Holy Trinity Monastery, East Hendred
Encyclopedia
Holy Trinity Monastery, East Hendred is a monastery
of contemplative Benedictine nuns situated in the Vale of White Horse
, Oxfordshire
. It is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth
.
, it is the first monastery of Benedictine
nun
s to have been established in England
for more than half a century. The founding members were originally nuns of Stanbrook Abbey
, Worcester
, but the community is an autonomous monastery of diocesan right with monastic rather than papal enclosure.
and web design
. They make audio books for the blind
and visually impaired
and provide a postal library
lending service. Their monastery web site is well known for its innovative use of new media
and is an important element in the community's spiritual outreach. In 2009 it won the Premier Christian Media People's Choice Award. The monastery library has important collections of modern American and High Anglican theology
and is open to students and others by appointment.
. Although too small to admit more than one resident guest at a time, the nuns offer days of recollection and short courses at the monastery in addition to those offered online.
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
of contemplative Benedictine nuns situated in the Vale of White Horse
Vale of White Horse
The Vale of White Horse is a local government district of Oxfordshire in England. The main town is Abingdon, other places include Faringdon and Wantage. There are 68 parishes within the district...
, Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
. It is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth
Roman Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth is a Latin Rite Roman Catholic diocese in England. The episcopal see is the Portsmouth Cathedral and is headed by the Bishop of Portsmouth...
.
History
Founded in 2004 by Bishop Crispian HollisCrispian Hollis
Roger Francis Crispian Hollis is the Bishop of Portsmouth for the Catholic Church. His parents were Christopher Hollis , the author and parliamentarian, and Madeleine Hollis .-Family life:...
, it is the first monastery of Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
nun
Nun
A nun is a woman who has taken vows committing her to live a spiritual life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
s to have been established in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
for more than half a century. The founding members were originally nuns of Stanbrook Abbey
Stanbrook Abbey
Stanbrook Abbey is an abbey built as a contemplative house for Benedictine nuns. It was founded in 1625 in Cambrai, Flanders, then part of the Spanish Netherlands, under the auspices of the English Benedictine Congregation.-History:...
, Worcester
Worcester
The City of Worcester, commonly known as Worcester, , is a city and county town of Worcestershire in the West Midlands of England. Worcester is situated some southwest of Birmingham and north of Gloucester, and has an approximate population of 94,000 people. The River Severn runs through the...
, but the community is an autonomous monastery of diocesan right with monastic rather than papal enclosure.
Charitable works
The nuns maintain themselves and their charitable undertakings by their work, principally bookBook
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...
and web design
Web design
Web design is the process of planning and creating a website. Text, images, digital media and interactive elements are used by web designers to produce the page seen on the web browser...
. They make audio books for the blind
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
and visually impaired
Visual impairment
Visual impairment is vision loss to such a degree as to qualify as an additional support need through a significant limitation of visual capability resulting from either disease, trauma, or congenital or degenerative conditions that cannot be corrected by conventional means, such as refractive...
and provide a postal library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
lending service. Their monastery web site is well known for its innovative use of new media
New media
New media is a broad term in media studies that emerged in the latter part of the 20th century. For example, new media holds out a possibility of on-demand access to content any time, anywhere, on any digital device, as well as interactive user feedback, creative participation and community...
and is an important element in the community's spiritual outreach. In 2009 it won the Premier Christian Media People's Choice Award. The monastery library has important collections of modern American and High Anglican theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
and is open to students and others by appointment.
Location
The nuns' current home is the presbytery, or priest's house, at East HendredEast Hendred
East Hendred is a village and civil parish in the English county of Oxfordshire, about east of Wantage in the Vale of White Horse and a similar distance west of Didcot. In 1974 it was transferred from Berkshire....
. Although too small to admit more than one resident guest at a time, the nuns offer days of recollection and short courses at the monastery in addition to those offered online.