We have started a little way down the road to developing our community prayer life this week. On Sunday a handful of the group met to do Compline and Karlie and I talked about what we gained from our talk with Jo Gilbert.

It was suggested that we try the following way forward. We will aim to do Compline each day, irrespective of other parts of the Divine Office we are already doing. Most days this will be done as individuals. 9:30 pm seems like a good time to aim for. Fortnightly, on a Sunday evening we will meet to do Compline together. This will also be a time for talking about group issues and sharing aspects of our individual spiritual lives.

Over the last few weeks Tuesday nights have been a time for the Allaway and Chatfield adults to do Compline together, via FaceTime (a piece of software that allows video conversations.) This is because we don’t live close enough to walk to each other’s houses. So this Tuesday, using a Skype conference call the Pegleys were added. It was not altogether a technological success and we found we have to take it in turns. However it is a start. The desire to pray together was there, even if practically it was a little difficult.

Another of the ways that Wellspring started their prayer life was to pray with the Gospel of each day, using Lectio Divina. They also, being a lay Benedictine community, read the rule of St Benedict. These are both areas, which we can develop. It has been suggested that after Easter we look at Abbot Christopher Jameson’s book “Finding Sanctuary”.

All of these are little steps. Underneath the practicalities (and technologies!) is the process of walking together to deepen our spiritual lives together and to begin to see God draw us closer to him.