Celtic Spirituality workshop in Ohio, Sept 9-10
The term Celtic Spirituality is a modern phrase for an ancient reality: a stream of Christian spirituality that characterized Celtic Britain and Ireland in the first few centuries of Christianity, but which had its origin before that in the shamanic and indigenous welcoming of nature as the thin veil of the supernatural, the transcendent and the Other. It is now enjoying a substantial rebirth.
In this OPA retreat workshop we will explore how each person is already naturally and intuitively responsive, from childhood on, to a Celtic spirituality. This is a deep “positive psychology” several millennia before the concept was invented. References are offered for pre-workshop reading. Here follows a brief introduction.
"Celtic spirituality" has two primary characteristics. The first is the belief that what is deepest in every human being is the image of God. To say that we are made in the sacred image is to say that the passion of God for what is just and right is part of the core of our being. It is to say that the longings of God for creativity and new beginnings, for beauty and love, are already deep within the mystery of our souls. The path towards well-being, therefore, is not to become someone other than ourselves but to become truly ourselves. The spiritual path is not about becoming other than natural, but about becoming truly natural. We are sacred not because we are baptized, or because we have passed through some religious ritual. Rather, we are sacred because we are born.
"The second characteristic of Celtic spirituality is the belief in the essential goodness of creation. Not only is creation good, it is theophany-a showing of the mystery of God. To the question, "Where do we look for God?" the answer is, "Not away from life." It is not away from ourselves or our children or anything that has been born; rather, we look to the heart of all that God has expressed into being.
". . .the Celtic tradition leads to the view, as one of its modern Scottish teachers, George MacLeod, used to say, that matter matters. What we do to matter is at the heart of our spirituality, whether that be the matter of our bodies, the matter of creation or the matter of the body politic and how we handle the resources of our nation and world, because at the heart of the material is the spiritual." –words of Rev. Dr. J. Philip Newell to Scottish Parliament, June 26, 2002.
References:
John O’Donohue. Anam Cara, Beauty, The Inner Landscape, Eternal Echoes; and J. Philip Newell. Listening to the Heartbeat of God; other recommended authors: Caitlin Matthews, Tom Cowan and Frank Henderson Maceowen
See also Paschal's posts on his other blogs, Sex and the Sacred, Whence the Wind? Love's Poetry, Stories of God and Celtic Spirituality in Kentucky, links found at sidebar at http://www.paschalbaute.com/writing,
Brief Bio. Paschal presented "Sex and the Sacred" at the last retreat at Deer Lake, also presented a workshop at the 2004 OPA convention on his latest book: Win - Win Finesse, The Art of Dealing Positively with Negative Feelings, and authored the "Blogging 101 for Psychologists" article in the March issue of OPR. He lives in Lexington, Ky. More is found at his web site: paschalbaute.com
In this OPA retreat workshop we will explore how each person is already naturally and intuitively responsive, from childhood on, to a Celtic spirituality. This is a deep “positive psychology” several millennia before the concept was invented. References are offered for pre-workshop reading. Here follows a brief introduction.
"Celtic spirituality" has two primary characteristics. The first is the belief that what is deepest in every human being is the image of God. To say that we are made in the sacred image is to say that the passion of God for what is just and right is part of the core of our being. It is to say that the longings of God for creativity and new beginnings, for beauty and love, are already deep within the mystery of our souls. The path towards well-being, therefore, is not to become someone other than ourselves but to become truly ourselves. The spiritual path is not about becoming other than natural, but about becoming truly natural. We are sacred not because we are baptized, or because we have passed through some religious ritual. Rather, we are sacred because we are born.
"The second characteristic of Celtic spirituality is the belief in the essential goodness of creation. Not only is creation good, it is theophany-a showing of the mystery of God. To the question, "Where do we look for God?" the answer is, "Not away from life." It is not away from ourselves or our children or anything that has been born; rather, we look to the heart of all that God has expressed into being.
". . .the Celtic tradition leads to the view, as one of its modern Scottish teachers, George MacLeod, used to say, that matter matters. What we do to matter is at the heart of our spirituality, whether that be the matter of our bodies, the matter of creation or the matter of the body politic and how we handle the resources of our nation and world, because at the heart of the material is the spiritual." –words of Rev. Dr. J. Philip Newell to Scottish Parliament, June 26, 2002.
References:
John O’Donohue. Anam Cara, Beauty, The Inner Landscape, Eternal Echoes; and J. Philip Newell. Listening to the Heartbeat of God; other recommended authors: Caitlin Matthews, Tom Cowan and Frank Henderson Maceowen
See also Paschal's posts on his other blogs, Sex and the Sacred, Whence the Wind? Love's Poetry, Stories of God and Celtic Spirituality in Kentucky, links found at sidebar at http://www.paschalbaute.com/writing,
Brief Bio. Paschal presented "Sex and the Sacred" at the last retreat at Deer Lake, also presented a workshop at the 2004 OPA convention on his latest book: Win - Win Finesse, The Art of Dealing Positively with Negative Feelings, and authored the "Blogging 101 for Psychologists" article in the March issue of OPR. He lives in Lexington, Ky. More is found at his web site: paschalbaute.com
posted by Paschal Baute | 2:17 PM
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