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A Day in the Life...

From September 2004 we have been running Abbotswick, the Diocesan House of Prayer for Brentwood Diocese. It was a providential gift when Bishop Thomas McMahon asked us to accept this apostolate, as it provided us with the balance needed between prayer and mission to live according to our charism.
This can be seen in our weekday timetable:

07:15 An hour's Eucharistic Adoration

08:20 Morning prayer

09:15 Mass

10:15 Work

13:30 Lunch

14:30 Personal time for Rest and Study

17:30 Fiat Rosary and Evening Prayer (an extra hour's silent prayer is taken before or after this, in a
           place of one's choice (room, chapel, garden...))

18:00 Work

19:30 Supper

20:30 'Chill out' time

21:30 Rosary and Night Prayer followed by silence

We usually attend Mass in a nearby church but visiting priests will often say Mass for us. This, and various other apostolic activities, e.g. youth meetings, missions, needs of guests or the community, etc. mean that the timetable is flexibe. We have a community meaning with life-sharing once a week and on Sundays we have faith-sharing.

The House of Prayer we currently run is closed on Mondays and throughout the month of August. We use the time to rest, welcome/visit family and friends, have a community outing or do our monthly desert day. Members with family living further afield arrange home visits that allow for the additional distance and travel time needed. Apart from an annual 5-8 day retreat and a 10 day holiday with family, we also have a few days hermit experience twice a year, one in the Autumn and one in the Spring.