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The Mirfield Centre

The Centre was first established in 1997 as a resource for the mission of the Church. It had the 'aim of offering encouragement, education for discipleship and formation for men and women from all the churches in order to be the People of God in this new millennium'. The life, worship and resources of the Community of the Resurrection were seen to be one of the foundations on which this could be built.

The Mirfield Centre currently offers day events, quiet days, short educational courses and residential courses in partnership with the Community Retreat House. The Centre's programmes focus on the themes of prayer, education, pastoral support and encounter. The Centre can also provide day conference facilities for groups.

Back in 2006, The Church of England received the Archbishop's Council report: Formation for Ministry within a Learning Church. A key section within the report addressed the need for the church to be 'more fully a learning church- a body that promotes a dynamic and reflective discipleship for all its members' (Hind 4.1 p.36). It went on to speak of 'developing programmes of interest to lay people who wish to serve God in their ordinary lives.' It introduced the term 'Education for Discipleship' as an umbrella term for learning that embraced the 'whole life response of Christians to Jesus Christ' rather than simply equipped them for tasks of ministry within the church. The vision of enabling the church to become 'more fully a learning church embraces the following expectations (not all every time!) for those embarking on such learning. Whether attending an evening session, a day course, a short course, or a day/residential retreat there is a hope that participants will:

The Mirfield Centre, as a public work of the Community, is a significant contributor within the Yorkshire regional partnership, to furthering such a vision. Its location on site at Mirfield alongside the Community, the College, Yorkshire Ministry course and the Wakefield Diocese School of Ministry, has the potential to realise the vision of the Hind Report, in a holistic way, as ordinands, clergy and lay Christians find opportunity to learn together through the Centre programme. Within the limits of our time and financial resources, the Centre team (three of the CR brothers are part of the Centre team) plan a programme of varied learning each year - evening events, day courses, pilgrimages, short courses and residential events. Our annual leaflet gives details of this year's programme; however new learning opportunities are often added as the year moves on and this website provides details of all events as they emerge.

People often tell us how much they appreciate the Centre's programme , particularly as it happens on site, here at Mirfield, alongside a monastic community. They appreciate the reflective space and place that Mirfield provides and is. They enjoy the varied programme of events, valuing not only the learning together, and the fellowship of sharing good food, but also the opportunity to pray alongside the brethren as part of a day event or the quietness of Compline at the close of an evening session. Education for Discipleship as it happens here, out of the rootedness of all that Mirfield is, undoubtedly enriches the varied opportunities for learning within our Yorkshire region.

The Centre's Director is also a member of CLAY- Christians learning across Yorkshire - an ecumenical group of trainers/educators who plan events together (www.claycourses.org.uk). Details of our singly and jointly planned events can be found on the twice yearly leaflets (now in their eleventh edition) and website. On from the Hind report, Shaping the Future, rightly discerned that for the 'whole church to become a learning church.....[this would] involve many players and contributors' (Shaping the Future p.3). CLAY was indeed ahead of the game in discerning the importance of ecumenical learning opportunities within the region.

A large part of the Centre's life would be missing if I failed to mention the hosting of meetings and conferences through the Centre. In particular, the Diocese of Wakefield work in partnership with the Centre for its School of Ministry provision. We are also the base for the diocesan Resources Centre (a library of learning resources for adult Christian learners) and also frequently used as a venue for a variety of diocesan and regional meetings. Other organizations are also increasingly seeking to use our facilities in this way, as they bring staff teams together for days of reflection and learning.

We live a varied life at the Centre and look forward to emerging opportunities for increased partnership on site under the broad umbrella of 'Education for Discipleship' as it develops within the region.

Revd June Lawson (Director of the Mirfield Centre : www.tarifs.org)

Quiet Days

We offer various styles of quiet day at The Mirfield Centre, depending on the requirements of the leader(s) and the content of the day. The different styles are outlined below:

Quiet Day (silence all day)

Quiet Day (silence apart from lunch)

Quiet Day (with participation)

Comments from Visitors

The course has been very enjoyable, the talks well organised and full of information. I’m sorry it has come to an end. Thoroughly enjoyable and very stirring. Fascinating. Wish I’d done it 50 years ago.
'What is Anglicanism?' (6 week course)

We spent an enjoyable day engaging in seeing Jesus from a different perspective and bringing us back to examine our personal gospels. Thank you to Kenneth Carveley for inspiring leadership and to the Community of the Resurrection for their loving hospitality and worship in the reordered Chapel.A very enjoyable and challenging course. It has helped me in evaluating balance in my life.
'The Gospel of Judas'

I will let everyone know about The Mirfield Centre and tell them it is a wonderful peaceful place to come and the events / courses are brilliant.
It was a very good and thought provoking course. I hope I will be able to try to put something into practice based on the course content and it would be good to be able to help the people in the parish.
'Monastic Living in Everyday Life'

Viola Jones gave us information and inspiration as she led us skilfully through an array of paintings and sculpture, illustrating the various connotations to be found by looking again, and with more thoughtful eyes at Angels in Visual Arts. Through group discussion we were encouraged to voice our own thoughts, which was fun and both mind stretching and illuminating. A wonderful and thought-provoking day.
‘Entertaining Angels’

Fr. Henry combined his immense academic and Biblical knowledge with practical experience of travelling in the Middle East; the lecture was illustrated with slides that enhanced what he had to say, and the whole was delivered in an engaging style, yet with diffidence, and a sense of wanting to share with people, rather than talk at them.
'Let My People Go!'

As ever the day had all the features of a course at the centre. Lovely grounds, caring friendliness of ‘the team’, whatever their role. The pervading atmosphere of calm, and immediate togetherness with other participants. These all add up to a time not only of learning but refreshment and encouragement. The additional option of sharing the Eucharist with the brothers is for me a true blessing.
Comment from a participant on the a Mirfield Centre day

The speaker was very interesting, just as good as we had hoped. Salley is an amazing author and speaks so sincerely about her creative thoughts and reflects her faith most effectively. The organisation, facilities and timetable were perfect. Hospitality and refreshments were very good. The welcome we received was notable and we were immediately made to feel comfortable.
‘A Day with Novelist, Salley Vickers’

This was an excellent day full of practical help and support for those difficult times of the Christian journey.
‘When God Goes Missing’

The first three words that come to mind when I think about the day: 'Stimulating, informative, encouraging.'
’Reading Christian Art’

Fr Dennis Berk provided us with an absolutely super quiet day in Advent. I found the day so peaceful and it was lovely to leave the hustle and bustle behind for a few hours. He did a splendid job and at the end of the day I felt completely relaxed and at peace with the world.
‘Saying “Yes” to God isn’t Easy! – A quiet day for Advent’

I really enjoyed the day and came away with new insights into just how complex we human beings really are, but also with the knowledge that it's OK to be ourselves.
‘Vice to Virtue Conversion: The Enneagram and Prayer’

Really enjoyable, insightful and thought-provoking. Good, positive things to take away and work on.
'Myers Briggs and Stress'

An enjoyable and illuminating course. The context was particularly interesting.
'Abelard and Heloise'

Learning Center

Learning and Training is very important in the Diocese of Wakefield. We believe that all Christians are on a journey. On that journey God equips us to be disciples. Energy for the journey is vital; without resources travellers become discouraged and tired.

Wakefield Diocese offers a diverse range of resources for diverse groups of people.

Whether you are:

School of ministry

An opportunity to explore together what it means to be a 'resourceful' person for God and His Church. It aims to:

The Director of the Wakefield School of Ministry is Revd Canon Dr John Lawson. For more information contact Rachael Salmon, Administrator for Training & Learning: 01924 481916 or rsalmon@mirfield.org.uk or go to www.wakefield.anglican.org/training to find out more.

Many Dioceses now run Schools of Ministry. It is worth checking with your own Diocese if such a scheme is available. Other Dioceses websites are listed in the Other Links section of this website.

The Community of the Resurrection is based at Mirfield. The Community lives a corporate life within the monastic tradition, the heart of which is worship, issuing in many forms of engagement with contemporary church and society.

Companions of the Community of the Resurrection (CCR), who may be either male or female, are people who live away from the Community but share the Charism of the Community.

The Mirfield Monastery is a beautiful former Mill Owner's House originally built in the 19th Century set in twenty six acres of gardens and woodlands.

The Mirfield Monastery welcomes visitors using the monastery as either a retreat house or a conference centre. It is open for groups or individuals and has a full programme of activities throughout the year.