Celtic Christianity: Its Own Religion?
This link takes you to an interesting article about Linda McKinnish Bridges, a Wake Forest University Divinity School professor who teaches a course on Celtic Christianity.
I’m not sure that I’m entirely comfortable with calling Celtic Christianity a “unique religion,” but I do think it’s nice to see a mainstream divinity prof acknowledge the syncretistic quality of Celtic Christianity — as a religion shaped as much by the indigenous spirituality of the Celtic lands as by the influx of Christianity into those areas.
Wake Forest University professor says Celtic Christianity is unique religion.
Pat
Interesting thesis, though i agree with you in being uneasy. I guess it’s as unique a religion as eastern Orthodoxy or pentecostalism..
ned
Carl, this is sort of unrelated but: was the URL for your website inspired by a book by John O’Donahue of the same name? Interesting timing: there is a great podcast by him up at the Speaking of Faith site:
http://speakingoffaith.publicradio.org/programs/john_odonahue/index.shtml
Carl McColman
Ned, I registered anamchara.com in 1996, two years before I discovered the work of John O’Donohue in 1998. So no, I was not inspired by him. I learned about the anamchara from Kenneth Leech and Edward Sellner.
bar
Celtic Christianity is rich and inspiring.
However this stuff by Prof. Bridges looks like typical romanticising of life in Celtic lands in the first eight or nine centuries A.D.
I think it does the whole subject a disservice not to try and look at the reality e.g. egalitarian it was not – monastic superiors had massive power,
Carl McColman
I agree, bar. So much beauty in the Celtic world, no point in pretending it was better than it really was. But that’s a favorite romantic trick: just like how the Neopagans fantasize that the ancient horticultural Goddess worshippers were all like 1960s-era California liberals!
thecontemplativehousewife
I like your blog. I have been writing about some similar themes from a mom and housewife’s perspective. I’d love to have your opinion. I’m at
http://www.thecontemplativehousewife.wordpress.com .
hassanadnan
Also do try looking into Islam yourself other than what people and media really says about it
. http://quantumislamicworksorganisation.wordpress.com/2010/07/14/islamic-concept-of-life/