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WHAT DO WE ALREADY KNOW
ABOUT THE CELTS???
FOOD
PRAYER
LOVES
TEACH
FOOD
In 1 CE it is recorded
that they prepared
their meats by roasting
or stewing. They ate
hens, ducks, geese
and planted grains.
Potatoes didn’t really
hit the ‘popular dish’
until the 17th century.
LOVES
They loved to
tell stories
around the fire,
they loved their
farms, they
loved art and
beauty.
PRAYER
The Celts prayed with gratitude to God and often prayed blessings over their families and neighbours.
TEACH
They didn’t write
things down and so
through oral tradition
they passed on
information about
family, love, tragedy
and their genealogy.
The word Celt
(Kelt) comes from
the Greek word
Keltoy
(pronounced Kel-
too) - it refers to
Barbarian people
to the north of
Greece.
The Celts once
covered much of
Europe developing
linguistically in the
Hallstatt culture in
modern Austria
between 700-1000BCE
and spread their
culture across
modern-day Germany
and France and into
the Balkans as far as
43CE – Romans invade Britain and Ireland
312 CE – Christianity becomes the official religion of Britain and
the Roman Empire.
410CE Last of the Romans leave.
431CE Christianity accepted in Ireland. Paladius sent to
Ireland to evangelize. Patrick follows. St. Patrick, the best-
known legend is that he drove all the snakes out of Ireland.
There probably never were any snakes in Ireland to begin with
because it has been isolated as an island since the end of the
Ice Age. The snake myth is obviously symbolism for the saint's
abolishment of pagan practices.
After Patrick, the pathway opened for
Christianity in Ireland. What followed
was the development of a uniquely
Celtic style of Christianity. The most
significant effect of Christianity's advent
was the arrival of literacy in Ireland.
596CE – The Gregorian Mission - Over the next
few hundred years after Patrick, Ireland became a
center for education. It was the stronghold for
preservation of classical learning while the rest of
Europe floundered in the Dark Ages. The high
standards of scholarship in Irish monasteries drew
students and teachers from both near and far.
1100CE The Church gains dominance over Celtic
religions.
The Celtic Christians formed their
communities successfully by living a rule of
life:
• By being a spiritual centre,• A learning centre and • A community centre.
• They believed that God was present in such a community and they fostered a sense and belief
in sacred space, especially where true community existed.
There are several prevalent
misunderstandings concerning the
Celtic Christians 1. They developed independently from the Roman
Catholic Church. There was no distinctive ‘Celtic
Church’ because the Celtic Christians always saw
themselves as unified with Rome. The fact that the
Roman Culture did not make it to Ireland because
of its isolation shows that they developed a model of
ministry different from the model of the Apostolic or
Christendom paradigms. The church was not
affected by Roman bureaucracy, law, architecture or
art.
2. Christianity developed primarily in Ireland but in
Wales and Scotland from 4th-9th centuries. It
remained prevalent in Ireland but altered with the
coming of the Normans and the Christendom
paradigm in the 12th century.
3. A unique style of Christianity evolved in Ireland
because the structure of the religion had to operate in a
strictly rural setting. At this time in Irish history there were
no towns, just nomadic settlements and loose,
unconnected tribal kingdoms. Therefore the core of
Christianity in Ireland was not the diocese and bishop.
Everything was centered at the monasteries.
This resulted in an independence that spawned unique
practices and liturgies. The Roman structure of urban-
based bishops simply couldn't function. It had to be
tailored to fit the local environment.
4. The Celtic Christians were not pantheists, they did not worship rocks and trees as gods, even though that is how the belief of the pagan Celts were perceived. They saw that each created thing had a purpose, a story and a reason for its existence and location. Every object and creature on earth is interconnected and comes from God and reveals the Creator.
5. Celtic Christianity for all its ‘pagan’ elements is very orthodox. There is no division of the Trinity into 3 separate divisions or persons. For them God, Son and Spirit are in unity.
6.Because God is always present, Celtic spirituality is highly contemplative
Everything in the Celtic mind was circular. Everything was connected and all of reality has no beginning and end. There was no division between the sacred and the secular, between God and the world.
The Celtic cross is symbolic of their faith and understanding of eternity. The circle was characteristic of the cosmos. You began life and continued to live the circle until death and then life came again. The Celts could see this life in the earth, in the heavens and in the seasons.
Beliefs and Practices
The circle behind the cross is a
sign of this eternal truth in Christ.
This innovation did not mean a
breakdown in Christian faith, it
showed how the faith of Christ
was connected to what they
believed. “The son on the sun”.
Another element of Celtic Spirituality is the
idea of the spiritual life as journey. Life
with Christ was like a journey.
We see this theme in the ‘Knots’ of Celtic
art. The interlocked circles symbolize the
moving in and out of life, going in different
directions but always looking for and
arriving at the same end.
Spirals symbolize the mystical path to
God. They indicate the way of
contemplation of the spiritual path. Life in
God is to always be searching, never quite
being content until we arrive at the end in
the Heart of God.
The labyrinth is also a symbol of
journeying to the centre of
oneself. Labyrinths are truly
sacred places. The space and
the experience of walking it are
also very sacred and powerful
and help us feel a greater sense
of Oneness. It is a tool for
people of all beliefs to come
together for a common spiritual
experience.
They took the image of spiritual journey literally; they went on pilgrimages far and wide. They were also very evangelical in the process, they told other people about Christ on the way. On the earthly journey or pilgrimage you did penance for the wrongs you had done. To them it was positive action – it involved not just the mind but the body in the spiritual life. They fasted often, spent long periods in prayer and did the cross vigil with arms outstretched like Christ on the cross.
A practice for Celts was to take a stone from
one holy place and bring it home as a holy
relic. They leave a stone from home in its
place. For them it confirms that everything is
connected and has a story. Everything is part
of a great circle and in a way this circle is the
ultimate community. Every created thing is
part of this cosmic community in God.
Another element which is interconnected with
all other aspects of Celtic spirituality was the
sense of family. For Celtic people their family
and clan were all important. Like the Jews
they were very proud of their genealogy and
carefully memorized their family heritage.
We are often guilty of separating God from the earth,
thinking that spiritual things are not of this world. The
spiritual world was a step away. They thought that just a
movement away right next to you was the place people
went after death. To the Celtic Christian ordinary life is
sacred.
Place was important to the Celts, travellers always
searched for their ‘place of resurrection’. It was the place
where a person could become the person they might
hope to be. They also believed in the presence of God in
the world. God is not far off. God is here in creation. The
incarnation of Christ makes the truth more vivid.
The importance of family and clan. With no roads as we know them, if you were to leave your family and kin you were in the wilderness. When you journeyed from their territory you could be in hostile ground. Without clan and family you had no identity, very similar to the story of the Jews.
The early Celtic Christian communities can be a model for us as we develop a new paradigm for ministry in our time. They can provide examples of true communities serving as centres for ministry, education, spirituality and contemplation and outreach.
The early Celtic communities were up against many of
the same conditions as today. When the Romans left
Britain in the 5th century CE, after 400 years of
occupation, their society changed rapidly. People began
to move into Britain who were not Christian or Celtic. Life
was chaotic. In Ireland the Church had to show that it
was different and relevant in people’s lives. It had to face
the diversity, go to the people and use the culture to
teach the faith and evangelize. There were no martyrs in
the Christianizing of Ireland. People had to be witnesses
in new ways, by their lifestyle and their commitment to
living as a Christian rather than their untimely death.
Individualism has caused our society to be less
communal and more fragmented.
People are in desperate need of community in spite
of being afraid or unaware of it.
The Church can provide community, but it must go to
where the people are and adjust tot h culture without
forfeiting essential beliefs.
We have the same challenges in our contemporary
culture
The Church must be inclusive, realistic,
contemplative communities who heal, convert and
show the Spirit of God.
Churches and congregations must be seen as
sacred places where heaven and earth meet. They
must be centres of prayer, worship and especially
compassion.
Unity College is both church and congregation and
we as staff must see our ministry to all the people
around us, who are called to be in relationship with
God.
Welcome
Hospitality
Prayer & Contemplation
A sense of awe and wonder
A reverence for nature
The virtues of Celtic Christian Spirituality alive in our charism
The circle symbolising God’s infinite love
WELCOME
In the Gaelic tradition, and especially in the Gaelic language there is a real sense of the sacredness of another person. The way that you met someone was through blessing.“God be with you” .
“May God come to your assistance and keep you.” There is a recognition that the divine is present in others.
To be truly welcoming to others then we need to be welcome each day with hope and happiness.
For The Celts hospitality embodied a great sense of reverence. In Ireland and parts of Scotland customary law obliged the householder to give assistance if required, to give board and lodging to the traveller.
HOSPITALITY
PRAYER & CONTEMPLATION Celtic spirituality fosters a contemplative approach to all creation. Monastery life reflected this contemplative approach. The early Celts believed we must have stillness to see the beauty of God in all of creation and to stop and listen to the needs of others.
A SENSE OF AWE & WONDER
The Celtic Christians recognized the sacredness of creation and the divine in each person. In their sense of awe and wonder of creation, they saw the oneness or connectivity of everything.
Creation was a reflection of God’s sense of beauty and it was extremely sacred for them.
For the Celtic person the new day was lived amidst nature and nature was just not matter, it was a spiritual place for them. Talamh, Goath, Uisce and Tine was their source of life.
REVERENCE FOR NATURE
The CIRCLE symbolising God’s infinite love
The circle is one of the oldest and most powerful symbols , it is never broken and reenergizes in its cyclical nature. It is symbolic of God’s never ending love.