Fr Roger Dawson from St Beuno's

An illuminating glimpse into the little-known life and role of the St Beuno’s Jesuit Spirituality Centre and religious retreat, situated high above the villages of Rhuallt and Tremeirchion, was provided by its Director Father Roger Dawson in a talk at Faenol Fawr. Introduced by Senior vice-President John Hickerton, Father Dawson explained that the 58-bedroomed Grade 2 listed building, built in 1848 with a current staff of 34, provided the opportunity for nearly 2,000 people to visit each year to seek beauty, Godliness and truth through peaceful and generally silent retreats in the magnificent setting of the Vale of Clwyd. It was during his three years at St Beuno’s that world-acclaimed Jesuit poet Gerard Manley Hopkins wrote some of his greatest poetry. The happiness he found at St Beuno’s showed how silence could open up the space through which to find, spirituality, truth and beauty and still remains enduringly precious. Father Dawson said plans were underway for a staged development of St Beuno’s costing over a million pounds to ensure the Centre’s future, despite the demands of an annual budget of £1.5m and a deficit of £15,000 last year, largely funded by donations. The warm thanks of the club were voiced by past President Rod Brocklehurst who said Father Dawson had presented a most enlightening and impressive insight into a secluded tranquil place so essential an antidote to the troubled world which we live in today. Members were reminded that their attendance was required to man two charity collections at the Asda superstore on December 5 and 6 while the next full meeting would be at Faenol Fawr on December 5 with past President Andrew Brown the speaker.