The Quiet Garden Ministry
"Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest." Mark 6:31
The primary vision of The Quiet Garden Trust is to initiate and resource a network of local opportunities for prayer, silence, reflection and the appreciation of beauty; for learning about Christian life and spirituality; and for experiencing creativity and healing in the context of God's love.
The Quiet Garden Trust
The ministry began in 1992 when the first Quiet Garden opened in Stoke Poges, Buckinghamshire, England. This was founded by the Revel Philip D. Roderick, a parish priest working in the Diocese of Oxford and now also Director of The Quiet Garden Trust. It caught the imagination of others, and soon more Quiet Gardens followed. There are now Quiet Gardens and Quiet Spaces in the City in the British Isles, Europe, North and South America, India, Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
The Trust was set up in 1994 to support the interdenominational ministry of individual Quiet Gardens and Quiet Spaces. It encourages those considering providing a Quiet Space, responding in a positive way to new ideas and suggestions, as well as providing pastoral oversight. The Trustees are actively seeking funding to provide for the essential resources needed to enable the ministry to continue growing.
Quiet Gardens
The Quiet Garden Trust encourages provision of local venues where there is an opportunity to set aside time to rest and to pray. This is the ministry of hospitality.
A Quiet Garden comes into being when someone responds to the vision and agrees to open their home and garden for occasional days of stillness and reflection. This becomes for a day or two a month, an oasis, a place of withdrawal and meeting, of spiritual refreshment and support. Around the hearth or in the sunlight, concerns are shared, stories told and prayer is offered.
Another model for a Quiet Garden takes shape when a Retreat Centre or local church wishes to develop within its grounds an area of beauty and peacefulness dedicated to quiet prayer and solitude.
Each Quiet Garden, while being affiliated to The Quiet Garden Trust, is encouraged to organise its own programme and to respond to local needs. There are opportunities for contact and help from other Quiet Gardens and from the Trust staff at the centre.
Local Spiritual Initiatives
The prophetic tradition of Biblical spirituality challenges us not only to reach inwards, but also to move outwards, fostering insight for those in positions of leadership and providing nurture to those in situations of need. The contemplative and spiritual dimension lies at the heart of all human life and work. If this dimension is acknowledged and valued, the implications for human wholeness are profound.
Through the discernment and creative engagement of people involved in Quiet Garden ministry a variety of spiritual initiatives are emerging. These may begin and continue on a purely local basis. On the other hand, ideas shared may generate interest in an entirely different part of the world. Our newsletter Quiet Places helps to disseminate news of such initiatives, so that people can share in developments as they take root.
Executives, teachers and school children, health professionals. prisoners, and carers are but some of those who can be resourced by members of local Quiet Gardens, or clusters of Quiet Gardens in an area. The opportunities for contemplation in action are limitless!
For more information please contact Pat on 01932 223 820.
