A Week of Silence
A Jesus Prayer retreat on Madeira. Seven days of mountains, ocean and silence with a priest — for people whose tiredness a holiday no longer touches.
A Jesus Prayer retreat on Madeira. Seven days of mountains, ocean and silence with a priest — for people whose tiredness a holiday no longer touches.
Why people come
This week will not solve everything. What it gives you is silence in which what matters can be heard again, and a prayer you can take home.
Three supports
The Jesus Prayer — one sentence the Church has kept for more than a thousand years. Morning, evening and on the trail. With guidance, at your own measure, without techniques or the hunt for special states.
The Laurissilva, a UNESCO laurel forest older than the Ice Age, sunrise above the clouds at 1818 metres, levada paths, the ocean and swimming in natural pools. Places chosen for prayer, not for sightseeing.
Confession and personal conversations with the priest on Saturday, the Divine Liturgy and a festive meal on Sunday. Freely, without pressure, and never for payment.
Rhythm
The path of the week
Arrival, entering the silence, phones into the box. The first teaching on prayer.
An easy trail: Queimadas or Balcões. Attention to the words of the prayer.
A levada through the laurel forest, 3–4 hours. A conversation about plans, accumulation and the price of your own barns.
Out to sea by boat to the whales and dolphins, in silence. A mountain sauna and a talk in the evening.
Prayer at sunrise in the mountains or in the fog of Fanal. Preparation for confession in the evening.
Personal conversations, silence, the all-night vigil. A ministry, never part of the price.
Liturgy, a festive meal, your own rule of prayer for 40 days and a prayer rope to take with you.
A personal rule for 40 days, a letter from the priest on day 7, group calls on day 21 and day 40, and a quiet alumni chat.
The heart of the week
“Hesychia” is Greek for stillness. In the Orthodox tradition it is not merely the absence of words but a stillness of the heart in which a person can hear God again. Silence here is not discipline for its own sake; it is the condition for prayer.
Saint Seraphim of Sarov called the aim of the Christian life the acquisition of the Holy Spirit. Grace does not enter noise: while the mind is scattered across hundreds of tasks, notifications and conversations, there is nowhere for it to enter. Outward silence gathers the scattered powers of the soul; inward silence — watchfulness and attention — makes the heart able to receive.
This is the collectedness that a person living in permanent multitasking lacks. Not an effort of will, not a concentration technique, but a mind gathered before God.
The Jesus Prayer is the core of hesychasm, a tradition the monasteries of Athos have kept for over a thousand years; the Philokalia itself was assembled there in the eighteenth century. We hold to the same simple principles the Athonite elders teach:
Phones are kept in a shared box. Contact with home once a day at a set time: letting them know you are well is enough.
On the trail we speak only about safety — on drops, in tunnels, on wet rock. The rest of the time we walk in silence, with the prayer in the rhythm of our steps.
The first two days can be hard. That is normal and it passes: the mind usually settles by Wednesday. Dryness and distraction in prayer are normal too, and we say so in advance.
At the “Silence” level the silence is partial: until lunch and after the evening prayers. At the “Hesychia” level it is complete, apart from the talks. For beginners there are no breathing methods and no techniques — only saying the words attentively.
Your own measure
| Silence | Hesychia | |
|---|---|---|
| For whom | beginners and those outside church life | those with experience of church life |
| Silence | until lunch and after evening prayers | complete, apart from the talks |
| Fasting | lighter, by discretion | by the rule |
| Jesus Prayer | a short rule | extended, reported to the priest |
| Confession | on Saturday | daily if you wish |
We choose the level together in the call before you come. Both groups pray, eat and walk together — only the measure differs.
What you leave with
Written for you personally: prayer, sleep, a boundary around your screen, a step towards reconciliation and the next step in your life.
The journal of the week stays with you. The prayer rope is given on Sunday after the Liturgy.
Group calls on day 21 and day 40, a quiet alumni chat, and the possibility of writing to the priest.
Who leads it
An Orthodox priest on Madeira with a master's degree in theology. He has practised the Jesus Prayer for many years and leads every talk, every discussion and all spiritual guidance himself.
Before ordination and alongside it — six years as a team lead recruiter and HR business partner in game studios and AI startups, and founder of a digital agency.
“I spent years hiring people in tech and watching them burn out. Now I can offer them what helped me: prayer and silence.” [quote to be approved]
There the Jesus Prayer is learned not from books but from those who live by it. The principles we keep during the week come from there: attention to the words, repentance instead of the search for experiences, a little but every day.
Price
This covers the programme itself: teaching and conversations every day, three trails with a guide and transport, the mountain sauna, swimming, the journal and prayer rope, and 40 days of support afterwards.
ApplyAccommodation is not included: you choose it yourself. We give you a list of places we trust, 10–15 minutes from the base, and help you book them at no charge.
What is and isn't includedThe whole week, flights aside, usually comes to €1,700–2,500 — the difference is in your lodging and in how often you eat with the group. We show this openly so that nothing is a surprise once you are here.
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The price covers the week's programme, transport to the trails, the guide, trail fees, the sauna, materials and the organisation. Confession, Communion and spiritual guidance are a ministry: they are never paid for.
An honest filter
This retreat does not replace medical or psychological care. If you are under treatment at the moment, say so in the call with the priest and we will decide together whether this week suits you now.
Questions
Yes. That is what the “Silence” level is for: gentler silence, lighter fasting, and everything explained from the beginning — how to pray, what happens at the Liturgy, how confession works.
No. It is a spiritual practice in the Orthodox tradition: conversations with a priest and reading Scripture together, not therapy. The retreat does not replace medical care.
These groups are led in English: all teaching, talks and personal conversations. The services are served in Church Slavonic and English, and we explain what is happening as it goes.
Trails run 2–4 hours, mostly along level levada paths. You should be able to walk 10 kilometres comfortably. The harder mountain sections are only for the “Hesychia” level and for those used to walking.
Phones are kept in a shared box and you are in touch with home once a day at a set time. In an emergency you can always be reached through the priest.
No, it is entirely free. We help those who want to prepare; everyone else is simply present at the service.
Up to 16. A group runs when at least seven people have joined; otherwise we move the week and refund the deposit in full.
Wherever you like. Accommodation is not included: we give you a list of places we trust, 10–15 minutes from the base — from a guest house at around €45 a night to a hotel at €150 — and help you book at no charge. In the morning the bus collects the group from one meeting point.
The silence holds during the hours of the programme: from morning prayers to the evening talk, and on the trails. The evening in your own room is on your conscience. In practice, after a day of silence you don't feel much like talking.
So that you pay for what you use. One person takes a picnic on the trail, another eats at a restaurant; one goes out to the whales, another would rather stay ashore. If it were all in the price, everyone would pay for everyone. The programme keeps what everyone needs: the priest, the trails, transport, the guide, the sauna and the support afterwards.
Every trail has an alternative on the other side of the island. We decide the evening before, from the forecast.
The food is Lenten, which means no meat and no dairy. It suits a vegetarian completely. Tell us about any intolerances in the call and we will take them into account.
There are direct flights to Madeira (FNC) from many European cities. We can meet you: the transfer is €35 one way and is not part of the programme. Getting here on your own is simple too — a bus to Funchal and a taxi.
Yes. You book the room yourselves, and a double room is exactly for that. Both of you keep the silence.
Yes. Extra days with a free programme are possible after Sunday — easiest to arrange in the call. [terms to be confirmed]
Nothing. The sacraments and spiritual conversations are never paid for — not separately and not “as part of a package”.
First a short application — name, phone, email and country. Then a 20-minute call with the priest, and only after that the deposit. That way we both understand whether this week suits you now.
Not ready to travel yet? Write to us on Telegram or on WhatsApp, and we will tell you about the next groups.
Get in touch
The easiest way is Telegram or WhatsApp. You can ask anything before applying — it commits you to nothing.
Machico, Madeira, Portugal · Organiser: Pavel Sergeev · NIF 317055887