Pilgrimages
Expressions of interest in possible Pilgrimages
The Open Cloister invites you to seek God within the peace and companionship of Worth Abbey through participation in the regular rhythm of the monastic prayer and other elements of Benedictine Spirituality including: stillness and silence, companionship and spiritual direction, and encountering God in scripture (lectio divina) and through enjoying God's creation in the Quiet Garden and woodland walks. We are extending these opportunities, in partnership with 5th Gospel Retreats (and see below), to build on the monastic practice of Lectio Divina - an engagement with God through slow and prayerful reflection on the texts of holy scripture - to include a similar practice with the 'fifth gospel', an engagement with God through a slow and prayerful experience of the biblical lands - a sort of 'lectio of the land'.
Fifth Gospel:
"Five gospels record the life of Jesus. Four you will find in books, and one you will find in the Land they call Holy. Read the fifth gospel and the world of the four will open to you" Bargil Pixner OSB, a monk of the Benedictine Monastery of Hagia Maria Sion (Dormition Abbey) Jerusalem.
"While the events depicted in the Gospels happened 2,000 years ago, the land where they took place exists to this day," writes Pixner.
5th Gospel Retreats prepares itineraries for parishes and groups, facilitating a pilgrimage of reflective encounter with the Holy Land and its people. They normally organise groups of 16-25 people to enable pilgrims to be flexible, responsive and readily to engage with the local Christian communities.
The Holy Land?
This 'holy land' with its rich echoes in our holy scriptures, cannot be dissociated from the people who live there today - the 'living stones' of our living church. Recently (2010 July 18th - 19th) there was an International Conference in Lambeth Palace focusing on Christians in the Holy Land, which was jointly hosted by Archbishop Rowan Williams (C of E), the Archbishop of Canterbury, and Archbishop Vincent Nichols (R.C.) the Archbishop of Westminster. They commended the work of the Friends of the Holy Land: "A small but growing ecumenical charity…made up of parish-based groups…dedicated to praying with and for Christians in the Holy Land, and supporting them in practical and personal ways."
In his summing up at the end of the conference, Archbishop Rowan said that we must participate and develop dialogue with parishes in this country and in the Holy Land and "re-think pilgrimage, create a new template", that engages with the people of the local christian churches. Another report on the conference can be found HERE.
His Beatitude Patriarch Fouad Twal, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem (responsible for about 70,000 faithful in the four states of Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Jordan and Cyprus), visited Worth Abbey after the conference and told me that he would be delighted to welcome pilgrimages with such a template. In his own home country of Jordan, he is looking for support for catholic schools and colleges, which have so far enabled the christians to have a beneficial influence on the country as a whole despite being only 3% of the population. With national, international and church support the Latin Patriarchate is opening a new university in Madaba (American University of Madaba), a city in central Jordan that is predominantly christian. He welcomes any group who could build up relations with his parishes, schools and university to mutual benefit.
When asked what he would ask of Christians in this country, Patriarch Twal replied with three 'P's:
- PRAY for the people of the Holy Land, for peace for all the people - Christians, Muslims and Jews.
- PILGRIMAGE - come on pilgrimage to the Holy Land, not only to see the holy sites, but to provide a livelihood for the people who live there. Stay in Christian Pilgrim Houses, buy souvenirs from Christian shops and workshops and meet the local Christians.
- PROJECTS - adopt any small project; support a seminarian, twin with a parish, support a school pupil, etc.
Our pilgrimages with 5th Gospel Retreats do all this. We will help you to PRAY before your visit. We will take you on PILGRIMAGE to various parts of the Holy Land, lead you through the biblical references from both Old and New Testaments, and allow you to encounter God in a unique way by giving you time to absorb both the text and the land. We will not be rushing off just to see more tourist sights. There will be time for prayer together and alone. We will celebrate Mass in interesting and significant places and above all, meet the local people who live in and look after these wonderful places. "It’s what 5th Gospel is all about - leading to Christ – leading to solidarity in all ways with our brothers and sisters in the Holy Land." (Della Shenton). We will introduce you to several PROJECTS - Cremisan Wines, olive wood crafts, vestment makers, etc. and help you make contact with parishes, schools and individuals who might benefit from support from the UK. Della writes that "we like to offer to take people to meet the disabled and abandoned orphans and children and play with them. We bring them clothes and toys and they have the most loving home; looked after by our favourite sisters. We take people to the rehabilitation hospital where they can talk to people; we visit schools, we visit lovely contemplative sisters and spend joyful time with them for tea and huge chats. We go to a friend's private kibbutz to meet ordinary Jewish people. We invite students from Bethlehem university to join us for supper. And a host of other choices too. Because we are not huge groups we can be invited to special archeological sacred sites not normally open to the public - and so on."
We have prepared several possible locations covering many sites both in the Kingdom of Jordan and in Palestine/Israel. From Moses to Jesus; the 'People of God' yesterday and today. Patriarch Twal strongly recommends starting in Jordan, in the footsteps of both Pope John Paul II (2000) and Pope Benedict XVI (2009). As with all events of The Open Cloister, these are ecumenical Christian pilgrimages, welcoming members of all demominations willing to share in Catholic Benedictine ethos and liturgies.
Expressions of interest
Della likes to take groups of 16 - 25 individuals. However, a group of 10 is perfectly viable. If you have such a group in mind, please contact Della at 5th Gospel Retreats directly. Della Shenton, Director 5th Gospel Retreats Ltd. http://www.5gr.org
Tel 07808 957604 E-mail: della@5gr.org
If you are an individual or smaller group, we at Worth Abbey intend to create a group for Della in the next year or so, please contact the Bookings Secretary at The Open Cloister to express your interest. Please indicate:
Where? - Sinai, Jordan, Palestine/Israel.
When? - What month of which year?
How long? - The number of days?
Who? - Who would you like to go with, how many?
Please don't forget to leave your name and contact details too.
We are developing the following Proposed Pilgrimages:
"From Moses to Jesus"
to the Holy Lands of Jordan, Palestine and Israel
Led by D. Patrick Fludder OSB (Worth Abbey)
and Della Shenton (5th Gospel Retreats)
organised by The Open Cloister of Worth Abbey
2013 April, May or June (exact dates are being finalised)
Details HERE
"Wilderness Pilgrimage to the Holy Land of Jordan
- with Moses to John the Baptist, Jesus and Mary"
Led by Fr. Patrick Fludder OSB (Worth Abbey)
and Della Shenton (5th Gospel Retreats)
organised by Worth Abbey † The Open Cloister
2012 September 29th - October 11th (dates now confirmed)
Details HERE N.B. A higher state of fitness is needed to take full advantage of this trip. Pilgrims need to be able to climb up (and down) about 300 steps at each of Jebel Haroun, Lot's Cave and Mukawir. Other sites require a fair bit of climbing over rough archeological sites.