retreat for secular clergy
- What is a retreat?
- Who directs the retreats?
- Who are the retreats for?
- How is the retreat conducted?
- Content of the retreat
A retreat is a time spent away from your ordinary occupation, when you can reflect on how you live your faith in you everyday work, with your family and with other people.
The atmosphere of personal prayer and recollection which is maintained throughout helps you to consider all aspects of your life and identify the areas in which you can improve.
Below are links to retreat details for young people, women, men and secular clergy in Thornycroft. For retreats in Scotland please go to Hazelwood House and in Sussex go to Wickenden Manor.
All the retreats held at Thornycroft Hall are directed by Opus Dei, a personal prelature of the Catholic Church, whose aim is to spread the search for sanctity in the midst of the world.
Similar retreats are organised in Wickenden Manor in Sussex and Hazelwood House in Glasgow.
The retreats are for ordinary lay people and secular clergy who would like to combine a busy working and family life with a deep spiritual life.
Retreats at Thornycroft Hall are directed by Opus Dei, a personal prelature of the Catholic Church. Opus Dei aims to help people of all walks of life to strive for holiness and to evangelise in a natural manner wherever they are, especially through their daily work.
Meditations and talks are given by the priest on the central themes of the Catholic faith. These are combined with times for private prayer and examination of conscience, and other devotional exercises such as the stations of the cross and the rosary.
Mass is celebrated daily. The retreat is undertaken in silence to facilitate personal prayer and reflection. Participants may also talk over their own situation with the priest or organiser to obtain advice which is appropriate to their specific circumstances.
The meditations and talks cover the following themes:
- The meaning of our life
- God’s designs for humanity
- Our life in the light of God’s revelation
- God and individual freedom
- Jesus Christ, true God and true man
- The passion of Christ and the mystery of redemption
- Eternal life
- Family and Christian life
- The vocations to marriage and celibacy
- Ordinary work and holiness
- Prayer and the sacraments in the life of the Christian
- The greatness of ordinary life
- The apostolate of the Christian
- Our Lady, model of sanctity
2026 Retreats
March 2026
October 2026
November 2026
For details of recollections and possible forthcoming retreats, contact Fr Stefan Hnylycia on stefanhnylycia@zoho.com
Cost – £315
The fee for each retreat is £315. Optional contributions over and above the cost of the retreat for the upkeep of the Conference Centre may be made payable to Thornycroft Hall and given to the retreat organiser or sent to Thornycroft Hall.
The retreats begin with dinner at 7:30 pm on the first day and finish at 2:00 pm on the last day.
The retreats are sponsored by the Priestly Society of the Holy Cross, an international association of secular clergy that is intrinsically united to Opus Dei and dedicated to helping priests develop their spiritual life in union with their bishop and fellow priests.
The retreats are silent and are conducted by a priest of the Opus Dei Prelature. You are asked to bring an alb.
Enquiry
Please complete this form to book a retreat.