A Cairn is a meeting place of disciples of Jesus where we pray, eat and study together. A cairn on a mountain is a place that helps us to stop, meet and check our bearings as we journey together. In the same way, the purposes of Cairns in our diocese are to provide:

• Support for personal wellbeing
• Encouragement for mission
• Accountability in discipleship

So this is more than a prayer group, it’s about loving one another and supporting each other as we seek to share the good news of the Kingdom. Cairns have grown out of a long tradition of spiritual discipleship drawn from ancient monastic communities. Bishop Jonathan sees these as “little Benedictine communities that will spread across the diocese.” As well as praying for one another we seek to see how God can use us as we move out in mission and follow him more closely in our daily walk as his disciples.

It is part of the REVIVE element of our diocesan strategy to set up Cairns across the diocese.

In Cairns we pray, eat, study to support, encourage and grow as disciples.

Who

We hope that Cairns will be for everyone. There is a common strand running through the history of the Church, as people have been inspired to join in community to share the life of Christ together. We suggest groups of three to six people who need to be ready to open up in trust and vulnerability. Peer groups without power dynamics will allow this to happen most easily.

What

We hope that Cairns will spring up in all sorts of places amongst all sorts of people. There could be Readers’ Cairns, coffee Cairns, clergy Cairns, running Cairns, curates Cairns, cooking Cairns, hiking Cairns, knitting Cairns, the choice is endless. We seek to be shaped to become more like Jesus, following his pattern of contemplative action (Mark 1:35-39). In love and faithfulness, holding one another in good time and bad. We see these Cairns as safe places, where we can grow in confidence and trust. Over time, we hope that they will become special places of spiritual refreshment, equipping us for the journey and allowing us to flourish. We have a list of resources for mission and discipleship to help you move forward here.

See the section on how to form a Cairn for more information on making this happen.

We suggest that the prayer part of your meeting is based upon Lectio Divina which enables all to participate and provides a starting point for your prayer. Centred in the Word, it allows the Holy Spirit to speak to us through one another in the space that the silence creates. This pattern of prayer has been used by the Bishop’s staff team since its inception. We recommend using the lectionary gospel reading for the following Sunday. We have provided a simple pattern for Lectio Divina here.

Our time of study allows us to come together in community as we bring to God the gospel work that he has called us to. You may also want to use a set of questions for each other that will help the members of your Cairn to be spiritually accountable to each other. You can read or download them from here. If you find other resources that work for you please let Neil Smart know.

Where

Again, this decision is up to you. Somewhere special, perhaps a thin place like a beach, bench or church space. But equally somewhere convenient like a kitchen table, local cafe or pub. We believe that Cairns are a place where God can meet with us, a place for us to belong in authentic community.

When

As we are looking to eat together you have the choice of breakfast, lunch or supper. We suggest a once a month commitment and to aim to meet for an hour to an hour and a half. Try to spend an equal amount of time on each section and purpose. We should aim to keep to the agreed time so that all are able to commit with confidence.

Pilot Cairns

Within the Portsmouth Diocese we have Pilot Cairns where a group of people in an area of ministry get together as a Cairn in the same way but go on to form a Mission Action Plan. There are specific resources that help to make this happen. This is a specific experimental community which aims to inform the national Church. They are a type of Cairn that has an intentional focus on measurable outcomes.

In the future Pilot Cairns might be a combination of smaller cairns with a shared mission focus. We will be forming more supported Pilot Cairns for 2026. If you are interested in being part of a Pilot Cairn please contact Neil Smart.