Like Circles On Water: Finding Sabbath in Our Daily Lives

We will be thinking about the concept of the Sabbath and how it is both important and precious in our lives and in our relationship with God. We will look at ways we can make more time to be with God in our daily lives and how this can help us to live the life that God calls us to love.

This quiet day will be led by Jo De Graaf, one of our Day Chaplains here at Launde Abbey.

Jo lives in Harby in the beautiful Vale of Belvoir with her husband, Cor. They have five children and Jo is a very proud Oma to 10 grandchildren, who bring the family such joy. A few years ago she felt God prompting and calling her to some form of ministry. Jo believes her ministry is to bring people into God’s Kingdom through love; using contemplative spirituality, hospitality and service of all kinds to help people feel a sense of wholeness within the love of God. Not only is Jo one of our volunteer chaplains, but is now the Associate Minister in the Parish of Old Dalby, and also Lay Chair of Framland Deanery.

Quiet Day price: £44 includes lunch and coffee and tea throughout the day.
Why not think about extending your time at Launde by staying overnight after the event.  Check for availability and a quote when you contact us.

This Quiet Day is now fully booked. Please see our website for alternative dates, we’d love to see you.

Gerard Manley Hopkins: a human life in a transfigured world.

For the poet Gerard Manley Hopkins, the world was both ‘charged with the grandeur of God’ and a place of suffering and lament. In his poetry, we are invited into a landscape of both the celebration and the lament of a life shot through with God’s presence. This day is an opportunity to reflect together on this rich and textured understanding of God’s world and our place in it. 

Carys Walsh

Carys works in discernment and formation in the Church of England. She has been a psychotherapist, taught in a theological college and has long been inspired by how poetry can open up to us the depths of faith, and she speaks and writes on this regularly. She is an associate priest in the Diocese of Peterborough.

Quiet Day price: £44 includes lunch and coffee and tea throughout the day.
Why not think about extending your time at Launde by staying overnight after the event.  Check for availability and a quote when you contact us.

‘Turning Aside to See’ – Led by Revd Catherine Wright.

Beginning with the story of Moses and the burning bush, we look together on how God might be speaking to us through Scripture, experience and poetry.

There will be a talk in the morning and one in the afternoon as well as plenty of time for our own personal reflection either inside or outside in the beautiful Launde grounds.

Revd Catherine Wright

This quiet day will be led by The Revd Catherine Wright. She was previously the Director of Ministerial Formation at Ridley Hall and taught Christian History and Spirituality in the Cambridge Federation. Before going to Ridley Hall in 2014, Catherine completed twelve years in the Diocese of Bath and Wells as a Diocesan Director of Ordinands and Dean of Women Clergy. At the heart of all her work has been the desire to enable every disciple of Christ to reach her or his full potential, through opportunities to deepen spiritual life, knowledge of the Christian faith and engagement in worship, work, community and mission. Catherine is married to Geoff Boucher, who is also ordained. They enjoy long-distance walking, particularly the South West Coastal Path and the Derbyshire Peak District.

Quiet Day price: £44 includes lunch and coffee and tea throughout the day.
Why not think about extending your time at Launde by staying overnight after the event.  Check for availability and a quote when you contact us.

A Quiet Day led by Rev John Rackley.

‘She sits like a bird’ – time to reflect on a contemporary Pentecost hymn by John Bell and Graham Maule.

Our day will reflect on the nurture of our faith through the Holy Spirit as we consider the contemporary hymn of John Bell and Graham Maule. They picture a mothering Spirit who broods over creation and renews our desire to be obedient to the call of God in our lives.

John Rackley

John Rackley is a Baptist minister and retreat giver who is one of the duty chaplains here at Launde and contributes to our Quiet Day programme. He acts as a Supervisor for Spiritual Directors in both Leicester and Peterborough dioceses. He is currently a non-stipendiary minister with a Methodist/Baptist ecumenical church in Leicester. He writes in the Guidelines and Bible Reflection series for the Bible Reading Fellowship.

Quiet Day price: £44 includes lunch and coffee and tea throughout the day.

Why not think about extending your time at Launde by staying overnight after the event.  Check for availability and a quote when you contact us.

‘Between Two Worlds’ – Led by Deputy Warden, Revd Chris Webb.

“Humans are amphibians – half spirit and half animal,” writes C. S. Lewis in the Screwtape Letters. “As spirits, they belong to the eternal world, but as animals they inhabit time.” The days between Ascension and Pentecost, between Christ’s return to heaven and the Spirit’s descent to earth, offer a perfect opportunity for us to reflect on the life we live between these two worlds: citizens of the eternal kingdom and inhabitants of this created world.

During this Quiet Day, we’ll reflect on the closing of Luke’s Gospel and the opening of Luke’s second book, the Acts of the Apostles, exploring the seams and crossovers between time and eternity. We’ll also have plenty of time for silence, prayer, stillness, walking, rest and the enjoyment of Launde’s grounds, together with the warm hospitality and wonderful food for which Launde is so renowned.

Revd Chris Webb

Chris Webb is an Anglican priest, author, speaker and teacher dedicated to helping people experience a richer walk with God by growing in prayer and the spiritual life. He has ministered in a wide variety of contexts: as president of Renovaré, a spiritual formation ministry in the USA; as parish priest in Welsh farming communities and steelworking towns; and even in a church for the homeless. Chris is the author of two books: The Fire of the Word (2011) and God-Soaked Life (2017).

Quiet Day price: £44 includes lunch and coffee and tea throughout the day.
Why not think about extending your time at Launde by staying overnight after the event?  Check for availability and a quote when you contact us.

Yes – I’d like to take part in this Quiet Day!  (Please complete this form to request a place.) 

The Lord Is My Shepherd

These words which begin the 23rd Psalm tell us of the Lord who is our shepherd – the Lord who leads, restores, and accompanies us. We will be spending this quiet day in Lent reflecting on and praying with this Psalm of David. There will also be the opportunity, for those who wish, to explore circular weaving as a way of praying with this psalm.

This quiet day will be led by Rhona Knight. Rhona is a theological educator, pastoral supervisor and spiritual director and is a regular retreat leader at Launde Abbey. She is the author of a number of books on discipleship and spirituality.

Quiet Day price: £44 includes lunch and coffee and tea throughout the day.
Why not think about extending your time at Launde by staying overnight after the event.  Check for availability and a quote when you contact us.

Yes – I’d like to take part in this Quiet Day!  (Please complete this form to request a place.) 

‘Retreating Your Whole Being: A Quiet Day to Retreat to the Heart of God,’ led by Revd Sam Perez.

Fr. Sam was born and raised in Spain. Before being a priest, he worked as a missionary in Southern Spain at the University of Granada. He is an active member of the Anglican Order of Preachers (also known as the Dominican Order). He currently serves the community in the Benefice of Hartford and Houghton with Wyton, Cambridgeshire. He enjoys embroidery, walking, and reading theology. He loves spending time with his three children and his wife.

Quiet Day price: £44 includes lunch and coffee and tea throughout the day.
Why not think about extending your time at Launde by staying overnight after the event?  Check for availability and a quote when you contact us.

Yes – I’d like to take part in this Quiet Day. (Please complete this form to request a place).

This event has unfortunately been cancelled. We apologise for any inconvenience. Please see our alternative dates.

The next Quiet Day will be on the 20th of January 2024.

We know that many of our regular guests like to know the dates of our Quiet Days well in advance.  In response to those requests we are publicising this event whilst still in the process of completing our planning of the programmes for 2024.

Further details of this Quiet Day will follow shortly.  Please check back regularly.

Quiet Day price: £tba includes lunch and coffee and tea throughout the day.
Why not think about extending your time at Launde by staying overnight after the event.  Check for availability and a quote when you contact us.

‘The Kingdom of God is among you’ [Luke 17.20]

This Quiet Day will offer an opportunity to reflect on Jesus’ cryptic comment about the Kingdom, and consider what it means to be Kingdom people and Kingdom builders.

The day will be led by Adrian Chatfield.  Adrian is an Anglican priest who has worked in Trinidad, England and South Africa. Most recently, he was on the staff of Ridley Hall Cambridge. There he led the Simeon Centre for Prayer and the Spiritual Life and served as an academic tutor. Since then, he has retired to Ilkeston, where he and Jill love being near wonderful Derbyshire countryside, and enjoy family, hill walking and photography.

Quiet Day price: £44 includes lunch and coffee and tea throughout the day.
Why not think about extending your time at Launde by staying overnight before of after the event or both.  Check for availability and a quote when you contact us.

Joanna Pearson

This Quiet Day will be led by Joanna Pearson who will inviting participants to look at Jesus through the eyes of Mary Magdalene, inviting you to reflect from Mary’s perspective.

Joanna Pearson is a spiritual director, Enneagram teacher, therapist, poet, writer and artist. She lives near Launde Abbey and regularly leads retreats at Lee Abbey in Devon.  Joanna is passionate about flourishing, both in people and in the natural world.

Quiet Day price: £44 includes lunch and coffee and tea throughout the day.
Why not think about extending your time at Launde by staying overnight before of after the event or both.  Check for availability and a quote when you contact us.