Earlier this week, I attended an online retreat where the theme was “the restorative power of listening.” During the session, we were encouraged to be silent in order to truly listen to people. As well as allowing us to listen to others more attentively, silence also allows us to listen to ourselves and that small voice of the Divine within.
When I was seven, my family moved to Essex, where my dad became the pastor of a small Evangelical church. In that congregation was a woman who had recently been widowed.
One day, when I was seven or eight, I was at her house playing with her children…
As I sit down to write to you this month, the theme that has been stirring in my spirit is that of peace. Oh, how we need it at the moment. A day does not go by without hearing yet more news of division, anger, war, or conflict. It can feel almost too much for the soul to bear at times, can it not?
I don’t know about you but I have been inundated with emails over the past few days offering me quick fix solutions to help me enter 2026 as the “best version of me possible”.
A Rule of Life is not only relevant to the monastic tradition (as evidenced in St Benedict’s rule): the principles can be used by anyone who is concerned about how they live their lives and then provide markers and guidelines, inspired by the Spirit, to help them on their journey towards God and discipleship.
As we prepare to share with you the Ora et Labora journal for 2026, I want to offer you a small window into one of its daily features: the readings from the Revised Common Lectionary. Each day within the journal, you’ll find the Scripture passages appointed for that day.
The Jesus Prayer is a simple prayer
“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”
The tradition of the Jesus Prayer goes back to the “prayer of the mind,” recommended by the ancient monks of the Egyptian desert.
Lectio Divina, Latin for divine reading, is an ancient practice designed to immerse us in Scripture. Lectio Divina involves reading a text from Scripture multiple times and allowing the Holy Spirit to open our hearts to God’s message.
The prayer of examen is a time of prayerful reflection where you think over the events of the day or week in order to detect God’s presence and discern his direction. It gives your soul the space to catch up.
The purpose of a ‘Rule of life’ is to intentionally lay out the way you want to live your life. What is important to you? What are your values? How do you want to spend your time?