"Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves
 and rest a while."  Mark 6:31

The Quiet Garden

​Nearly 30 years ago, the Quiet Garden Movement began in Stoke Poges, Buckinghamshire, England.   Over that period of time, this simple ministry of hospitality and prayer has gently unfolded over six continents.   The Rev. Philip Roderick, founder and director of the Quiet Garden Movement says, "Jesus Christ is for us the exemplar and model for holding in creative tension the 'opposites' of withdrawal and involvement." 

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The Movement follows Christ's lead.  Remember the gospel accounts where He asked his followers to join Him in places of quiet, seclusion, and beauty.  "Why?  In order that He and they could replenish their resources ​for the sake of the Kingdom by resting in the presence of God."

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The Green Commission completed the process for St. Paul's to formally become a site for a Quiet Garden.   Follow this link to learn more about The Quiet Garden Movement. 

"This quiet retreat, however short, can help fuel [one's] active response to Jesus' equally robust invitation to share the good news and the grace of healing, wholeness, faith and love."  
​                                    ~Fr. Roderick 

May our offering meet your deep need for rest and withdrawal.

Quiet Garden Prayer

 O Lord Jesus, true gardener, work in
us what you want of us, for
without you we can do nothing. 

For you are indeed the true gardener,
at once the maker and tiller and
​keeper of your garden;
you who plant with the word,
water with the spirit and give your increase with your power.  Amen

www.quietgarden.co.uk

Date: November 7, 2011 1:39:20 AM PST

A Message from Mollie Robinson, Coordinator at the Quiet Garden Trust in England


Dear Quiet Gardener

I was recently in a garden with a little boy of two years old. As I simply pulled out some dead leaves to tidy the garden, there were hearty chuckles and peals of laughter at my side in what appeared to be an expression of sheer delight. Later this little fellow demonstrated
(pre-verbally) to his parents with vigorous movements of his arms what he had perceived.
This incident caused me to wonder, how do you and I see? And what do we see? Do we see only what we are looking for? Or are we able to see that which is beyond, of deeper meaning, that which may be shrouded in mystery.

Perhaps with a measure of wide-eyed wonder, the child sees a touch of mystery that can be veiled from our own eyes, especially if we have become a little inhibited as adults! The poet, Thomas Traherne,  certainly appreciated the capacity of children to behold the mysterious. He believed we so easily lose that specific gift of childhood.

“All appeared New, and Strange at the first, inexpressibly rare, and Delightfull, and Beautiful..............Is it not Strange that an Infant should be Heir of the World, and see those Mysteries which the Books of the Learned never unfold?”  
                                    
                                                                                       ~Thomas Traherne
​

While our Christian faith is rooted in historical tradition, there remains much that is mystery. Philip Toynbee the writer spoke of “ those holy mysteries which surround us all...mysteries (that) are not problems to be solved but realities to be contemplated.”

Our Quiet Gardens are places of sanctuary, of sensory space, of expressive space, of imaginative space, of educational and reconciling space, but may they also be a place which offers each other, and indeed the world, a glimpse of mystery. May we not be content only to paddle in the shallows of the depths of God’s love but also be prepared to wrestle with God, like Jacob wrestled night-long with the angel, and plunge with empty hands into the ocean depths of the Source of our Being!

Below you will find a couple of relevant poems.

I wish you God’s richest blessing as the days shorten, the leaves fall and
the mystery of the incarnation unfolds.

Mollie

Poems

I think we need more
of the wordless in our lives.
We need more stillness,
more of a sense of wonder,
a feeling for the mystery of life. ~  Ben Okri

Plants grow at the bottom first,
Root before stem,
Stem before flower.
The soil must be rich, dark,
I must water until it’s soaked
So thirsty roots
Will go deep to drink
Not fan out on the surface
To wither in the heat.....
Go down first
Trust depths and darkness,
Then flower. ~  Bonnie Thurston


Mollie Robinson
Quiet  Garden  Coordinator
The Quiet Garden Trust
Kerridge House
42 Woodside Close
Amersham
Buckinghamshire
HP6 5EF

Email: info@quietgarden.org
Web: www.quietgarden.org
Phone: +44(0)1494 434873
Mob: 07766 600265
Registered Charity in the UK 1038528