Sclerder Abbey (pronounced: Sklerder Abby; , meaning ''Abbey of Clarity'') is a former Carmelite monastery in

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

, England, UK, located between

Looe Looe (; , ) is a coastal town and civil parish in south-east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, with a population of 5,280 at the 2011 census. Looe is west of Plymouth and south of Liskeard, divided in two by the River Looe, East Looe () a ...

and

Polperro Polperro (, meaning ''Pyra's cove'') is a large village, civil parish, and fishing harbour within the Polperro Heritage Coastline in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Its population is around 1,554. Polperro, through which runs the Riv ...

, which accommodates a Roman Catholic Community with an ecumenical vocation, which grew out of a prayer group in Lyon, France, in 1973. It currently has around 2000 members in over 30 countries. The

Abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christians, Christian monks and nun ...

was founded in 1843 by the Dames de la Retraite who left in 1852, and was then occupied successively by the Franciscan Recollects (1858–1864); Carmelite nuns (1864–1871); Sisters of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary (1904–1910); Minoresses from

Rennes Rennes (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in Northwestern France at the confluence of the rivers Ille and Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the Brittany (administrative region), Brittany Regions of F ...

(1914–1920); Minoresses from Bullingham (1922–1981), including Franciscan

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...

s (from c. 1925).

Carmelite The Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel (; abbreviated OCarm), known as the Carmelites or sometimes by synecdoche known simply as Carmel, is a mendicant order in the Catholic Church for both men and women. Histo ...

nuns from

Quidenham Quidenham is a small rural village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It covers an area of and had a population of 576 in 183 households at the 2001 census,

resided at Sclerder Abbey from 1981 until 2014. In September 2014, ''Chemin Neuf'' an ecumenical

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

community, moved to Sclerder when Bishop Mark O’Toole ( RC Bishop of Plymouth) celebrated a

Mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in October and November in the United States, Canada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Germany. It is also observed in the Australian territory ...

for the life of

prayer File:Prayers-collage.png, 300px, alt=Collage of various religionists praying – Clickable Image, Collage of various religionists praying ''(Clickable image – use cursor to identify.)'' rect 0 0 1000 1000 Shinto festivalgoer praying in front ...

and service of the Carmelite community and welcomed the new community of ''Chemin Neuf''.Exercice spirituel à labbaye de Sclerder''
The new community of Chemin Neuf are gradually renovating the abbey. It is a Grade II listed building and has a very beautiful garden. The community put on a regular programme of retreats and events for both groups and individuals. Sclerder Abbey serves the Cornish

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

. Mass is celebrated on Saturdays, Sundays and Wednesdays in the church at 9.00 am.

References

Monasteries in Cornwall Nunneries in England 1843 establishments in England Christian monasteries established in the 19th century Roman Catholic churches in Cornwall Christianity in Cornwall Chemin Neuf Community 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United Kingdom Polperro {{England-RC-church-stub

See also

References