Often the only sound is the lapping of water and cries of wild birds but once a year the air is filled with song, prayer and the celebrations of a spectacular open air church service.

This is the only monastery in England not closed by Henry VIII. Instead it was given to the Bishop of Norwich and to this day every Bishop of Norwich is also Abbot of St Benet’s.

And once a year the bishop arrives by wherry to lead hymns and prayers around the cross which marks the site where the magnificent high altar of the abbey once stood.

The Rt Revd Graham Usher, Bishop of Norwich arriving at St Benet's Abbey on the Norfolk Broads for the annual blessing. The people who gather for the annual summer service – priests, pilgrims, worshippers, and walkers and sailors who have chanced upon the picturesque scene – are continuing a tradition of more than a thousand years of Christian praise and prayer on this spot.

In 1019 King Canute (of failing to hold back the tide fame and monarch of Denmark, Norway, Sweden and England) gave this land to a group of monks to build a monastery. Even before then there are stories of holy hermits living here.

The monks followed the rules of St Benedict (or Benet in medieval English). Today the St Benet’s service is open to all and arranged by members of St Benet’s Community, based in nearby........

© Norwich Evening News