Four Waters of Prayer

Tutor:  Julienne McLean

In this two-day retreat, we will be reflecting on some of the profound symbols of the soul in the mystical text ‘The Interior Castle’ by the sixteenth century Carmelite saint, reformer and writer, St Teresa of Avila, from Jungian and spiritual perspectives. In particular, we will focus on her well- known teaching on contemplative prayer, known as the four waters of prayer, to help deepen our own understanding, and living practice, of interior prayer. A beautiful DVD of St Teresa’s Four Waters of Prayer, in Word, Image and Song will be shown.

Julienne McLean is a psychologist, psychotherapist, Jungian analyst, supervisor and spiritual director practising in North London. She has taught on several Anglican ordination courses, at Sarum College, Salisbury and St Mary’s University, Strawberry Hill, London. She has a particular interest in the relationship between modern depth psychology, contemplative prayer and the Christian mystical tradition.

For many years, she has also been teaching, and running study groups and retreats in England, Scotland and Spain on Jungian psychology and Carmelite Spirituality, particularly in relation to the lives/writings of the Carmelite saints, St Teresa of Avila and St John of the Cross. She teaches on the Carmelite Spiritual Direction Formation Programme (www.oxcacs.org).

She is the author of ‘Towards Mystical Union’, (St Paul’s, 2003, 2013, 2017), a modern commentary on St Teresa’s text on prayer, ‘The Interior Castle’ and ‘The Diamond Heart – Jungian Psychology and the Christian Mystical Tradition’ (Chiron, 2023). She co-founded Friends of Sophia (www.friendsofsophia.com) and Soul Encounters (www.soulencountersconference.com).