God bless the Benedictines

Off to Hereford today to visit the Benedictine Belmont Abbey.  The monks have recently opened a new retreat house and we are hoping to hold a Seculars Retreat there in 2026 to replace our planned Douai Abbey retreat - which has had unfortunately to be cancelled.  The Benedictines have a wonderful record of offering premises for retreats – we have used their Abbey at Ampleforth for many years.  For a couple of years we did enjoy the services of our fellow Carmelites at Aylesford Friary in Kent but although the venue is admirable in many ways it is actually too large for us which means that there are other groups present and we cannot preserve our customary silence in our retreats.  Moreover, as it is a shrine, the grounds are generally very busy with visitors and tourists so not very conducive to that sense of withdrawal that we associate with being on retreat.  The number of venues available for the kind of retreats we Seculars are looking to organise has been reducing in recent years and the cost of them has been increasing, and Belmont looks like being a great find.  We owe a huge debt of gratitude to this wonderful and ancient Order for their long tradition of hospitality to retreatants.

Intercessions:

Cancer: Brian Davis, Bernard (and wife Angela caring for him), Jacqui, Theresa K, Fr Jon B, Catherine, Richard Parker

Siena, Elara – sick children

David OCDS – housebound

Sophia – blind infant

Grace – troubling ailments, job difficulties, family (deceased mother and health of father)

Lucia – Overwhelmed by weariness

Mark – brain infection

Defence of the unborn and the elderly

RIP Martin Gilham, Sue Burton, little Matthew (six years old, died of cancer), Wojtek, Joy Smith OCDS