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Celtic Spirituality is an important part of the character of St Giles.
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Sunrise
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Celtic dancing – sparkling with energy and exuberance, stirs us. Celtic music – lilting and evocative, touches something deep in our heart. Both express Celtic Spirituality.
The Celts knew God’s love in the natural world, in other people and in their own heart. For the Celts the world is friendly. Celtic Spirituality celebrates God’s goodness everywhere!
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The Christian Faith was taken to Ireland by traders from Egypt. The Christian Celts shared the Druid’s delight knowing God in the natural world. The heavy hand of the Roman Empire and Church did not reach Ireland. People were not told – “You must believe this or that”; they could trust the God they knew in the sunrise, in their loved ones, and in the peace in their own heart. |
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Celtic Cross
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They expressed their faith in poems, prayers, songs and stories.
“A friend, a bird, a flower, a tree,
can be a gift from God to me.” |
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For the Celts, the mountains, the seasons, the movement of the tides all spoke of God’s constant care. They lived confidently, knowing they would make their way through troubles, as spring follows winter, as Christ’s resurrection followed his crucifixion.
Knowing God in the Scripture, especially The Psalms and John's Gospel.
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Celtic Spirituality flowered in Ireland, The Hebrides and Western Scotland around the year 800. A key figure is the spirited St Columba who established a community on the island of Iona.
His people took the Celtic vision to the North of England and beyond to Europe.
Columbanus established the University of Bobio where St Francis studied and the University of Erfurt, Martin Luther’s university. A wonderful artefact is “The Book of Kells” gloriously expressing the Celtic spirit embracing the world, (now housed in Trinity College, Dublin)
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The Abbey at Iona |
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© 2011 St Giles Presbyterian Church. All Rights Reserved
PO Box 5030, Christchurch, New Zealand
Phone:
64-3-352 6197
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Books by Rev. John Hunt
Rev. John Hunt is the author of three personal, enriching, and uniquely New Zealand books of Celtic Christianity.
More details.
These books are available from the Church office for $20 each.
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