Bonnevaux, International Centre for the WCCM

Welcome to Bonnevaux

Centre for Peace International Meditation Retreat Centre of the WCCM

Bonnevaux

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Bonnevaux is dedicated to a better future for humanity.

It is rooted in a living tradition of peace and understands the power of gentleness over force. It helps to create hope for a new world order that begins with inner transformation.

Bonnevaux

Through the sustained support of many individuals and organisations over the past three years the first phase vision has been achieved. The core community is settled in the Abbaye. And we are receiving guests for retreats and conferences in person in the Stables Guesthouse and Barn. Our online programme has taken off powerfully during the pandemic as a way of reaching as many people as possible with the gift of meditation.

We have reached the next phase: a contemplative village with 25 simple ‘cells’ and a network of beautiful gardens designed to elevate the spirit.

In their annual growth cycle the gardens will keep alive the memory of those for whom they have been named.

This phase needs financial support and we invite you to participate. As you will see below, donors can help to complete the vision in two ways.

Firstly, by sponsoring a cell which will be for your use whenever you come to Bonnevaux – a permanent place of peace to remember even when you are not there in person.

Secondly, a garden may also be sponsored in named memory of a loved one or of your family or special cause.

--Director Laurence

FREEMAN OSB NG Lead Architect Angelene CHAN Financial Planning Bertrand BOUHOUR Senior Advisor Peter

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CONTENTS

I Why Is Bonnevaux Coming To Be

II The Journey So Far

III The Journey Ahead i. Personal Retreat Cells & Meeting Room ii. The Gardens of Bonnevaux

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Abbaye de Bonnevaux

Bonnevaux

800 Years dedicated to ‘peace as our quest and aim’ (Rule of St Benedict 6th century)

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I Why Is Bonnevaux Coming To Be

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A Historical Palimpest [Opposite] Church and the monastery of Bonnevaux. Abbey plan of Bonnevaux in 1824. Church, Cloister, and the Convent Buildings [Above ] Restes du Cloître de l’ancienne abbaye

9 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux

At first sight it felt clear that this peaceful and beautiful place should be the international home of the WCCM as a centre where friendship across all differences and divisions could flourish, locally and globally.

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11 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux

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From day one, it was clear, that this place would become The Bonnevaux Meditation Retreat, the future home of the WCCM and a place to promote peace on many levels: from the internal and local to the global and geo-political.

13 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux

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65 hectares of woods, fields and pasture

15 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux

POITIERS

SITE

[ Above ] Location The site is located twenty minutes by car from Poitiers-Biard International Airport, with flights to the British Isles. The TGV train from Poitiers station takes 90-minutes to Paris, which can also be reached via the A10 motorway in 3 hours [ Below ] Buildings in Bonnevaux, before [Opposite ] Bonnevaux Ground, 2018

Bonnevaux

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17 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux

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“As a community it will be an active working symbol of the underlying unity of humanity in a world of diverse faiths and cultures. Meditation, the universal human spiritual tradition, is both the way of silence and the way of deep community, communion with ourselves and others, with the terrestrial environment, with the universe and with God."

Bonnevaux

-Laurence Freeman

19 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux

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A Place to Recover Hope

21 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux

That is the conviction we must come to in our meditation, that the darkness cannot quench the light -John Main

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‘‘It is the white space between the words on a page that makes it readable… …Without periods of silence and non-action, our words and our deeds jumble up into meaningless spirals of stress. We need a web of silence spread around the world just as extensively as the web of technology.

Bonnevaux

-Laurence Freeman, The Law of White Spaces

23 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux

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BARN: 340m

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OUT BUILDINGS: 620m

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NEW BUILDINGS: 375m

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Bonnevaux

STABLES: 1220m

ABBEY: 2180m

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CHAPEL

[ Above ] Proposed Buildings

II The Journey So Far

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What we have already accomplished & built at Bonnevaux.

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27 II. The Journey So Far

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29 II. The Journey So Far

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31 II. The Journey So Far

ABBEY: 2180m

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Abbey & Cloister

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33 II. The Journey So Far

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Abbey Exterior, Before

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Abbey Exterior, After

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Abbey Kitchen, Before

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Abbey Kitchen, After

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Abbey Kitchen Wall Texture

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Abbey Communal Dining, After

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Abbey Dining, Before

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Abbey Dining and Meeting Room After

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Abbey Staircase, Before

43 II. The Journey So Far

Abbey Staircase, After

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Abbey Corridor, Before

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Abbey Corridor, After

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Abbey Iconic Chapel, Before

47 II. The Journey So Far

Abbey Iconic Chapel, After

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Abbey Library, Before

49 II. The Journey So Far

Abbey Library, After

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Abbey Library, Before Abbey Foyer

51 II. The Journey So Far

Abbey Spiral Staircase

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Abbey Bedroom, Before

53 II. The Journey So Far

Abbey Bedroom, After

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Abbey Bedroom, Before

55 II. The Journey So Far

Abbey Bedroom, After

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Abbey Bathroom, Before

57 II. The Journey So Far

Abbey Bathroom, After

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Chapel, Before

59 II. The Journey So Far

CHAPEL

Chapel

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Chapel, Before

61 II. The Journey So Far

Chapel, After

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The Main Reception area, situated on the main site axis, is the first space arriving guests will be greeted: an area of calm, and warm welcome

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II. The Journey So Far

STABLES: 1220m

Stables

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Stables Exterior, Before

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[ Overleaf ] Stables Exterior, During Construction

Stables Exterior, During Construction

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67 II. The Journey So Far

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Stables Exterior, Before

69 II. The Journey So Far

Stables Exterior, Work-In-Progress

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Stables Reception, Before

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Stables Reception, Proposed

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73 II. The Journey So Far

[ Above ] Stables Exterior, Long Section

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[ Opposite ] Stables Exterior, Works-In-Progress

Stables Exterior, Work-In-Progress

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[ Above ] Stables, First Floor Plan, Proposed [ Below ] Stables, Ground Floor Plan, Proposed [ Opposite ] Stables Reception, Proposed

Stables, Proposed

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Stables, Proposed

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[ Above ] Stables, Ground Floor Interiors, Before [ Opposite - Above ] Stables, Dining Room Plan, Proposed [ Opposite - Below ] Stables, Library & Meeting Room Plan, Proposed

Stables Interior, Before

79 II. The Journey So Far

Ground Floor Elevation

Stables, Dining Room Plan, Proposed Ground Floor Plan

Stables, Library & Meeting Room Plan, Proposed

Stables, Proposed

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Stables Entrance, Work-In-Progress

81 II. The Journey So Far

Stables Entrance, Work-In-Progress

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Stables Entrance, Work-In-Progress

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Stables Entrance, Work-In-Progress

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Stables Interior, Before

85 II. The Journey So Far

First Floor Elevation

First Floor Plan – New Corridor

Stables Interior, Work-In-Progress

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First Floor Elevation

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First Floor Plan

Stables Interior, Typical Room

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Stables Interior, Work-In-Progress

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II. The Journey So Far

BARN: 340m

The Barn

Centre for Dialogue, Learning and Celebration

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The Barn Exterior, Before

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The Barn Exterior, After

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The Barn Interior, Before

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The Barn Interior, After

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The Barn Interior, Before

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The Barn Interior, Proposed

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97 II. The Journey So Far

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HUNTING LODGE

The Hunting Lodge Upcoming, Existing

III. The Journey Ahead

RETREAT CENTRE

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TOTAL FLOOR AREA: 69m2

34m2

Ground Floor - Existing

First Floor - Existing

Ground Floor - Proposed

First Floor - Proposed

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35m2

TOTAL FLOOR AREA: 91m2

Ground Floor - Alternative with Extension

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[ Above ] Existing Interiors of the Hunting Lodge [ Opposite ] Existing & Proposed Plan of the Hunting Lodge

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Work to be completed will ensure there is sufficient accommodation for a workable business model, and that the environment and infrastructure will harmonise with nature and express the vision of Bonnevaux – from inner peace to outer peace.

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III The Journey Ahead i. Personal Retreat Cells & Meeting Rooms ii. The Gardens of Bonnevaux

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Storage

Bonnevaux

Meeting Space

WC

DDA WC

[ Above ] Plan of a Meeting Room

The spirit of the land heals the ravages of urban stress and helps to awaken one to life as a spiritual journey and to learn or to deepen one’s daily practice of meditation.1

Contemplative Village A Campus of Contemplation

III. The Journey Ahead | i. Private Retreat Cells & Meeting Room

Accessible by rail, car and plane, Bonnevaux is a haven of natural beauty and peace.

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900 years after the original Abbey was founded, in 2019 it became the international home of the WCCM’s ‘monastery without walls’.

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[ Opposite ] Interior of a Cell [ Above ] Plan of a Cell in the Contemplative Village

109 III. The Journey Ahead | i. Private Retreat Cells & Meeting Room

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[ Above & Below ] Exterior of a Cell [ Opposite ] Interior of a Cell

111 III. The Journey Ahead | i. Private Retreat Cells & Meeting Room

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The Gardens of Bonnevaux

113 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens

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[ Above ] Bonnevaux – Before [ Opposite ] Proposed Master Plan

115 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens

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A. ABBEY & CLOISTER

117 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens

B

B. CONTEMPLATIVE VILLAGE GARDENS

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[ Below ] Making History Visible The Church and Monastery of Bonnevaux in the 1824 Plan

“to serve as a place of peace & contemplation”

Bonnevaux

[ Opposite ] Proposed Plan of the Cloister

A. ABBEY & CLOISTER

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Low Curved Wall To Echo Of Footprint Of Former Abbey

A1.

A2.

A2.

A2.

A3.

A2.

A1. Cloister Garden 1

The trees at the dining grove are symbolic of the pillars

A2. Cloister Garden 2

within the nave of the once existing abbey.

A3. Abbey Grove

A low curved wall nestled under the existing trees echoes the footprint of the Abbey & Cloister

former abbey, an informal seating place where the community can gather.

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[ Above ] The Proposed Abbey [ Below-Left ] The Abbey Before, 15 May 2006 [ Below-Right ] A Sacred Site

121 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens

Eating at the place where the Bonnevaux abbey once stood, where the monks of old would have taken their daily alms whilst glimpsing the chapel and cloister, the last palimpsest of this history.

Abbey & Cloister

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B. CONTEMPLATIVE VILLAGE GARDENS

123 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens

B16

B11

B12 B1

B10 B13

B2

B3

B15 B4 B14

B6

B15

B5

B6

B8

B7

B9

B6. Garden 6

B12. Sloping Lawn Amphitheatre

B1. Garden 1

B7. Garden 7

B13. Ruin Planters

B2. Garden 2

B8. Garden 8

B3. Garden 3

B9. Garden 9

B14. Lavender & Rosemary Central Pathway

B4. Garden 4

B10. Garden 10

B5. Garden 5

B11. Village Green

B15. Entrance Courtyards B16. Kitchen Garden

Contemplative Village Garden

[ Above ] The Proposed Plan – Village Gardens

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B5 B4

Bonnevaux

B2

B2. Garden 2 B4. Garden 4 B5. Garden 5

125 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens

B15.

B1.

B8.

B1. Garden 1

B8. Garden 8

B15. Entrance Courtyards

Contemplative Village Garden

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B12.

B12. Sloping Lawn Amphitheatre

127 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens

B13.

B3.

B3. Garden 3

B13. Ruin Planters

Contemplative Village Garden

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B6.

B6. Garden 6

129 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens

Contemplative Village Garden

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131 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens

Contemplative Village Garden

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133 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens

Contemplative Village Garden

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135 II. The Journey So Far

Bonnevaux | Poitiers . France

© 2021