Introduction To Celtic Spirituality Series

Earthed Spirituality - Introduction

My connection with Celtic Spirituality

Early on – John Michael Talbot – God of Life

Clannad – intro shots to U2’s “Live at Red Rocks” Video

Love of things Irish & Celtic – bands: U2, Big Country, The Alarm (Welsh), The Proclaimers (Scot) The Waterboys

Movies: the Commitments, “In the Name of the Father” - Gerry Conlon

The tragic beauty of the Irish –

“For the great Gaels of Ireland

Are the men that God made mad.

For all their wars are merry,

And all their songs are sad. – G.K. Chesterton

“The Devil’s Own” – “This isn’t an American story, it’s an Irish story.”

Native Ministry – looking for a spirituality of the here and now

“I have Christianity for after I die, and I have my Native Spirituality for now.”

What Started as a theoretical ministry question became a deep yearning in my heart for a way to express what I knew was true – that God was the God of the hear and now, and not just the God of Heaven

Looking for a spirituality of Work at Humber – Power Lines: Celtic Prayers by David Adam

Lord, Whatever…

Lord,

Whatever we build,

Give us a glimpse of your glory.

Whatever we make, give us a sense of your wonder.

Wherever we travel

Give us a sense of reverence.

Whoever we meet,

Give us a sense of awe.

Whatever we do,

Give us a sense of achievement

Whatever our situation,

Give us knowledge of you

Help us to see that everything is in your care

And that you allow us to share in your glory.

“The Celtic Way of Prayer” by Esther De Waal – what I discovered was what I already knew, but didn’t have the practice and theology to back up, as JMT’s album was titled, God is not just the God of the after life, he is the God of life – all of life

The Celts seemed to recognize the presence of God in everything that they did, and in every sphere of life.

A blessing on the day:

Bless to me, O God

My soul and my body;

Bless to me, O God

My belief and my condition

Bless to me, O God

My heart and my speech

And Bless to me, O God

The handling of my hand

Strength and busyness of morning,

Habit and temper of modesty,

Force and wisdom of thought

And Thine own path, O God of virtues,

Till I go to sleep this night

Thine own path, O God of virtues,

Till I go to sleep this night

They had prayers for making the bed!

I make this bed

In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit

In the name of the night we were conceived,

In the name of the night we were born,

In the name of the day we were baptized,

In the name of each night, each day,

Each angel that is in the heavens.

They had prayers for milking the cow!

Bless, O God, my little cow,

Bless, O God, my desire;

Bless Thou my partnership

And the milking of my hands, O God.

Bless, O God, each teat,

Bless, O God, each finger;

Bless Thou each drop

That goes into my pitcher, O God!

That is a bit of my journey. And I need to confess that I’m a bit of a novice in these things I’m still learning and discovering things about Celtic Spirituality and God.

Saint Patrick

I don’t know when Saint Patrick stopped looking like a Leprechaun for me, but he has become my favorite saint.

Who were the Celts?

Celtic tribes once covered were an Indo-European people, Celtic tribes once covered much of Europe and down into Turkey.

It was a Celtic army led by Brennus that Sacked Rome around 390 BC.

Most of what we have written or depicted about the ancient Celts was written by their enemies. They were a wild bunch: fearsome warriors who entered battle naked, protected only by their shield and sword. While they were hated by the Romans, they were also greatly respected for their war-craft, their virtures of loyalty, courage and generosity. This can be seen in the statue, the Dying Gaul: mortally wounded, there is no fear, and a great deal of pride in his face and stature.

The places where you’ve heard of the Celts without knowing it may have been the Gauls of France (Astrix was a Celt!) and the Galatians in Turkey were Romanized Celts.

Celtic culture was largely extinguished by the onslaught of the Romans from the south and the Germanic and other groups from the north and east. Pressure from Germanic populations began in the late 2d century, as did the Roman invasions. Gaul was subjugated by Julius Caesar in the Gallic Wars (58-51 BC), and the Romans conquered Britain in the 1st century AD.