Philip Arthur Bence PhD Thesis - Research@StAndrews:FullText

310
A Quiet Day, led by an external speaker,
is arranged for each term. In their final
term, all students are asked to participate in
a two-day retreat outside the College. . . .
It is hoped that students will learn and
grow within this framework of prayer and
worship, which is part of our common life and
affords an opportunity for individuals within
the community to deepen their relationships
with God. To assist this growth, a course of
lectures and seminars on spirituality is
provided, which attempts to root prayer within
a total pattern of daily life, and to make it
consistent with open and questioning
theological inquiry. As a further help toward
their growth, each student has a staff member
as personal tutor. . . .
Prayer is necessary for growth in theology
and theology is necessary for growth in prayer.
All are required to undertake a course of study
in spirituality designed to help them to
explore their own experience of prayer and
spirituality and to learn about the Christian
spiritual tradition. This, combined with the
College's pattern of prayer and worship and
occasional retreats, is intended to help people
develop their personal disciplines of prayer
and spirituality.
[Name of college] exists not merely to impart
knowledge to its members but to help them to
grow in the Christian life and to further their
training in Christian service and leadership.
This is rooted in the devotional life of the
college, with morning and evening worship each
day, and a weekly devotional Bible study.
The student's formation is for his whole
priestly life, not merely for the academic
qualifications he may bring to it. The people
he is preparing himself to work for have a
right to find in him a man of prayer and total
commitment--a man of God. The life at [name of
college) offers opportunities for strengthening
habits of prayer and reflexion. Important here
are the introductory course in Christian
Spirituality, regular talks on prayer and the
spiritual life, an experienced spiritual
director at hand for each individual, and
learning how to use the Bible for prayer.
Community Mass, 'the source and summit of
Christian life', is the centre of each day. A