#insular christianity tag

[ainsi-soit-il]

Heaven is intertwined with earth. Alleluia! We have taken the divine life into ourselves. Alleluia! And so now each may say, I rise up clothed in the strength of Christ. I shall not be imprisoned, I shall not be harmed; I shall not be downtrodden, I shall not be left alone; I shall not be tainted, I shall not be overwhelmed/ I go clothed in Christ's white garments; I go freed to weave Christ's patterns; I go loved to serve Christ's weak ones; I go armed to rout Christ's foes.

A Prayer following Communion from The Soul of Celtic Spirituality by Michael Mitton.

[ainsi-soit-il]

Gàidhlig hymn lining, my beloved....

[ainsi-soit-il]

The Christian Church, as it emerged in [Celtic] culture, took hold of this sharp awareness of the dead, and transformed it into something that was quite real, but were not frightening. We could remember them, not to appease them, but to thank God for them. They were around, not to interfere in our lives, but to carry on their prayer life that began on earth.... All these customs were used to reinforce the immovable conviction of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.

Michael Mitton, The Soul of Celtic Spirituality.

[ainsi-soit-il]

Celtic Christians found it as natural to pray during the milking of the cow, as they did in church. In fact it was vital to feel at ease in praying while doing such mundane things as milking your cow, because if you could not do that your spiritual and earthly worlds were becoming far too separate. Thus there are prayers for getting up in the morning, for washing and dressing, for working, for resting, for meeting friends, for eating, for tidying the house, for undressing, for going to bed. In this way the Celtic Church was returning to our Jewish roots, for in Jewish spirituality there has always been a strong earthiness in prayer.

Michael Mitton, The Soul of Celtic Spirituality.

[ainsi-soit-il]

It is interesting to read such stories, because they are not written with the intention of evoking the 'ah, how sweet' reaction that we might offer. The stories speak much more about the respect that children were held in. Their visionary experiences were not doubted or dismissed as childish fantasy, and their prophetic gifts were welcomed. The thought that God could only work through the learned and the articulate was abhorrent to the Celtic Church.

Michael Mitton, regarding Medieval stories of children receiving visions from God, in The Soul of Celtic Spirituality.

[ainsi-soit-il]

If I could live in a tiny dwelling on a rock in the ocean, surrounded by the swelling waves, cut off from the knowledge and sight of all, I would still not be free from the cares of this fleeting world, or from the fear that somehow the love of money might snatch me away.

St. Cuthbert, as quoted in The Soul of Celtic Spirituality by Michael Mitton.