Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth
The Diocese of Portsmouth covers Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, the Channel Isles and parts of Berkshire, Dorset and Oxfordshire
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Spirituality Development Group
Members of the Spirituality Development Group (SDG) come from across the Diocese and have a wide range of backgrounds and interests in spirituality including charismatic, Ignatian, Benedictine, the relationship with Justice and Peace, etc.
The members currently are
Gill Hughes
Paul Inwood
Teresa Keogh
Fr Paul King (Convenor)
Evelyne Maloret
John McCormick
Mgr Tom McGrath VG
Sr Jean Page
Kathryn Turner
Roger Turner
General contact details
Convenor: Fr Paul King
60 Abingdon Road
Oxford
OX1 4PE
Tel / Fax: 01865 437066
E-mail: sdg @ portsmouthdiocese.org.uk
About the SDG
The diocesan Spirituality Development Group (SDG) exists to help parishes and individuals, clergy and lay people in the area of personal prayer and spiritual direction. It seeks to be open to the diversity of ways of praying into which the Holy Spirit leads us and has so far been involved in
- Prayer Workshops
- Days of Recollection
- Open Door Retreats
- Guided / Accompanied Prayer
- Taster days for prospective Spiritual Directors
- Engaging with Prayer Groups
- Taizé / Iona-style prayer
The Group has set up a network of people within Pastoral Areas and parishes to help in the process of discovering the needs of communities; also the resources which already exist and could become more widely available
It forms part of the Portsmouth Diocesan Department for Pastoral Formation which is headed by Nicky Stevens.
Prayer Workshops
The members of the Group, sometimes augmented by others, have run Prayer Workshops or Short Courses in parishes in the Diocese. These are always tailored to the particular requirements of the individual community and are based on the belief that it is more helpful to practise praying than to talk about it.
Members of the Group are able to
- contribute evenings on Prayer as part of a series of talks
- lead a short ‘School of Prayer’ over three or four evenings; these often combine a talk on an aspect of prayer to the whole group, followed by a time to experience various ways of praying in smaller groups
- offer a flexible programme spread over a longer period of time, responding to local need
Weeks of Accompanied Prayer
A Week of Accompanied Prayer is a popular form of in-parish retreat, through which many people have discovered a new depth and reality in their prayer. It is suitable for people at every stage in their life who have a desire for God and wish to deepen that relationship.
The heart of a Week of Accompanied Prayer is a daily commitment to prayer by participants, and a time of individual prayer-guidance / spiritual direction each day for five days. Other variants of accompanied prayer include meetings with a guide over a period of weeks. Some people discover through this a need for ongoing spiritual direction.
Spiritual Direction
A Spiritual Director does not, in fact, direct or tell you what to do but is there primarily to listen—and to help you to discover what God is doing through your prayer and the events of your life. The relationship between a Director and Directee is unique and can take a while to develop.
The Spirituality Development Group has compiled a list of people in the Diocese — and a few from other areas — who have had training and experience in Spiritual Direction and Prayer Guiding. Members of the Group are happy to be contacted by people seeking more information.
Training
All Christians are called to prayer. Some are also drawn to the ministry of prayer guiding and/or individual spiritual direction — one Christian ministry among others.
There are a number of courses to enhance people’s gifts in this area. The SDG has run prayer guide training and ‘taster days’ to help with discernment for those who think the ministry of spiritual direction might be for them.
Click here for a printable PDF of the SDG leaflet, giving much of the above information.