden.
Having lived in Bradford since 1996, I moved to the Scottish Borders in 2021. I became Director of the Seeds of Silence project in 2016, after completing a theology PhD researching contemporary Christian women's spiritual practices of silence at the University of Birmingham through the Queen's Foundation for Ecumenical Research in 2015, where I am now a Research Fellow. I continue to write about silence for general and academic publishers.
During my studies I spent two years training as a spiritual accompanist and now offer this ministry to people across the UK using zoom. I also offer specialised support to women beginning theology PhDs and I am currently undertaking research into this work through a University of Birmingham Fellowship programme funded by a John Templeton Foundation. For 25 years I worked as a Music Therapist with young people with complex learning difficulties and autism. Outside work, I'm sustained by my long-term practices of Centering Prayer and 5Rhythms dance, seaside walks, photography, poetry, involvement in two feminist theology research groups, and time with my partner and in our garden.
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A book about my research into silence is now available in paperback and ebook formats.
Alison Woolley, Women Choosing Silence: Relationality and Transformation in Spiritual Practice (London: Routledge, 2019). Based in in-depth interviews with 20 women in the UK, it explores the role, value and impact of chosen practices of silence in the lives of contemporary Christian women. It details how their engagement in silence-based prayer brings about transformation in the women's relationships with God, with themselves and with others. |
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Advisory Board:
Paul Booth
I’m an Anglican priest who retired early from parish ministry in 1997 due to a debilitating illness. Following that I became involved in training and supporting Lay Readers, and spiritual direction. I have now been listening to people in that latter ministry for more than twenty years. My wife, Linda and I enjoy the challenge of nine grandchildren, spread across Europe and the UK. For recreation I write poetry, play with colour in art from time to time, and enjoy walking and cooking - but not at the same time!
I’m an Anglican priest who retired early from parish ministry in 1997 due to a debilitating illness. Following that I became involved in training and supporting Lay Readers, and spiritual direction. I have now been listening to people in that latter ministry for more than twenty years. My wife, Linda and I enjoy the challenge of nine grandchildren, spread across Europe and the UK. For recreation I write poetry, play with colour in art from time to time, and enjoy walking and cooking - but not at the same time!
Christine Crabtree
I’m a Methodist minister trying to help people find silence and space to connect with God at this time of change as church moves into a very different place. I have trained in Spiritual Direction and have both formal directees and informal contact around the Bradford North Methodist Circuit to help people explore what the changing face of church means for their faith. I lead Quiet Days and Vision Days both on screen and in person for churches in this area. I've recently had a Sabbatical where I looked at different Missional Communities and how they enrich their members, and hope to bring some of that to bear on my ministry. I do a lot of reading and reflection within the Franciscan Tradition and have just begun to walk with the Third Order as a Postulant. I don't know what God has in store but I do know that we go on growing and learning, and am excited to see where the journey leads.
I’m a Methodist minister trying to help people find silence and space to connect with God at this time of change as church moves into a very different place. I have trained in Spiritual Direction and have both formal directees and informal contact around the Bradford North Methodist Circuit to help people explore what the changing face of church means for their faith. I lead Quiet Days and Vision Days both on screen and in person for churches in this area. I've recently had a Sabbatical where I looked at different Missional Communities and how they enrich their members, and hope to bring some of that to bear on my ministry. I do a lot of reading and reflection within the Franciscan Tradition and have just begun to walk with the Third Order as a Postulant. I don't know what God has in store but I do know that we go on growing and learning, and am excited to see where the journey leads.
