Wycliffe Hall Summer School 2027
The Promise of Joy: Pursuing the Elusive Fragrance of Eternity
19 - 24 September 2027
"Joy is never a possession, always a desire for something longer ago or further away or still 'about to be'."
C.S. Lewis
Joy is something that is ‘set before us’, often out of reach, always out of our control. We tend to pursue pleasure, but seldom, perhaps, experience true joy.
Join us in Oxford, the city where C.S. Lewis wrote Surprised by Joy, for a week immersed in the theme of joy. Together we will consider: Can we become more open to joy? How might we recognise it when it comes? What does the Christian faith have to say about joy as both a future promise and a present gift? Is there anything we can do to put ourselves where joy is more likely to light on us, or, in C.S. Lewis’ striking metaphor, to stab us?
Our week will include an exploration of joy in the writings of C. S. Lewis, alongside reflections on joy as our destiny and how we can anticipate it now. Other sessions will look at joy from different angles, providing opportunities for learning, conversation, and inspiration alongside fellowship and relaxation.
We cannot promise that it will be a joyful week—after all, joy is not a possession! But we hope that by spending this week together, we may find ourselves better able to recognise and receive it when it comes.
We would love you to join us.
| 19 September | 20 September | 21 September | 22 September | 23 September | 24 September |
| Morning Chapel | Morning Chapel | Morning Chapel | Morning Chapel | Morning Chapel | |
| Seminars | Seminars | Seminars | Seminars | Seminars | |
| Coffee break | Coffee break | Coffee break | Coffee break | Coffee break | |
| Seminars | Seminars | Seminars | Seminars | Seminars | |
| Lunch | Lunch | Lunch | Lunch | Lunch | |
| Registration and afternoon tea | Walking tour of Oxford | Afternoon excursion | Afternoon excursion | Afternoon excursion | |
| Chapel and Communion | |||||
| Welcome dinner | Wycliffe Hall Gala Dinner |