2. I believe I am called to create culturally relevant, inclusive
Christian communities and groups within the mixed
economy of 21st century Church and outside it. This means
being inclusive of the many expressions of spirituality that
exist within contemporary culture. This includes creating
space for seekers to fully explore their faith while being
prepared to meet people of all ages and cultures at any
point on their journey, this may be non-Christian or Atheist.
Research suggests that 37% of people consider
themselves ‘Spiritual but not Religious,’ it is my belief that
our own rich tradition of Christian Spirituality has much to
offer to those who have rejected religion, or have found the
wisdom of Buddhism and Advaita Vedanta more relevant.
As St. Benedict said in his famous Rule: All… are to be
welcomed as Christ, for he himself will say: I was a
stranger and you welcomed me (Matt 25:35). (RSB, 53:2)
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3. Social media can help support a personal
prayer and meditation practice while
giving people the feeling of being part of a
community.
The Spiritual Friends Facebook group,
connects people of all faiths and
spiritualties wherever they might be on
their journey. Spiritual Friends has over
2000 members.
Meditation and Spirituality is a Wordpress
site that raises awareness of Christian
Meditation in Hampshire, supporting local
meditation groups. The site works
alongside its own Youtube channel.
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5. Regional Coordinator – Hampshire
Having just taken on the role of coordinator in
October 2014, my responsibility is to
develop/ support communities of Christian
meditators in Churches, private homes.,
schools and prisons. Since beginning the
role I have started a new group in
Portsmouth and attended the national area
coordinators conference in Derby. The
opportunity here is to encourage new
groups of worshipers into our churches
Group Leader - Romsey Abbey
I lead the Christian Meditation group in
Romsey Abbey, one of the largest WCCM
groups in the UK, at around 20 meditators
each week. The group is inclusive of non-
Christians, and people with mental health
issues. This group enables our community to
welcome those on the edges of faith.
Meditation Group Website
To support daily meditation
at home, I have set up a
website for the group
Christian Meditation
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6. As part of our Patronal festival for St. Ethelfleda, I organized and led a
Benedictine Quiet Day .
I was inspired by the up and coming 2015 Diocesan Lent course which is
based on the Rule of St. Benedict. Since few people in the Diocese are
familiar with the RSB, this day enabled people to encounter the Rule in a
setting with an authentic Benedictine heritage. The day focused on the
Prologue, and participants spent time in personal reflection on themes
including community, hospitality and obedience which means ‘listening.’
This event attracted a diverse group of almost forty people including non-
Christians and several priests. There was considerable interested in
developing meditation groups in other churches.To build awareness of the
event I used the Diocesan facebook page, Diocesan e-news and direct
approaches to local groups, both Christian and Buddhist.
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7. The Wellbeing Day was a
community event in
partnership with Romsey
Abbey and mental health
groups. Here, I was able to
engage ‘the spiritual, but not
religious’ into a conversation
about Christian meditation.
Many, although familiar with
Mindfulness and Buddhist
meditation were not familiar
with Christian meditation.
Spirituality Sunday was the
initiative of our Vicar who used
the gifts of volunteers to
encourage people to try new
forms of prayer. I led a
Christian meditation group,
alongside others who led
praying the Labyrinth, Lectio
Divina and meditations to
music. This new initiative
demonstrated growing interest
in spirituality in the Parish.
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9. Café Sunday is a safe place for young people to
explore their faith. We meet in a local coffee
shop. The Costa Foundation has supported 42
school projects overseas and aims to help coffee
growing communities grow through education. At
present we are working through the Pilgrim
Course, while providing space for discussions on
ethical issues and interfaith.
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10. ONEFIFTY is a new praise
worship service inspired by
Psalm 150, ‘Let everything that
has breath praise the Lord.’
The service is for those aged
15 to 35 and the young at
heart. Everyone is invited to
bring instruments and
contribute to the music.
My contribution here was to
support the pioneering efforts
of others by designing music
festival inspired promotional
material and a campaign to
disseminate it around the south
of the Diocese through social
media and word of mouth.
On the right is the poster created.
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12. In 2014 I was invited
by our Vicar to attend
the Greater Churches
Network conference.
In addition to sharing
findings with our PCC,
I spoke to many other
Churches about our
meditation group and
its success in
attracting those on the
edge of faith.
Having researched the
Rule of St. Benedict at
MA level, I was
privileged to be
involved in a review of
our Diocesan 2015
Benedictine themed
Lent course. I focused
my feedback on the
RSB virtue of Stability,
and course suitability
for new Christians.
In 2014 I collated and
analysed the results of
the National Young
Vocations survey and
YVC comments on YV
strategy. The project
involved extrapolating
future trends. Having
thoroughly explored all
the responses I was
able to submit findings
to the YVC chair.
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