Quiet days for reflection at a centre behind an attractive country church; garden with a water feature; nearby country footpaths and walks, ideal for exploring the link between the outer landscape and our spiritual journey.

The Centre for Reflection -- address and how to find us -- offers you a quiet space for:

The church - the centre - the quiet garden - the surroundings

.The church:

Built in 1728, it is a fine example of 18th century free church architecture, with a double-hipped roof and a beautiful interior decorated in its original style. The Aston Tirrold United Reformed Church congregation worships here every Sunday.

.The centre:

A more modern building, recently renovated. A large room which can be divided by curtains, a quiet room, new kitchen and facilities complete a place suitable for a small group, quiet day or a meeting.

Entrance to the Centre

"Outer Landscape - Inner Journey": window by Jackie Shayler-Webb

.The garden:

is designed for contemplation and the Centre is affiliated to the Quiet Garden Movement. The Trust provides a network of quiet gardens for prayer, stillness, reflection and appreciation of beauty; for learning about the Christian life and spirituality; and for experiencing creativity and healing in the context of God’s love.

This garden makes connections between the "Outer landscape" and our "Inner journey" and offers a sense of peace and stillness for those who sit and reflect on Drop in quiet days or led Quiet Days. The design of the garden which has no grass creates visual links between the outer landscape of stones, flowing water, circular seat round a tree and Mediterranean planting. The garden also holds a piece of sculpture by Jean Parker entitled Glimpses. It looks like a mobile disc on end, with one side of the Portland stone cut rough and the other very smooth. The two sides representing light and dark are cut through at an angle giving a glimpse of the garden beyond, a beautiful rendition of the glimpses of the Resurrection we catch in our every day lives. On the wall by the pool is a plaque with a quotation from Isaiah 58 "You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail".

Garden pool at the Centre

"Glimpses": sculpture by Jean Parker

.The surroundings:

On the edge of the twin villages of Aston Tirrold and Aston Upthorpe in the Oxfordshire countryside, with lanes and footpaths on the spring line at the northern edge of the Berkshire Downs. This range of chalk hills stretches from Swindon to meet the Chiltern Hills at Streatley and Goring on Thames.

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themed events with a leader - drop in quiet days - use by groups

Themed events with a leader:

 

We now have several groups which run on a regular basis. Feel free to join at any of their meetings. We also have some forthcoming quiet days with a theme. Details for all these are below.

Saturdays - reflection days and workshops Cost reductions - bring a friend for half price. So - for example - where the cost is shown as £20, 2 people can book for £30. . 17 March - 10am - 4pm Lent Retreat Day You are invited to the Centre to join the minister of Aston Tirrold URC in a day of prayer and meditation for Lent Leader: Ulrike Bell Cost £20 - including light lunch please pre-book . 31 March - 10am - 4pm Evagrius and Meister Eckhart - Brothers at Prayer Both mystics, although separated by 12 centuries, stress the value of meditation and silent prayer. We will see how they can help us in our own daily lives. The day will include talks, discussion and meditation. Leader: Kim Nataraja Cost £20 - including light lunch please pre-book . 21 April - 10am - 4pm Spiritual stability in an unstable world Exploring the importance of a spiritual path and ways in which to find such a path, that will give us an unshakeable innter ground from which to face whatever the future holds. Leader: Elizabeth West Cost £20 - including light lunch please pre-book

Sundays - . 2nd Sunday of each month - 2pm to about 5pm The film group continues ... Film Group Come and join a group where we will watch a film, have some refreshments and then discuss the film and assess its spiritual content. Please contact the coordination team the first time for further information and to tell us of your interest. Convenor: Revd Gordon Harris Cost: donation

Mondays - regular meditation group - . 1st and 3rd Mondays of each month - 5 - 6pm continuing ... Meditation Group You are welcome to join the meditation group, which is linked to the Christian Meditation network, at any of its meetings. Please contact the coordination team the first time for further information and to tell us of your interest. Convenor: Ann Morton Cost: donation

Thursday day time - regular writing and art groups - . 1st Thursday each month - 2 - 4pm continuing .... Reflective Writers' Group Use the quietness and reflective space of the Centre to access your creativity and write and, if wanted, share your writing. The group starts with the generation of ideas before individual writing time and then meets for tea and the opportunity to share. New members welcome to join at any meeting. Please contact the Centre of Reflection coordination team the first time for further information and to tell us of your interest. Leadership shared Cost: donation . 4th Thursday each month - 10am onwards continuing ... Regular art day This is a group mainly for non-specialists. There will be some structure but with freedom to explore. Materials will be available but bring what you have of your own too. New members welcome to join at any meeting. Please contact the Centre of Reflection coordination team the first time for further information and to tell us of your interest. Leader: Rosemary Mader-Grayson Cost: donation

Friday evenings - . 23 March 7.30pm Who killed Jesus? Speaker: Rev Dr Marcus Braybrooke will give a talk about the new good relationships with the Jews. There will be time for questions and discussion. no need to pre-book Cost donation - refreshments provided . 18 May 7.30pm A toast to the quark Speaker: John Garvey - quarks are the building blocks of all matter. How do we know this and how do we see them? This talk is for non-scientists. no need to pre-book Cost donation - refreshments provided

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For pre-booking, please contact the coordination team for the Centre for Reflection - contact details.

You can also see some selected topics and leaders of previous quiet days.

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.Drop in:

Drop in Quiet Days 3rd Thursday in the month Open from 10am, finishes at 3.30pm Dates: Drop in quiet days continue in the new year Drop in quiet days are a monthly opportunity to visit the Centre without having to book. The day starts with a short led meditation at 10.30 on a theme followed by quiet time. Feel free to use the day for yourself. People who come sometimes bring that book they have been longing to read, indulge in some artwork or poetry or prepare for writing or talks, as well as the chance for contemplation and personal reflection. There is always someone there to talk to if this would be helpful. Come for all or any part of the day, as you wish. Bring a packed lunch if you are with us at that time of day - refreshments provided. Cost: donation.

No prior booking needed, just drop in - all welcome

Services of reflection 4th Sunday in the month During summer months, 4th Sunday reflection services are at 6pm. In darker months, starting this year in September, these 4th Sunday services revert to morning at 10.30am. Do join us

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.Use by groups:

If your church or group would like be away together for a quiet day, away day or meeting, the Centre for Reflection is available for use by groups at these times.

All day (Mondays to Thursdays, and Saturdays)	10am-4pm	£85 donation
Morning only (Mondays to Thursdays, and Saturdays)	10am-1pm	£45 donation
Afternoon only	1-4pm	£45 donation
A £40 deposit secures your booking.

Facilities at the centre

Tea/coffee and biscuits are provided. You are free to bring packed lunches or use the fully equipped kitchen.

On-site parking is available for up to 15 cars  Disabled access  Children are welcome

You can book a time by contacting the coordination team for the Centre for Reflection - contact details.

We can be flexible in solving the needs of your group. Do discuss your particular requirements with the Coordinator.

The Coordinator will arrange for a host to meet you at the Centre on the day, in order to open up and serve tea/coffee/juice on arrival, and also for someone to close the Centre when you finish.

Please note that we operate a no-smoking policy.

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People and affiliations

.affiliations:

The Centre for Reflection is affiliated to the URC Silence & Retreats Network and the Quiet Gardens Trust.  .

Contacts:

Centre for Reflection
at Aston Tirrold United Reformed Church
Spring Lane, Aston Tirrold, Didcot, Oxon OX11 9EJ
how to find us

Centre Coordination team:	Hester Wilk and Ian Wainwright Remember that the team is part time and only available certain days of the week. Please allow up to almost a week for your enquiry to be answered.	tel: 01235 850423 with answering machine
	email: coordinator AT reflect.freeuk.com
Minister:	Rev Ulrike Bell
(to send email replace "AT" by the "@" sign and remove all the spaces)

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