Dom John Main

Dom John Main - the founder of the modern Christian Meditation movement. John Main rediscovered the authentic practice of mantra-based christian meditation by studying the ancient works of John Cassian.

WCCM website

Visit - the World Community for Christian Meditation website.

‘Maranatha’ is an Aramaic word from the time of Jesus, meaning 'Come Lord'. It can be found in Revelation 22.20 (the penultimate verse in the New Testament) and has been used as a prayer word since earliest days of Christianity. When meditating, use it simply as a focus for your attention, without thinking about the meaning of it.

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Bere Island: The birth place of Laurence Freeman's mother and a place to which he has returned from time to time for periods of prayer and solitude. In his book “Jesus, the Teacher Within”, Laurence uses his rediscovery of the island as an allegory of the search for personal identity and the gradual separation of reality and illusion we all need to make in order to grow spiritually.

Books and CDs by Laurence Freeman: The London Centre has a wide range of books and CDs by Laurence Freeman and other experienced meditators. Telephone 020-7278-2070 (Monday to Friday 10am to 5pm) or email welcome@wccm.org to find out whether they have the product you want in stock, its price in £ and the postage rate.

WCCM Bookshop: The London Centre has a wide range of books and CDs on all aspects of Christian Mediation from a wide range of authors, including John Main, Laurence Freeman, Richard Rohr, Bede Griffiths, Paul Harris, Margaret Rizza and many others. Telephone 020-7278-2070 (Monday to Friday 10am to 5pm) or email welcome@wccm.org to find out whether they have the product you want in stock, its price in £ and the postage rate.

Margaret Rizza: The London Centre has a wide range of music CDs by Margaret Rizza, an experienced meditator and meditation conference speaker. Telephone 020-7278-2070 (Monday to Friday 10am to 5pm) or email welcome@wccm.org to find out whether they have the product you want in stock, its price in £ and the postage rate.

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Scenes from Guildford: The historic town of Guildford is located between the rolling North Downs and the winding River Wey. It has an interesting past that hails back to Saxon times.

Hove: scenes from the sea front.

Laurence Freeman: a Benedictine monk and priest of the Congregation of Monte Oliveto, and director of WCCM. He is also the founder and director of the John Main Center for Meditation and Inter-religious Dialogue at Georgetown University, and author of many books and articles for the Tablet particularly, and a member of the Board of Medio Media.

Central London, viewed from Greenwich Observatory. Can there be space for quiet contemplation in a city like this? Well yes actually! Saint Marks Church in Islington, hosts the London Christian Meditation Centre. Cockfosters Retreat Centre also offers a range of meditation retreats throughout the year, and further meditation events take place at St Peter’s Centre for Meditation and Peace, at Vauxhall, and at Westminster Cathedral

Views, from Loweswater Village Hall. Usually, once a year in the summer, the Cumbrian Christian Meditation group meet here. The hall provides one of the most panoramic views in the Lake District looking up the valley that holds Crummock Water and Buttermere, to Great Gable, which is wreathed in cloud on this occasion.

The Newsletter is released quarterly and is the main source of information for many many members of the Community. In it you will find sections covering news of the Community's leaders, forthcoming retreats and events and a message from Father Laurence Freeman. Contact Saint Mark's Church if you want to receive it. There are details at the foot of this webpage.

North Staffordshire includes the City of Stoke-on-Trent and Newcastle-under-Lyme and their surrounding areas. There are currently three groups in the area: May Bank (Newcastle), Longton (Stoke) and Stone.

Benedictines: John Main, the founder of the World Community for Christian Meditation, and Laurence Freeman, the Community's current leader; a sketch of the former Christian Meditation Retreat Centre at Cockfosters and one of the corridors at the monastery of Monte Oliveto.

The Open Gate: a retreat house run by the Community of Aidan and Hilda on Lindisfarne, Northumberland. Courses and retreats on many aspects of christian spirituality are provided each year.

Oxford: Britain's oldest university town.

Portsmouth Catholic Cathedral was built in 1882 and is situated close to the City centre and the home of the Royal Navy.

Waterfall, in the grounds of Rydal Hall, near Ambleside. Meetings organised by the Cumbrian Christian Meditation group often take place here. The mountains of the Lake District make an inspiring backdrop to the grounds of the hall and remind us that although the path of meditation can sometimes appear rather steep and craggy, there is a way to the summit.

Autumn Colours, in the grounds of Rydal Hall, near Ambleside. Meetings organised by the Cumbrian Christian Meditation group often take place here. The mountains of the Lake District make an inspiring backdrop to the grounds of the hall and remind us that although the path of meditation can sometimes appear rather steep and craggy, there is a way to the summit.

Shrewsbury: typical half timbered houses in the town and plate glass windows in the cathedral

Lindisfarne Slakes, in the fading light of a late February afternoon. The tranquility of the sea and sky on this day, might remind us of our quest for tranquility of mind and spirit during meditation.

Staffordshire Moorlands at the southwestern end of the Pennines, provides an opportunity for solitude. The Staffordshire Peak District is distinctly quieter than its more famous Derbyshire neighbour!

Scenes from Surrey famous for its gardens and picturesque villages, and also an area where WCCM UK is very active, with a good number of groups and local events

Painted Ceiling, in one of the corridors of the Vatican Museum, leading to the Sistine Chapel.

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Scenes from Staffordshire Moorlands WCCM Doves A variety of books on sale from the WCCM bookshop in London A variety of books and CDs  by Laurence Freeman on sale from the WCCM bookshop in London Ceiling paintings in the Vatican Museum A variety of CDs  byMargaret Rizza on sale from the WCCM bookshop in London John Main, Laurence Freeman, Cockfosters, Monte Oliveto Scenes from Bere Island Scenes of Shrewsbury

West Midlands

Below you will find notices posted by Regional Coordinators, up coming retreats and events and further Information covering news, courses, reports from past events and contact details for Coordinators.

Christian Meditation News From West Midlands

Sub-Regions

Because of its size and population the West Midlands regions has two WCCM sub-regions within it

West Midlands - East

This more or less matches the metropolitan West Midlands County and includes Birmingham, Warwickshire County (including Rugby), Coventry, Wolverhampton, Walsall, Sandwell and Dudley

West Midlands - West

This includes the non-metropolitan counties further west bordering Wales, and wrapping around the metropolitan county, i.e. Staffordshire, Shropshire, Worcestershire and Herefordshire


 

ASTON TIRROLD - CENTRE FOR REFLECTION


Saturday March 31st 10am to 4pm

LEADER: Kim Nataraja          

COST: £20 includes a light lunch
 
Evagrius and Meister Eckhart - Brothers at Prayer. Both mystics, although separated by 12 centuries, stress the value of meditation and silent prayer. We will see how they can help us in our own daily lives. The day will include talks, discussions and meditation.

See the centre for Reflection Website http://www.reflect.freeuk.com/ for more details 


North Staffordshire

 

 

Our Groups

Contact: We currently have two active groups in North Staffordshire that meet weekly:

  • Newcastle-under-Lyme
  • Stone

For further details of these and any planned regional events please contact Carmel Dennison.

Click here to email Carmel

Shropshire and Telford

Our Groups

There are six meditation groups in Shropshire and a group in Wolverhampton. The groups are in contact with each other last year organised 2 'quiet' days which proved a great success. For details of the groups in this area, contact Margaret Jarvis

Click here to email Margaret

Christ the King Chapel - an Oasis in the City

Telford's Christ the King Chapel is a silent carpeted space in the midst of frenetic activity '- in the heart of a major shopping mall. The chapel is an active ecumenical space where Anglican, Catholic, Methodists and others hold weekly services.

Telford Meditation CentreFrom 1984 until 1989, meditation had been in local homes but when the chapel was created in 1989, we were consulted and as a result the whole space was carpeted to make it very quiet, an oasis from the noise outside. In 1989, flyers in shops and offices produced a good response, but now 19 years on, we need another boost.

Using every modern facility, we recently acquired a ten second slot on the new electronic notice board. The picture of candles strikes a peaceful chord in the café denizens across the way; this has produced many enquiries and we are hopeful !!

The meditation group meets every Tuesday in the chapel. If you are interested please contact Margaret Jarvis.

Click here to email Margaret

Location

The location of the meeting is in the chapel in Meeting Point House, which is the octagonal building immediately south west of the justion of Coach Central and Grange Central.

 
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Reports from Recent Retreats and Events


Shrewsbury Quiet Day (2nd May 2011) Report

You can download a full report including photos of the retreat here.

Carmel Dennison

 

West Midlands 2010 Spring Retreat Report

The retreat took place at Noddfa House, Penmaenmawr, Gwynedd, Friday 23 April to Sunday 25 April, 2010.

You can download a report including photos of the retreat here.

Retreats and Events

To find the location of an event copy its post code into the search box of http://maps.google.co.uk or http://www.bing.com/maps/ then zoom in or out and print out, to meet your needs.


Events in This Region

Event ID: 49

Saturday 2 June 2012

Masters of the Spiritual life

Exploring The Cloud of Unknowing

Time: 10:00 to 16:00

Leadership: Graeme Watson

Venue: Wellsprings, Wellsprings, 235 Alcester Road South Kings Heath Birmingham B14 6DR

Theme: Graeme will explore the message of the "Cloud of Unknowing", an anonymous 14th century English text, possibly of Dominican or Carthusian origin.

Catering: Self catering

Cost: £20.00

Booking: Contact Joy Cheek

Contact: Joy Cheek

Telephone: 0121 444 7463


Event ID: 54

Wednesday 5 September to Friday 7 September 2012

Developing a Practice of Christian Meditation

Times: Starting at 18:15 on 2012-09-05 and finishing at 13:00 on 2012-09-07

Leadership: Liz Watson

Venue: Woodbrooke Quaker Study Centre, 1046 Bristol Road Birmingham B29 6LJ

Theme: Meditation helps people to awaken and deepen their spiritual life. It is a universal tradition found in all the great religions. Many Christians have been helped to recover contact with their own tradition of meditation because of the work of John Main, the Benedictine monk (1926–82). His teaching of this ancient tradition of prayer is rooted in the Gospels and the early Christian monastic tradition of the Desert. This will be an introduction to the practice and teaching.

Catering: Residential

Cost: £180/£190

Booking: Pre-booking required

Contact: Woodbrooke Quaker Study Centre www.woodbrooke.org.uk

Telephone: 0121 472 5171


Events in Adjacent Regions

Event ID: 26

Saturday 15 September 2012

Jesus, the Teacher Within

Time: 10:30 to 16:00

Leadership: Kim Nataraja

Venue: Sacred Heart Church Parish Centre, Carlton Nottingham NG4 1FP

Theme: Kim Nataraja, an experienced teacher in the World Community for Christian Meditation, will explore themes from Fr Laurence Freeman's book 'Jesus, the Teacher Within'

Catering: Tea and coffee provided. Please bring your own lunch

Cost: Suggested donation of £3 to cover costs

Booking: No need to book. Just turn up on the day

Contact: Peter Short

Telephone: 07748911175


Event ID: 50

Sunday 28 April 2013

Journeying From Death to Life

Time: 10:00 to 12:45

Leadership: Caroline Price

Venue: James Room, Clifton cathedral, Clifton Park Bristol BS8 3BX

Theme: An Eastertide community morning for Christian meditators Meditation, Contemplative listening and responding to teaching of John Main, small group sharing.

Catering: Drinks provided. BYO lunch and stay for conversation if you can.

Cost: Suggetsed donation £5

Booking: Please let us know if you intend coming

Contact: Roger Layet

Telephone: 01275 463727


National Events

Event ID: 46

Tuesday 22 May 2012

The Spiritual Ground of Wellbeing

Meditation as an Art of Healing

Time: 09:15 to 17:00

Leadership: Fr Laurence Freeman and Professor Peter Gilbert

Venue: York St John's University, Lord Mayor's Walk York YO31 7EX

Theme: What on earth does 'spiritual' mean? It is evidently an important element of people's sense of 'well-being' today but it defies exact definition. Maybe this is because it is about wholeness and a catalyst for wholeness. This Meditatio Seminar brings together a variety of new viewpoints. Different schools of contemporary psychology and different religious traditions converge in seeing how meditation aids the healing process. The new UK NHS mental health policy emphasises the importance of prevention, early intervention and developing practices that, like meditation, support well-being. The Seminar creates a forum for clarifying the role that spiritual practice, (in particular meditation) can play. The approach is geared towards the practical ways open to a stressful, fast-paced and pluralist society for relieving suffering and promoting happiness. The presentations and workshops will be facilitated by leading teachers in the field of meditation, experienced mental health practitioners and those who have personal knowledge of using mental health and recovery services. An open discussion will also look ahead and share possible ways to proceed after the event.

Catering: Lunch is provided

Cost: £85

Booking: email/post/phone

Contact: Pat Nash

Telephone:

Alternative Contact: Kate Coombs

Email: kate@wccm.org

Telephone: 020 7278 2070

Download a flyer for this event by right clicking here, and selecting Save As (or the equivalent, if you are using an Apple Mac!)

Download a separate booking form for this event by right clicking here, and selecting Save As (or the equivalent, if you are using an Apple Mac!)

Visit Website: wccmmeditatio.org


Event ID: 39

Thursday 11 October to Wednesday 17 October 2012

UK National Retreat

Tell Me a Story - Meditation and the History of Salvation

Times: Starting at 18:00 on 2012-10-11 and finishing at 12:00 on 2012-10-17

Leadership: Father Laurence Freeman OSB

Venue: Belsey Bridge Conference Centre, Belsey Bridge Conference Centre, Ditchingham, Bungay, Suffolk NR35 2DZ

Theme: 'From childhood we learn to love stories and remain attracted to them as adults since they help us make sense of our lives. How does meditation- a way without words, images or storyline- relate to the religious story and all the stories within it that form so much of the Christian tradition? Do the stories cease to matter or do they matter even more in the light of meditation? Our daily practice and our Christian maturity can depend on this'. In this UK Retreat Father Laurence will explore this theme. The times of meditation and other ways of prayer and preparation will also be essential to making this a week of peace, renewal, solitude and blessed community. There will be a Eucharist on each full day and simple relaxation exercises will help keep our body and mind in tune.

Catering: Residential - meals provided

Cost: Between £195 and £390 - See Flyer

Booking: The booking form is part of the flyer - see below

Contact: Jacqueline Russell

Telephone: 01296 488450

Download a flyer for this event by right clicking here, and selecting Save As (or the equivalent, if you are using an Apple Mac!)


Further Information

For more information on meditation events and groups contact an Area Coordinator listed below


West Midlands - West

Margaret Jarvis

Telephone: 01743 240401

West Midlands - East and Metropolitan

Michael Hackett

Telephone: 01902 790653

Jonathon Kille


WCCM Birds

Updated: 25-011-2011