You may be interested in…
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How the Irish saved civilisation
Celtic Sites & Saints, Celtic Studies, Celtic Studies & SpiritualityFrom the fall of Rome to the rise of Charlemagne – the 'dark ages' – learning, scholarship and culture disappeared from the European continent. The great heritage of Western civilisation – from the Greek and Roman classics to Jewish Christian works – would have been utterly lost were it not for the holy men and women of the unconquered Ireland. In this delightful and illuminating look into a crucial but little-known 'hinge' of history, Thomas Cahill takes us to the 'island of saints and scholars', the Ireland of St Patrick and the Book of Kells. Here, far from the barbarian despoliation of the continent, monks and scribes labouriously, lovingly, even playfully preserved the West's written treasury. With the return of stability in Europe, these Irish scholars were instrumental in spreading learning. Thus the Irish not only were conservators of civilisation, but became shapers of the medieval mind, putting their unique stamp on Western civilisation.£10.99 -
Born to Fly: A handbook for butterflies-in-waiting
Everyday Life, Spiritual Growth, The Inner JourneySometimes it can feel as though we are living in the worst of times – a world of chaos, uncertainty and breakdown. But could this also be the best of times – a crucible of change in which a wiser and more spiritually mature future is being forged? The stars are most clearly visible in the deepest darkness. The butterfly emerges out of the worst meltdown of the chrysalis. In Born to Fly, Margaret Silf helps us to explore what it would mean for each of us to be such an emerging butterfly – to be an agent of spiritual transformation in our own lives and in the world around us. What kind of future do we desire for ourselves, for those who follow after us, and for the whole of creation? And if the choices we make today are shaping that future, how might we learn to make those choices more wisely? The second part of the book takes us on a gentle journey in five stages through the process of transformation mapped out for us by the caterpillar as it changes from a pesky garden grub, taking what it wants without regard for the rest of creation, to a butterfly, giving life wherever it lands? Born to Fly is designed to be read for personal reflection and inspiration, or alongside fellow readers, with suggestions for further discussion. It is a companion book to Margaret Silf's Hidden Wings.£12.99 -
Freehand Celtic Knot Manual
CreativityA practical manual for creating Freehand Celtic Knots. All you need is paper, a pencil, a plastic eraser and some colouring pens or pencils. There are aso ideas for using the knot in meditation and prayer. Mary Fleeson has developed the technique and use of the Freehand Celtic Knot and has been using it in her artwork since she founded Lindisfarne Scriptorium in the late nineties. Mary teaches workshops and leads retreats on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne where whe has lived since 1997.£4.99 -
Hidden Wings: Emerging from troubled times with new hope and deeper wisdom
Everyday Life, Spiritual Growth, The Inner JourneyYou must become the change you long for. Fine words, a great vision, but where to begin? We caterpillars know. From the moment we are conceived in our parents' mating dance, we already contain the cells that hold our future butterfly. Let us tell you our story... Tumultuous changes are occurring in the world around us, and the structures and values by which we have charted our lives seem to be collapsing. Many of us are struggling to plot a spiritual path through this unfamiliar landscape, and to believe in a positive future. Hidden Wings is a book offering hope and understanding. Using the example of a caterpillar entering the devastating, world-altering stage of the chrysalis, before emerging – transformed – as a butterfly, Margaret Silf helps us to see that these times of chaos could in fact be an opportunity for profound spiritual transformation.£12.99 -
Egfroth of Lindisfarne (not a saint!)
Celtic Studies & SpiritualityKate Tristram has written an entertaining and accessible account of the remarkable years of the 7th century Golden Age of Northumbria from the viewpoint of a fictional monk called Egfroth and his cat. She tells the story of Saint Aidan coming to Lindisfarne at the request of King Oswald, the traumatic events of the Synod of Whitby, the ministry of the charismatic Saint Cuthbert, the creation of the Lindisfarne gospels and the emergence of the great historian The Venerable Bede. Like Bede, Kate Tristram is an historian and author; she has lived and worked on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, at the heart of this story, for forty years. Combining her detailed knowledge of the era with a delightfully light touch, she provides a succinct overview of the momentous events that stamped their mark firmly on the religious, cultural and artistic life of our nation.£5.99 -
A Prayer in Brokenness: A6 postcard
Celtic Daily Prayer & Liturgy, Creativity, Music & Creativity, Northumbria Community Resources & TeachingThis A6 Postcard is printed with the words of 'A Prayer in Brokenness' which you can also find in the section of Celtic Daily Prayer Book 1: The Journey Begins entitled 'In Difficult Times'.£0.75 -
Multicoloured Mysteries
CreativityAn exciting collection of outlines to colour in. Use Multicoloured Mysteries for relaxation or meditation, on holiday or retreat.£5.49 -
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The ‘just got a minute or two’ Creative Retreat Sampler Activity Book
CreativityTake time out with God. Few of us can spare a whole day or more to take a retreat but there are many benefits of taking time out of the ordinary routine. This book contains a selection of activities, including colouring images, taken for the range of activity books to inspire and encourage you.£1.99 -
Multicoloured Meditations
CreativityA beautiful collection of 16 outlines to colour in, designed by Mary Fleeson, companion of the Northumbria Community, and produced by the Lindsifarne Scriptorium.£4.49 -
Oswald Liturgy Card
Celtic Daily Prayer & Liturgy, Celtic Daily Prayer & Liturgy, Celtic Sites & Saints, Celtic Studies & Spirituality, Northumbria Community Resources & TeachingA trifold A4 card containing the Oswald Liturgy from Celtic Daily Prayer Book 1: The Journey Begins. A useful resource for pilgrimages and retreats. 10% discount when buying 5 or more copies.£0.65 -
Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s New Monasticism: A Central Influence
Core Teaching, Influences & Suggested Reading, Monasticism & New Monasticism, New Monasticism, Northumbria Community Resources & Teaching, Re-imagining ChurchThis booklet, by Trevor Miller, looks at the ways in which Dietrich Bonhoeffer has been an influence on our Community. A Lutheran Pastor in the Confessing Church in Germany in the 1930s, Bonhoeffer’s early exploration of Community and New Monasticism was cut short by the Nazi regime, but his writings have lived on. In this booklet Trevor helps us to make the connections between Bonhoeffer’s life and work and our own journey as a Community.£5.00 -
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Learning to Walk in the Dark
Influences & Suggested Reading, The Inner JourneyNew from best-selling author Barbara Brown Taylor, perhaps best known for An Altar in the World, comes Learning to Walk in the Dark. In this hardback book she writes with wisdom, grace and beauty as she seeks to rehabilitate what we have learned to fear - the dark. Here she reflects on how our lives do not only work when everything is brightly lit; twilight and deep darkness have treasures of their own waiting to be discovered. Babara Brown Taylor writes: 'Darkness is shorthand for anything that scares me - either because I am sure that I do not have the resources to survive ti or because I do not want to have to find out. If I had my way, I would eliminate everything from chronic back pain ti the fear of the devil from my life ad the lives of those I love. At least I think I would. The problem is this: when, despite all my best efforts, the lights have gone off in my life, plunging me into the kind of darkness that turns my knees to water, I have not died. The monsters have not dragged me out of bed and taken me back to their lair. Instead, I have learned things in the dark that I could never have learned in the light, things that have saved my life over and over again, so that there is really only one logical conclusion. I need darkness as much as I need light. Learning to Walk in the Dark is a wise spiritual companion and guide for those times in life when we don't have all the answers. Recognising our tendency to associate all that is good with light, and all that is evil and dangerous with darkness, Barbara Brown Taylor asks whether God doesn't work at night too? With her characteristic grace and generosity, she invites us to put aside our fears and anxieties and to discover all that the darkness has to teach us. She takes us to underground caverns, subterranean chapels, basement night clubs and unlit cabins in the woods on moonless nights. Through darkness, we begin to see the world and sense God's presence around us in new ways, guiding us through things seen an unseen, and teaching us to find out footing in times of uncertainty. Like seeds buried in the ground, we will find how darkness is essential for our own growth and flourishing.£12.99 -
Multicoloured Stations. A pocket-sized colouring book based on The Scriptural way of the Cross by Mary Fleeson
Creativity, Lent & Easter, Resources for the Christian YearAn A6 colouring book containing a series of 15 images that depict the events from The Garden of Gethsemane through to the Resurrection. The images are based on a form of devotions called "The Scriptural way of the Cross" to which one more image has been added - "Risen". Each image includes the Bible passage and a suggested action to complete as well as colouring the image.£3.99 -
Life Together
Influences & Suggested Reading, New Monasticism, Re-imagining ChurchDietrich Bonhoeffer, the now famous theologian who was martyred by the Nazis in 1945, wrote this book on the eve of World War II. It resulted from his experience as head of a semiary of the German 'Confessing Church' at Finkenwalde near Stettin. Here many of the pastors who witnessed against Hitler received their inspiration. It was, as Professor John D. Godsey points out in his study of The Theology of Deitrich Bonhoeffer, 'a kind of theological education that was startlingly new in Germany: a communal life in which Jesus Christ's call to discipleship was taken seriously.' Professor Godsey calls Life Together 'simply written, powerfully convincing and unusually quotable...It is an attempt to give practical guidance to those who want to take their lives as Christians seriously.'£14.99 -
Most powerful holy spirit: A5 poster
Celtic Daily Prayer & Liturgy, Music & Creativity, Northumbria Community Resources & TeachingThese words are the 'Invocation of the Holy Spirit' in found in Celtic Daily Prayer Book 1: The Journey Begins by the Northumbria Community. This calligraphic design is also available as an A4 poster.£1.50 -
The Advent Creative Retreat Activity Book
Advent & Christmas, Creativity, Resources for the Christian YearThe Advent Creative Retreat Activity Book is one of a series of Retreat books written and illustrated by Mary & Mark Fleeson. It's an A6 format, 20 page book with readings, prayers and activities split into sections to help you to take time out with God. This book gives an opportunity to discover some of the things that the approach to Christmas can teach us. It includes excerpts from Henry Van Dyke’s short story ‘The Other Wise Man’, come and join him as he seeks the King! The Advent Creative Retreat Activity Book offers a combination of meditations, prayers and activities. Some to challenge and some to help you relax and clear your mind and always to encourage you to hear the ‘still, small voice’.£3.99 -
Calm me O Lord A5 poster
Celtic Daily Prayer & Liturgy, Music & Creativity, Northumbria Community Resources & TeachingThese words by David Adam form part of the Felgild Compline (for Wednesday each week) in Celtic Daily Prayer. This calligraphic design by Pam French is also available as an A4 poster, an A6 Greetings card and an A6 postcard.£1.50 -
Multicoloured Seasons
Advent & Christmas, Creativity, Lent & Easter, Resources for the Christian YearA collection of sixteen images to colour based around the Church Year, two images for each season starting at Advent, then Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter, Ascension, Pentecost and Harvest with mediations on the reverse of each image.£4.49 -
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The Forgotten Desert Mothers
Desert Monasticism, Monasticism & New MonasticismAn introduction to the sayings, lives and stories of early Christian women. "Written in clear, heartfelt language, this book does two things beautifully. It revives lost memories of women leaders in the early evolution of Christian spirituality, thus filling in one more missing piece of women's history. And it calls the reader to a path of spirituality sorely needed in today's clamorous world: slow down, be quiet, listen for the voice of God deep within your heart. The book's attractiveness is enhanced by a time line, ordination rite, glossary and calendar of feasts in addition to notes and bibliography. Altogether an appealing contribution."£15.99- Elizabeth Johnson, C.S.J. Fordham University
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Multicoloured Blessings
CreativityA pocket collection of designs to colour in. Multicoloured Blessings is inspired by Matthew 5: 1-12 also known as 'The Beatitudes'. Each colouring is a blessing to aid meditation, prayer or relaxation.£3.49 -
The Cost of Discipleship
Influences & Suggested ReadingWhat can the call to discipleship, the adherence to the word of Jesus, mean today to the businessman, the soldier, the labourer, or the aristocrat? What did Jesus mean to say to us? What is His will for us today? Drawing on the Sermon on the Mount, Dietrich Bonhoeffer answers these timeless questions by providing a seminal reading of the dichotomy between 'cheap grace' and 'costly grace'. 'Cheap grace', Bonhoeffer wrote, 'is the grace we bestow on ourselves...grace without discipleship...Costly grace is the Gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must know...It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it give the man the only true life.' The Cost of Discipleshipis a compelling statement of the demands of sacrifice and ethical consistency from a man whose life and thought were exemplary articulations of a new type of leadership inspired by the Gospel, and imbued with the spirit of Christian humanism and a creative sense of civic duty.£21.99 -
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One Day Creative Retreat Activity Book
Creativity, Spiritual Exercises, The Inner JourneyThis book has been designed to guide you through a day long creative retreat or quiet day whether it be at home or away. It offers a combination of prayers and activities, some to challenge and some to help you relax and clear your mind and always to encourage you to hear the 'still, small voice.'£3.99 -
Matching Monastery and Mission
Influences & Suggested Reading, New MonasticismGeorge Lings 'accompanied' the Community during 2005 (as part of 'Building Bridges of Hope') and has written this very helpful exploration of where the Northumbria Community fits into the 'fresh expressions of church' scene today. He examines particularly the Community's balance between the interior life ('monastery') and its outward expression (mission'). George Lings concludes: If the need today is for deep people then here is the portal to inner attentiveness in following Jesus and the painful but liberation process of being transformed by Him.' This booklet is part of the Encounters on the Edge series. A downloadable PDF version of the booklet is also available.£1.00 -
A Silent Action: engagements with Thomas Merton
Spiritual GrowthThomas Merton's life, especially once he had become a writer, was to a great extent one of dialogue with people who were distant, both geographically and historically. In these probing and perceptive studies, Rowan Williams looks closely at the key intellectual and spiritual relationships that emerge in Merton's writings, exploring the impact on him of thinkers as diverse as Hannah Arendt, Karl Barth, William Blake, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Olivier Clement, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Paul Evdokimov, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Vladimir Lossky, John Henry Newman, Boris Pasternak and St John of the Cross.£11.99 -
The Holiday Creative Retreat Activity Book
CreativityThis book has been designed to help you make the most of your holiday whether you have a long weekend or two weeks away. It offers a combination of prayers and activities. Some to challenge and some to help you relax and clear your mind and always to encourage you to hear the 'still, small voice'.£3.99 -
Hermits of the Inner Farne
Celtic Daily Prayer & Liturgy, Celtic Sites & Saints, Celtic Studies, Celtic Studies & Spirituality, Northumbria Community Resources & TeachingThis booklet has been compiled by Andy Raine, a Companion with the Northumbria Community, as a way of retelling the story of the hermits who lived and prayed on the little island of Inner Farne, just off the north Northumberland coast. It begins with a reprinting of Kathleen Parbury’s manuscript of The Hermits of the House of Farne, which she self-published in 1983, and which is contained here with the permission and blessing of her surviving relatives. It also includes relevant liturgical material taken from Celtic Daily Prayer, and other articles about the hermits.£6.00 -
Aidan, Bede, Cuthbert: Three Inspirational Saints
Celtic Sites & Saints, Celtic Studies & SpiritualityIn this rousing book, David Adam celebrates the lives and interweaving stories of Aidan, Bede and Cuthbert. Recalling, in a personal introduction, his ordination to the pastoral ministry in Durham Cathedral (the burial place of Bede and Cuthbert) and his thirteen years as Vicar of the Holy Island of Lindisfarne (where Aidan lived), the author communicates clearly his appreciation of these three great saints. They have much to teach us, he believes, about vision – about expanding our spiritual awareness and deepening our love for God.£9.99 -
Help me to journey beyond the familiar 210mm square print
Celtic Sites & Saints, Celtic Studies & Spirituality, Creativity, Spiritual GrowthLynda Owen-Hussey, a companion with the Northumbria Community, is a mixed media artist living on the shores of the West Coast of Ireland in County Kerry, close to the birthplace of St Brendan. These days, her work is inspired by the many gifts of the sea she encounters on walks along the shore, often pondering the life of St Brendan and the many monks of old who inhabited this land. In describing this original artwork Lynda says:£12.00Painted whilst on retreat at Nether Springs, the Mother House of the Northumbria Community, this artwork is inspired by a verse in the Northumbria Community’s Brendan Liturgy:
Lord, I will trust You, help me to journey beyond the familiar and into the unknown.
Brendan’s journey begins as his heart is stirred by a vision that takes him beyond his present circumstances and surroundings. In Genesis 12 we find Abram, who like Brendan, followed the call of God to leave the familiar comforts of home and venture towards the land of promise. Sometimes we hear that call ourselves, but oftentimes it is discomfort or the unexpected which proves to be the catalyst that opens us afresh to seeking out new ways as we journey in trust.
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The Christmas Creative Retreat Activity Book
Advent & Christmas, Creativity, Resources for the Christian YearThis book has been designed to be used from Christmas Day to Epiphany. It has been created to help you find moments of meaning amidst the mince pies and re-runs of old sit-coms. Be inspired by the stories of Saints and find peace with the activities. The Christmas Creative Retreat Activity Book offers a combination of meditations, prayers and activities. Some to challenge and some to help you relax and clear your mind and always to encourage you to hear the 'still, small voice'.£3.99 -
Multicoloured Life
CreativityA pocket collection of designs to colour in. Used Multicoloured Life for relaxation, prayer or meditation, on holiday or retreat.£3.49 -
Seize the Day
Daily Readings, Monasticism & New Monasticism, New Monasticism, Spiritual Growth, The Inner JourneyDietrich Bonhoeffer's faith-driven resistance to the Nazis during World War II resulted in his execution. Multitudes have been inspired by the hauntingly powrful words of this man who was willing to die for his convictions. In this collection of 365 meditations Dr Charles Ringma allows us to experience the power of Bonhoeffer's words in a way that challenges us to live out our discipleship daily - combining personal spirituality with an active concern for those around us. These daily meditations on Bonhoeffer's writings may make you uncomfortable. But if you are willing to wrestle - as Bonhoeffer did - with what it means to be a follower of Christ, you'll be empowered to seize each day.£20.99 -
The Love Is Activity Book
CreativityThis little book contains meditations, prayers and activities about Love, inspired by the verses in the book of Corinthians. In Paul's first letter to the Christians of Corinth in Greece, he spends a long time instructing, advising, challenging and encouraging the young church there. He hasn't visited for a few years and he knows of the immorality in the wealthy pagan city and the divisions that have emerged within the church. Although he aims not to diminish the message of the cross with 'wisdom and eloquence', he gave us, in chapter thirteen, some of the most powerful and well-known verses of the New Testament.£3.99 -
Fire of the North: The Life of St Cuthbert
Celtic Sites & SaintsSt Cuthbert, monk and bishop of Lindisfarne, was a man of extraordinary charm and ability. A preacher, teacher and pastor, he was also reputed to have gifts of prophecy and healing. David Adam, one of the most prolific and best-loved writers in the Celtic tradition, vividly relates the story of this central figure in Celtic Christianity. Drawing out the qualities which make Cuthbert so important in our own time, Fire of the North celebrates the saint's ready sense of God's presence and eager response to nature. The narrative is complemented throughout by prayers specially composed to help us experience the direct force of Celtic spirituality for ourselves.£10.99 -
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Contemplative Prayer
Influences & Suggested Reading, Scripture & PrayerThomas Merton's classic study of monastic prayer and contemplation brings a tradition of spirituality alive for the present day. But, as A M Allchin points out in his Introduction to this new edition, Contemplative Prayer also shows us the present day in a new perspective, because we see it in the light of a long and living tradition. Merton stresses that in meditation we should not look for a 'method' or 'system' but cultivate an 'attitude' or 'outlook': faith, openness, attention, reverence, expectation, trust, joy. God is found in the desert of surrender, in giving up any expectation of a particular message and 'waiting on the Word of God in silence'. Merton insists on the humility of faith, which he argues 'will do far more to launch us into the full current of historical reality than the pompous rationalisation of politicians who think they are somehow the directors and manipulators of history'.£9.99 -
An Introduction to the Wisdom of the Celtic Saints
Celtic Sites & Saints, Celtic Studies, Celtic Studies & Spirituality, Core Teaching, Influences & Suggested Reading, Northumbria Community Resources & TeachingEdward C Sellner has recently published a revised and expanded edition of his important work Wisdom of the Celtic Saints, which presents the stories of 27 of the most important of the Celtic saints from Ireland, Scotland, northern England, Wales, Cornwall and Brittany. However, this is currently only available in hardback form and the author has permitted the Northumbria Community to publish his excellent introduction to his book in this booklet form, making it more widely accessible.£4.00 -
Streams of Living Water
Influences & Suggested Reading, The Inner JourneyIsn't it a shame that the rich tapestry of Christian belief and practice has so often been rigidly carved up, crammed into denominational boxes and padlocked shut? Richard Foster addresses this by identifying six major strands of Christian spirituality within the worldwide church that have contributed at various times and places across the centuries. They are: The Contemplative tradition - or the Prayer-filled life, The Holiness tradition - or the Virtuous life, The Charismatic tradition - or the Spirit-empowered life, The Social Justice tradition - or the Compassionate life, The Evangelical tradition - or the Word-centred life, The Incarnational tradition - or the Sacramental life, Foster's celebration of spiritual life incorporates history's most significant Christian figures and movements. It serves as a refreshing example of how real peopl have evaded preconceived ideas and lived wonderful Christ-centred lives in spite of constricting labels.£10.99 -
Embracing Chaos
LeadershipUnderstanding the importance of chaos and complexity is well established in the sciences, and increasingly impinges on everyday life. But how does it affect our understanding of leadership and theology? This wide-ranging study looks at the key elements of chaos theory, and makes helpful connections with the practical issues of leadership within and beyond ministry.£3.95 -
The Lent Creative Retreat Activity Book
Creativity, Lent & EasterThe Lent Creative Retreat Activity book is the newest of a series of Retreat books written and illustrated by Mary & Mark Fleeson with readings, prayers and activities split into sections to help you Take time out with God. This book gives an opportunity to discover some of the things that the approach to Easter can teach us. Some of the meditations, prayers and activities are intended to challenge and some to help you relax and clear your mind. All encourage you to hear the ‘still, small voice’. It is recommended that the activities are spread over the weeks of Lent and cover 'Sharing Together', 'Prophecy Fulfilled', 'Forgiveness', 'Behold' and 'Father into Your hands'£3.99 -
Availability and Vulnerability: A way for living
Core Teaching, Northumbria Community Resources & TeachingThe Rule of the Northumbria Community with an introduction by Trevor Miller, one of the leaders of the Community. A new Way for Living that offers hope in the changed and changing culture of today's world.£4.00 -
The Sayings of the Desert Fathers
Desert MonasticismThe Sayings of the Desert Fathers – The Alphabetical Collection Translated by Benedicta Ward, SLG The fourth-century ascetic flight to the desert indelibly marked Christianity. The faithful who did not embrace the austerity of the desert admired those who did and sought them out for counsel and consolation. The ‘words’ the monks gave were collected and passed around among those too far away or too feeble to make the trek themselves – or lived generations later. Previously available only in fragments, these Sayings of the Desert Fathers are now accessible in its entirety in English for the first time. ‘We have a great deal to learn from their integrity and their unrelenting courage, from their vision of God – so holy, so great, possessed of such a love, that nothing less than one’s whole being could respond to it,’ wrote Archbishop Anthony of Sourzah in the preface. ‘If we wish to understand the sayings of the Fathers, let us approach them with veneration, silencing our judgments and our own thoughts in order to meet them on their own ground and perhaps to partake ultimately – if we prove to emulate their earnestness in the search, their ruthless determination, their infinite compassion – in their own silent communion with God.’£15.99 -
Multicoloured Praises
CreativityA collection of sixteen simple outlines to colour in. Ideal for children and adults, use Multicoloured Praises for relaxation or prayer, on holiday or retreat.£4.49