Our Vision
The House of Retreat is a place where people from all walks of life come to seek God and to search for a fuller life.
Choosing to go on retreat, or attend a quiet day or another event is our response, to God ‘s call - God’s invitation. The House of Retreat embodies God’s generosity received day by day, expressed in the carefully tended garden, the worship, the hospitality and care of the house staff, grounded in waiting on God in prayer over many years
The Diocesan House of Retreat at Pleshey continues the vision of those who established this House of Prayer in 1909 as a place of peace and stillness where we can come into the presence of God and rediscover the power of his love. Guests come to a place many have called a ‘thin place between heaven and earth’.
Welcomed into a safe environment, visitors are enabled to explore their relationship with God and deepen their prayer.
Taking time to abide in prayer, was not an escape for Jesus but rather a drinking deep from the living water, the well -the source of his dynamic ministry which overflowed into a ministry of being deeply attentive to all who sought him out
The simple and beautiful Chapel provides a focus for individuals and groups to be still. It is a Sabbath space, where God invites us to be with him; where we can begin to see the creation, other people and even ourselves, with God’s eyes of love.
As we see with new eyes, our abiding flows into renewed hope, and flourishing life of individuals and communities transformed to serve the people of East London and Essex.
“A place of calm infused with prayer with good food, comfortable accommodation, friendly staff and beautiful peaceful grounds, and walks in the area; everything that helps me to relax and feel at home and enjoy being in God's presence.”
— Jackie Same, Ignatian Guided Retreat Leader