Borrowed silence: A history of the practice of retreat in the Church of England Item Type Thesis or dissertation Authors Tyers, John H. Publisher University of Liverpool (University of Chester) Download date 29/09/2021 23:27:59 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10034/253312 This work has been submitted to ChesterRep – the University of Chester’s online research repository http://chesterrep.openrepository.com Author(s): John Haydn Tyers Title: Borrowed silence: A history of the practice of retreat in the Church of England Date: 2012 Originally published as: University of Liverpool PhD thesis Example citation: Tyers, J. H. (2012). Borrowed silence: A history of the practice of retreat in the Church of England. (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). University of Liverpool, United Kingdom. Version of item: Submitted version Available at: http://hdl.handle.net/10034/253312 Borrowed Silence: a History of the Practice of Retreat in the Church of England John H Tyers, BSc, BA, MTh Submitted as part of the requirements for a Doctor of Philosophy Degree University of Liverpool 2012 John Tyers Page i 26/11/2012 Summary This thesis, which is the first attempt to write about the growth of retreats, deals with a rather sidelined but important development in the history of spirituality. It states when, how and why the practice of retreat was adopted and adapted in the Church of England after having been a devotion in the Church of Rome since the time of the Catholic Reformation and how it has developed since. It is divided chronologically into three major sections. The first tells the story of its adoption in 1858 by a group of Anglo Catholics in the form of the preached retreat and its subsequent spread to a small number of adherents, despite meeting opposition from Evangelical Christians. The second tells of the influence of a Jesuit brother, Charles Plater, and how after the First World War a number of Diocesan retreat houses were opened, the use of which continued to rise until after the Second World War. The third takes the story up to our present day with its adaptation to the needs of the present search for faith, its decline accompanying the present loss in membership in the churches whilst at the same time its adoption in various forms by non-Anglican groups. In particular it contains a history of the Society of Retreat Conductors. All the time comparison is made with what was happening in the Church of Rome. There are resonances with the history of the Victorian church, the attitude of the established church to the working classes, evangelism, the changing fortunes of Anglo Catholicism, the ecumenical movement and New Age Christianity. It is of interest to all who are concerned about spread of religious faith today. Preface I acknowledge my indebtedness to Dr Chris Partridge who first saw the possibilities of the project, Dr Stephen Parker who was my supervisor for a year, Dr Andrew Dawson who first taught me what research was all about, to Dr Tom Greggs who has done much more than a second supervisor should ever do, and Dr Wayne Morris who has been a very encouraging first supervisor and who has seen my work through to completion. Also I thank my readers who have commented on the work as it has progressed and especially Richard Thorneycroft who has been an assiduous proof reader and has made some very pertinent remarks. I am indebted to many people, some of whom are mentioned in the text, who have shared with me the fruit of their rich experience. My thanks are due to the University of Chester who have given a grant to meet the fees for this research, to the Society of Retreat Conductors who made a contribution to the inevitable additional costs, to the Gladstone Library for many hours enjoying the facilities and to the British Library whose staff work hard in support of academic research. My thanks are due to the Revd Alan Pyke whose interest kept the project going through a serious down-patch in health. Above all to my wife, Ruth, who has been critically supportive throughout the whole eight year project and who has helped me through a period of illness when I felt like not completing it. John Tyers Page ii 26/11/2012 Abbreviations APR Association for the Promotion of Retreats Archway An Association of Christian Retreat Houses. Formerly the Anglican Retreat House and Conference Centre Wardens Association ARLYB Anglican Religious Life Year Book AYPA Anglican Young People’s Association BURG Baptist Union Retreat Group CARM Creative Arts Retreat Movement CCR Church Congress Report CE Catholic Encyclopedia CEMS Church of England Men’s Society CHN Community of the Holy Name CLB Church Lads Brigade CLJ Companions of the Love of Jesus CofE Church of England CofEYB Church of England Year Book CNRS Catholic Network for Retreats and Spirituality CR Community of the Resurrection CSJB Community of St John the Baptist CSMV Community of Saint Mary the Virgin Defra Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Exx Saint Ignatius Loyola’s Spiritual Exercises GFS Girls Friendly Society IGR Individually Guided Retreat MR&SN Methodist Retreat and Spirituality Network MRG Methodist Retreat Group n.d. no date NRA National Retreat Association NRC National Retreat Centre or National Retreat Council NRM National Retreat Movement OED Oxford English Dictionary RA Retreat Association RC Roman Catholic RHW Retreat House Warden SB Sister of Bethany SRC Society of Retreat Conductors SSF Society of St Francis SSC Societas Sanctae Crucis or Society of the Holy Cross SSJE Society of St John the Evangelist URCS&RG United Reformed Church Silence and Retreat Group w/ website (see pp. 212-213 for complete list) John Tyers Page iii 26/11/2012 Contents Summary ii Preface ii Contents iii Chapter 1. Introducing the Thesis 1 A. What we mean by a retreat 1 B. The Research Question and its Originality 4 C. Literature Review 9 D. Methodology 14 E. The Logic of the Thesis 24 Chapter 2. The adoption of the Practice of Retreat 27 A. The influence of the Romantic Movement 27 B. The Society of the Holy Cross and the first Retreat 30 C. The First Decade 33 D. Early Advocates of the Practice of Retreat 40 E. Evangelicals and Retreats 43 F. Ordination Retreats 46 G. The Forty Years up to 1912 49 H. Quiet days 56 I. Parish Missions 60 J. Some Retreat Leaders 62 K. Conclusion 69 Chapter 3. Establishing the Retreat Tradition, 1912-1962 71 Part 1. 1912-1920 71 A. Retreats for the People 71 B. Following Plater, 1913-1920 74 C. Factors encouraging the Expansion of the Practice of Retreat 82 Part 2. 1920-1940 85 D. The Growth of the Practice of Retreat 85 E. Some Retreat Conductors 89 F. Retreatants 97 Part 3. 1940-1962 98 G. Retreat Houses after the Second World War 98 H. Ignatian and Benedictine Spirituality compared 102 I. The Contemplative Approach 108 J. Some Retreat Conductors 111 K. Retreatants 114 L. The Society of Retreat Conductors, 1914-1955; a case study 116 M. Conclusion 123 Chapter 4. Vatican II and the diversification of Retreats in the Church of England, 1962-2008 126 Part 1. Catalysts for Change 128 A. Church and Society in the 1960’s 128 B. Some Decisions made at Vatican II 131 John Tyers Page iv 26/11/2012 C. The evolution of Catholic Retreat worldwide, 1962-1991 133 Part 2. The Diversification of the Anglican Practice of Retreat 136 D. The development of Ecumenical Structures for the Retreat Movement in England 136 E. Practice I: The Development of Ignatian Retreat in England 141 E. Practice II: Anglican Non-Ignatian Retreats 145 G. Who comes on retreats? 152 H. Retreats and Spiritual Direction 159 I. Some Retreat Leaders 161 J. Retreat Houses 164 Part 3: The Scene Today 174 K. The present and the future 174 L. The Society of Retreat Conductors, 1955-2006 180 M. Conclusion 185 Chapter 5. The practice of Retreat in the Roman Catholic and Church of England churches 187 A. The Catholic Reformation Practice of Retreat 187 B. Other Modifications to Roman Catholic Practice 193 C. How far due to Roman Catholic Influence and how far due to other Influences 198 D. Conclusion 200 Appendix A Retreat Programmes 204 Appendix B Interviewees 210 Bibliography a. Archives of Society of Retreat Conductors 211 b. Website and Emails 212 c. Books and other Documents 213 John Tyers Page v 26/11/2012 Borrowed Silence Chapter 1. Introducing the Thesis In this thesis I attempt to answer this question: ‘When, how and why have some members of the Church of England adopted and adapted the Catholic Reformation practice of retreat?’ Coupled with this is a working hypothesis which has shaped both the selection of evidence and the form in which the thesis has been written up. It is this: ‘Developments in the Anglican practice of retreat have usually been stimulated by new initiatives in the use of the Spiritual Exercises within the Roman Catholic Church.’ Archbishop Rowan Williams began the 2008 Lambeth Conference with a three-day long retreat held in the solemn splendour of Canterbury Cathedral. The assembled bishops were brought by buses each day to listen to thoughtful addresses by him and to spend the rest of the time in silent meditation on what he had said. The Archbishop was using a form of devotion which had been introduced into the Church of England exactly 150 years earlier by Revd Richard Benson, and it is now a familiar part of the Anglican way of life.