Throughout my sabbatical, I will be immersing myself in Celtic Spirituality. This form of spirituality has its home in the Britons, especially on the little island communities off the cost of Scotland, as well as in Ireland. The most famous Celtic spiritualist, of course, was St.Patrick, the great missionary who freed slaves in Ireland in the 5th century.
I'm sure to learn lots about the ways of the Celts and how they approach and view God, but something that is attracting me, initially, is the rhythm and discipline of looking for and finding God in his creation. I have to issue myself, and you all a warning here- God is NOT his creation, but evidence and presence of God can be found through the witness of creation (see Romans 1:19, Psalm 19:1). I admit, this is a bit of a stretch for me theologically because I have been taught and led to believe (and do believe firmly) that God has made himself known through his incarnate Word, his Son, Jesus Christ. So any time I hear that God can be known apart from his self-revelation in Christ, my theological radar goes up and I listen carefully.
All that being said, I am finding Celtic spirituality refreshing because it speaks to finding God's present all around me, in the day to day, in my observances and relationships. Here is a well-known hymn by Patrick that I found helpful and enlightening:
Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me,
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.
In his seminal work, Listening for the Heartbeat of God, J. Philip Newell goes on to explain Celtic spirituality by saying,
"There is not in the Celtic way of seeing a great gap between heaven and earth. Rather, the two are seen as inseparably intertwined. Mary, for instance, loved with a homely tenderness of affection, is portrayed not as a Queen of Heaven, remote from humanity, but as a barefooted country girl out among the cattle in immediate contact with the concerns and delights of daily life. Peter is perceived not as an exalted ecclesiastic but as a simple fisherman, experienced in the ways of the sea, present to guide and to guard, and Christ, as King of the Elements, is not regarded as a distant regal figure but more in terms of the Celtic king, chief of the tribe who is known to his people and close to them. The Christ who is above the morning sun is the Christ who is beneath them in the dark fertility of the earth. The Christ who is with his people in the quiet calm of a windless sea is with them too in the midst of the wild wintry storm. The Christ who is within, at the very centre of their soul, is the Christ who is to be looked for in friend and stranger, Christ at the heart of all life." (p.26)
How am I tuning in to Christ's presence this day? How am I seeking him in relationships, in his creation, in his simple beauty? Is God present even in the difficult moments? I'm aware, as this day begins, that I will yet again find myself lying on a CT Scanner, that Table of Truth, where all will be revealed about my body. Is Christ to be found there, too? Of course, yes. Will I acknowledge him, open myself to him, and allow him to find me there? That, I think, is the true question.
Christ be with you.
