It is hard for us to imagine what heaven is like. When John looked into heaven in the book of Revelation he described it in words of extravagance: precious jewels of many colours, rainbow around the throne of God, angel choirs, people of every nation and culture beyond numbering. Words are not enough, but it is all that we have.
Here is God in all His glory. There is but one God, revealed in three persons: the Father on the Throne, the Son at His right hand, the Holy Spirit hovering all around and overshadowing it all. Magnificence beyond imagination.
And yet, before there was time or any star in the sky, there was still God, with the same magnificence, with all His angels serving Him.
The mystery is that God was lonely. There was no one sufficiently like Him with whom He could share this and relate to.
Loneliness is a terrible thing. We all know this. We all long for someone whom we can relate to who is sufficiently like us to fulfil us. This is what marriage is all about. A man and a woman who are sufficiently alike, yet also quite different, that we can be fulfilled in our union together. Counterparts.
God longed for a counterpart.
He longed for someone like Him, yet sufficiently different, that TOGETHER, there could be fulfilment.
What a thought. The God who needs no one, yet longs for someone to relate to on a similar level.
What is He to do?
Create! But what is He going to create? He already has all the angels around Him. They are magnificent beings with great power and glorious appearance. But they are not sufficiently like Him to be a counterpart. These magnificent creatures surround Him. They serve Him. They worship Him. But they are incapable of relating to Him in the way that He wants so much.
So God sets about the work of creation that we read about in the Bible. He sets in motion a series of events that find their fulfilment in a perfect earth for perfect people who are “in His image and likeness.” Just like Him. People who can love and relate in the deepest way to Him and each other.
Adam and Eve. Two people who, in the way they relate to each other,( unity, one flesh together), can together as one flesh relate intimately with Him. One flesh, God and mankind. The perfect counterpart. Not identical to Him but the perfect complement to Him.
What a wonder! The creator and the created together as one.
Jesus shared about this great mystery and wonder when he prayed the great prayer found in John 17.After Jesus prayed for those with him on earth at that time, He prayed for us, you and me in our age all these years later.
[20] “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, [21] that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. [22] I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one--- [23] I in them and you in me---so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
His is the language of marriage. Complete unity but not uniformity. God is still God, the creator of all. We are still creatures, created by Him. Yet we are united with Him.
Here is the answer to the cry in God's heart for companionship and true relationship. Here is the most wonderful, yet mysterious, activity in all of time. God and us in complete unity just like a man and a woman becoming one flesh together.
Imagine. A perfect earth, perfectly suited for humans, united with God who is in His perfect location, heaven. Earth and heaven united. God and mankind united.
That is how it was always meant to be. And that is what it will be like when all things are made new in the new heaven and new earth.
In the original creation everything was perfect. No one was sick, or poor, or lonely. There was no death. No one oppressed anyone. No moneylenders stole people's land. In fact the very thought of these things was not even possible.
So it will be in the new earth.
Revelation 21:3-5
[3] And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God's dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. [4] 'He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death' or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” [5] He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
In the meantime we are on this fallen earth with a task to do. That task was very simple. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind and all your strength. And then love your neighbour as yourself.”
From this comes everything else we do.
Our love for God and for our neighbour (who is everybody) will automatically cause us to do the things that please our wonderful God. We will automatically want other people to love Him as well and we will do whatever is necessary to show the love of Jesus to everyone, even if it costs everything we have and are.
What a God we love and serve!!!
Saturday, October 22, 2016
Archangels in the world today
In the Canonical books of the Bible there are three archangels mentioned, Michael, Gabriel and Lucifer, who became the fallen angel we call the devil. Each of these archangels control(ed) one third of the angelic realm. The Roman Catholic Church recognises a fourth, Raphael in the book of Tobit, not recognised as canonical by non-Catholics. Still others recognise three others from the non-canonical book of Enoch. Yet others are named in other traditions.
I will only speak of the three archangels found in the Canon of Scripture accepted by most Protestants. A further indicator for this is found in Revelation 12 where it mentions that the devil controls one third of the angels (now demons), cast down to the earth to wage war against the disciples of Jesus.
I wrote some years ago about the function and character of each of these three archangels and their respective three realms. This post is just to simplify the character of each based on this previous material.
To sum up their characteristics in one word I believe the following does justice to the bible text:
Lucifer – beauty
Michael – strength
Gabriel – wisdom.
To draw a long bow, these may well correspond to the three attitudes of the “world” in 1 John.
1 John 2:15-17 NIV
[15] Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. [16] For everything in the world---
the lust of the flesh, (power, strength?)
the lust of the eyes, (beauty?)
and the pride of life (wisdom?)
---comes not from the Father but from the world. [17] The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.
These are also seen in the original temptation by Lucifer, described as the serpent.
Genesis 3:6 NIV
[6] When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was
good for food (power for living)
and pleasing to the eye, (beauty)
and also desirable for gaining wisdom, (wisdom)
she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
These three characteristics are possibly a description of the ideal man, who is Jesus, and found in man as created in the image and likeness of God. The Apostle John sees these three attributes in a fallen world as representing a counterfeit of God’s intended reality.
Of these three characteristics, beauty is the most dangerous one. This is what led to Lucifer’s attempted coup in heaven and it is seen in the person called the “king of Tyre” in Ezekiel 28, as distinct from the earthly “prince of Tyre”.
Beauty is also the most fleeting and potentially dangerous characteristic among humans.
Saying that beauty is fleeting is a cliché, but true none the less. It is also dangerous since people can be swayed by beauty without considering deeper and more important aspects of a person's makeup.
It is through beauty that many a person's mind has been turned. This is arguably the strongest weapon in Satan’s arsenal. When the other two are also used they are not as effective in most situations.
However it is in marriage and the Church that we see this effect most:
1. Marriage. “Marry in haste, repent at leisure”. How often do you hear of someone putting beauty at the top of the list for choosing a partner? The failure rate of marriages in the Western world, and in the Church, is over 50%. What a tragedy and perversion of God’s plan.
2. Church. One of the great challenges in contemporary worship is to recapture the true spiritual beauty of creativity in the worship of God the Father, His exemplary Son, and the powerful Holy Spirit. Many have found this wonderful worship, “in Spirit and in Truth.” However there is a large part of the contemporary church who have moved into the soulish realm, bordering on, or even concentrating on, entertainment. Discerning the difference between the spiritual and the soulish is a crucially important part of our life with Jesus. The soulish aspect is the counterfeit from the fallen Lucifer, while the spiritual reality is given to us by a loving Father.
It is true that the aspects of the other two archangels, Michael and Gabriel, can be counterfeited as well. But it is in the realm of beauty, “the lust of the eyes”, that many men fall into the deception of the fallen Lucifer, the dragon, the satan. How desperately we need strong men in marriages and also in the Church.
Sunday, October 9, 2016
Christian Satyagraha
I rewatched the film “Ghandi ” last night and, among other things, was impressed by how secure he was in himself. It was clear that his self security enabled him to follow his clear dream and not to compromise with anyone, the British overlords, his own political party, the various religious groupings in India, or even his own wife.
One of the issues for many, if not most, men in our society is this question of security. Most people are insecure in one way or another. This shows in trying to be macho, controlling, having little sensitivity to people of differing views, dominating, etc.
The secure person doesn't have to push his viewpoint, just live it. He, and it is usually a he, allows people to be themselves without controlling them. He will consider other views but still knows where he stands without compromise. He is prepared to take a lowly position and seem weak to some if it is to the benefit of others.
In other words, a secure person will model the life of Jesus.
None of us have got this all together, but maturity means that you are increasingly moving in this direction, increasingly modelling the life of Jesus to others.
It is amazing that we see this in a man like Ghandi who was, in his own words, a man of every religion, and so could not be called a Christian in biblical terms. He stuck completely to his doctrine of truth shown by non violence and non cooperation (satyagraha), even to the extent of extreme cost to himself with beatings, jail, hunger strikes to the point of death if necessary.
To see this modelled in a Hindu should be a wake up call to all Christians. The Mahatma often quoted Jesus, but was put off by the behaviour of Christians.
We can learn a lot from him, but why stop there when we can learn it all from Jesus Himself.
When we are “born again” we are called to a radically transformed life which models Jesus’ life. That is what repentance means, a turning away from, so that we can turn to the opposite.
Ghandi saw a COUNTRY freed from foreign occupation. We are called to see a WORLD freed from foreign occupation (the kingdom of darkness under satan) and delivered to the freedom of the Kingdom of Light, the Kingdom of God. Surely that is worth pouring your life into!
This will only happen when we live the life of true satyagraha, under the King of kings, Jesus Christ the Lord of all.
One of the issues for many, if not most, men in our society is this question of security. Most people are insecure in one way or another. This shows in trying to be macho, controlling, having little sensitivity to people of differing views, dominating, etc.
The secure person doesn't have to push his viewpoint, just live it. He, and it is usually a he, allows people to be themselves without controlling them. He will consider other views but still knows where he stands without compromise. He is prepared to take a lowly position and seem weak to some if it is to the benefit of others.
In other words, a secure person will model the life of Jesus.
None of us have got this all together, but maturity means that you are increasingly moving in this direction, increasingly modelling the life of Jesus to others.
It is amazing that we see this in a man like Ghandi who was, in his own words, a man of every religion, and so could not be called a Christian in biblical terms. He stuck completely to his doctrine of truth shown by non violence and non cooperation (satyagraha), even to the extent of extreme cost to himself with beatings, jail, hunger strikes to the point of death if necessary.
To see this modelled in a Hindu should be a wake up call to all Christians. The Mahatma often quoted Jesus, but was put off by the behaviour of Christians.
We can learn a lot from him, but why stop there when we can learn it all from Jesus Himself.
When we are “born again” we are called to a radically transformed life which models Jesus’ life. That is what repentance means, a turning away from, so that we can turn to the opposite.
Ghandi saw a COUNTRY freed from foreign occupation. We are called to see a WORLD freed from foreign occupation (the kingdom of darkness under satan) and delivered to the freedom of the Kingdom of Light, the Kingdom of God. Surely that is worth pouring your life into!
This will only happen when we live the life of true satyagraha, under the King of kings, Jesus Christ the Lord of all.
Sunday, October 2, 2016
Where is the Church? No.4
The Celtic way of evangelism involved storytelling and other imaginative means of communication in contrast to the Roman dialectic style usually used today. Again I reproduce the following quote as part of the basic material I will comment on in a later blog.
The following is directly quoted from
THE CELTIC WAY OF EVANGELISM HOW CHRISTIANITY CAN REACH THE WEST . . . AGAIN
By George G Hunter
Abingdon Press, Nashville, 2010
We do not know precisely how the apostles to the Celts engaged in emotional appeals because we have no transcripts, or even elaborate summaries, of their discourse to the pagans. We can infer four insights.
First, apostles like Patrick "had to find their deepest concerns." You cannot engage people seriously without engaging their motivational and emotional agenda.
Second, in contrast to the indifference of their capricious gods, the people discovered that their feelings mattered to the triune God of Christianity.
Third, their experience of God's providence gave them victory over terror and other destructive emotions.
Fourth, Christianity gave them outlets for expressing their constructive emotions through indigenous oratory, storytelling, poetry, music, dance, drama, and so on in God's service.
So, the Celtic Christian movement was effective, in part, because its leaders took the pathos of the Celtic audience seriously. We have seen that much of the communicative power of the Celtic Christian movement was attributable to the ethos of its communicators, who affirmed and engaged the pathos of the Celtic audience. Turning now to the logos of the message, we see that while Patrick, Columba, Aidan, and the others could reason quite effectively with people, their genius (compared to the Romans) was in the imaginative communication of Christianity's message.
The following is directly quoted from
THE CELTIC WAY OF EVANGELISM HOW CHRISTIANITY CAN REACH THE WEST . . . AGAIN
By George G Hunter
Abingdon Press, Nashville, 2010
We do not know precisely how the apostles to the Celts engaged in emotional appeals because we have no transcripts, or even elaborate summaries, of their discourse to the pagans. We can infer four insights.
First, apostles like Patrick "had to find their deepest concerns." You cannot engage people seriously without engaging their motivational and emotional agenda.
Second, in contrast to the indifference of their capricious gods, the people discovered that their feelings mattered to the triune God of Christianity.
Third, their experience of God's providence gave them victory over terror and other destructive emotions.
Fourth, Christianity gave them outlets for expressing their constructive emotions through indigenous oratory, storytelling, poetry, music, dance, drama, and so on in God's service.
So, the Celtic Christian movement was effective, in part, because its leaders took the pathos of the Celtic audience seriously. We have seen that much of the communicative power of the Celtic Christian movement was attributable to the ethos of its communicators, who affirmed and engaged the pathos of the Celtic audience. Turning now to the logos of the message, we see that while Patrick, Columba, Aidan, and the others could reason quite effectively with people, their genius (compared to the Romans) was in the imaginative communication of Christianity's message.
Where is the Church? No.3
The following is directly quoted from
THE CELTIC WAY OF EVANGELISM HOW CHRISTIANITY CAN REACH THE WEST . . . AGAIN
By George G Hunter
Abingdon Press, Nashville, 2010
What can now be known about how Celtic Christianity "won the West" for the second time?
The rest of this book unpacks the multiple known strategic causes for Celtic Christian expansion. This chapter focuses on how the Celtic way of being and doing church contributed to the re-evangelization of Europe in the centuries before the Roman way eclipsed the Celtic way.
Five themes suggest what we might learn from the ancient Celtic Christian movement about actually being the kind of missional church that many leaders now discuss.
First, in significant contrast to contemporary Christianity's well-known evangelism approaches of Lone Ranger one-to-one evangelism, confrontational evangelism, or the public preaching crusade (and in stark contrast to contemporary Christianity's more dominant "don't ask, don't tell" policy of not evangelizing at all!), we have already seen how the Celtic Christians usually evangelized as a team—by relating to the people of a settlement; identifying with the people; engaging in friendship, conversation, ministry, and witness—with the goal of raising up a church in measurable time.
John Finney observes that the Celts believed in "the importance of the team. A group of people can pray and think together. They inspire and encourage each other. The single entrepreneur is too easily prey to self doubt and loss of vision."
The second theme focuses on how the monastic community prepared people to live with depth, compassion, and power in mission.
Celtic Christianity seems to have prepared people through a fivefold structure of experiences:
• You experienced voluntary periods of solitary isolation, ordinarily in a primitive cell erected within a remote natural setting—like a grove of trees near a stream Drawing on the wisdom of the desert fathers and mothers of the Eastern church, Celtic leaders advised you to "go, sit in your cell, and your cell will teach you everything."
• You spent time with your anam cara, that is, your "soul friend"—not a superior like a spiritual director, but more like a peer with whom you were voluntarily vulnerable and accountable; to whom you made confession; from whom you received penance; who both supported and challenged you.
• If the monastic community was at all large, you spent time with a small group of ten or fewer people—led by someone chosen primarily for his or her devotion.
• You participated in the common life, meals, work, learning, biblical recitation, prayers, ministries, and worship of the whole monastic community.
• Through your small group and the community's life, and perhaps as a soul friend, you observed and gained experience in ministry and witness to pre-Christian people.
The community's purposes for you, through this fivefold structure, were to root your consciousness in the gospel and the Scriptures; to help you experience the presence of the triune God and an empowered life; to help you discover and fulfill your vocation; and to give you experience in ministry with seekers.
A third theme, weaving through the second, focuses on the role of frequent imaginative prayer in all the settings (in solitude, with the soul friend, in the small group, in the corporate life, and in ministry with believers and seekers) of life within the monastic community.
We will see, in chapter 5, that Celtic evangelization took people's "right brains" seriously; it made the gospel's meaning vivid, engaged people's emotions, and energized their response by engaging their imaginations.
The Celts' affirmation of human imagination also shaped the legendary Celtic life of private prayer. Esther de Waal is a contemporary champion of activating the religious imagination for meaningful prayer. She defines the Christian life as a journey, in the company of other pilgrims and the triune God, with dark forces about us and the saints pulling for us. The imaginative style of prayer that fuels this life typically focuses on space and images, attains a visual quality, and is characterized by cogency and poetic repetition.
De Waal explains: Above all the Celtic tradition has reminded me of the importance of images, those foundational images whose depths and universal character have always brought such riches to Christian understanding. . . . It now becomes vital, more than ever, to recover the fundamental images of fire, wind, bread, water, of light and dark, of the heart. These are the great impersonal symbols which are universal, understood by Christian and nonchristian alike.
The Psalms, of course, have these features, and the people in a monastic community typically sang and prayed thirty psalms a day. However, the Celtic Christians also wrote new prayers, and many have been passed on for centuries.
This part of a prayer serves as an example of cogency and poetic repetition:
O Father who sought me, O Son who bought me, O Holy Spirit who taught me.
The most famous Celtic prayer, "St. Patrick's Breastplate," stands as a magnificent example of the visual quality of many Celtic prayers:
I rise today in power's strength, invoking the Trinity, believing in threeness, confessing the oneness, of creation's Creator.
I rise today in the power of Christ's birth and baptism, in the power of his crucifixion and burial, in the power of his rising and ascending, in the power of his descending and judging.
I rise today in the power of the love of cherubim, in the obedience of angels, and service of archangels, in hope of rising to receive the reward, in the prayers of patriarchs, in the predictions of prophets, in the preaching of apostles, in the faith of confessors, in the innocence of holy virgins, in the deeds of the righteous.
I rise today in heaven's might, in sun's brightness, in moon's radiance, in fire's glory, in lightning's quickness, in wind's swiftness, in sea's depth, in earth's stability, in rock's fixity.
I rise today with the power of God to pilot me, God's strength to sustain me, God's wisdom to guide me, God's eye to look ahead for me, God's ear to hear me, God's word to speak for me, God's hand to protect me, God's way before me, God's shield to defend me, God's host to deliver me: from snares of devils, from evil temptations, from nature's failings, from all who wish to harm me, far or near, alone and in a crowd.
Around me I gather today all these powers against every cruel and merciless force to attack my body and soul, against the charms of false prophets, the black laws of paganism, the false laws of heretics the deceptions of idolatry, against spells cast by women, smiths and druids, and all unlawful knowledge that harms the body and soul.
May Christ protect me today against poison and burning, against drowning and wounding, so that I may have abundant reward;
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me; Christ within me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ to right of me, Christ to left of me; Christ in my lying, Christ in my sitting, Christ in my rising; Christ in the heart of all who think of me. Christ on the tongue of all who speak to me, Christ in the eye of all who see me, Christ in the ear of all who hear me.
I rise today in power's strength, invoking the Trinity, believing in threeness, confessing the oneness, of creation's Creator.
For to the Lord belongs salvation, and to the Lord belongs salvation and to Christ belongs salvation
May your salvation, Lord, be with us always.
The fourth theme is the role of the monastic community's hospitality in ministry with seekers, visitors, refugees, and other guests.
We have already seen that one Celtic approach to pre-Christian people involved a team from the monastic community penetrating the natural community of the target population.
We now feature a contrasting approach; the monastic communities invited seekers, refugees, and others, individuals and even families, to be their guests.
Put yourself in the place of a seeker, a refugee, or an abused teenager who has been invited to visit a monastic community, and you have found your way there. What would you likely experience? You would meet a "porter" stationed near the monastic community's entrance, whose chief role is to welcome guests and introduce them to the rest of the community.
The abbot, and everyone else, would welcome you with "all courtesy of love." The abbot (or abbess) would gently inquire about what had prompted your visit (and so begin the ministry of conversation), would read a scripture for you, offer a prayer for you, and extend the "kiss of peace." The abbot would wash your feet (from your journey by foot) and would show you to the guesthouse—which would be managed by a caring brother who would give you bedding.
You would be included at the abbot's table at meals; if the abbot was in a period of fasting, he would break the fast—for the abbot has no higher priority than ministry with guests. You would learn that the monastic community's highest commitment is hospitality to strangers, seekers, pilgrims, and refugees. The Benedictine Rule 53 mandates, "All guests who present themselves are to be welcomed as Christ, for he himself will say: 'I was a stranger and you welcomed me.'"
Soon you would be given a soul friend, a small group, and a place for periods of solitude.
You would learn some Scripture; you would worship with the community. One or more persons would share the ministry of conversation and pray with you daily.
After some days or weeks, you would find yourself believing what these Christians believe, and they would invite you to commit your life to Christ and his will for your life.
The fifth and final theme follows from the fourth and focuses more explicitly on the role of the seeker's experience of the Christian community in the process of conversion.
This theme represents the major contribution of John Finney's pioneering book Recovering the Past: Celtic and Roman Mission.
Finney's book does us the service of contrasting the Roman way of doing mission and evangelism vis-à-vis the Celtic way.
Bluntly stated, the Roman model for reaching people (who are already "civilized" enough) is this:
(1) present the Christian message;
(2) invite them to decide to believe in Christ and become Christians; and
(3) if they decide positively, welcome them into the church and its fellowship.
The Roman model seems very logical to us because most American Christians are scripted by it! We explain the gospel, they accept Christ, and we welcome them into the church. Presentation, decision, assimilation—what could be more logical than that?
But you already know enough to infer the (contrasting) Celtic model for reaching people:
(1) establish community with people or bring them into the fellowship of your community of faith;
(2) within fellowship, engage in conversation, ministry, prayer, and worship; and
(3) in time, as they discover that they now believe, invite them to commit.
We can contrast the two models on a chart: Roman Model Celtic Model Presentation Fellowship Decision Ministry and conversation Fellowship Belief, invitation to commitment
The Celtic model reflects the adage that, for most people, "Christianity is more caught than taught!"
Years ago, I began discovering the Celtic approach in my field research with converts out of secularity into faith. In interviews, I usually ask new believers: "When did you feel that you really belonged, that you were wanted and welcomed and included in the fellowship of this church?"
More and more converts, including a majority of boomer converts and a large majority of Generation X converts, comment that they felt like that before they believed and before they officially joined. Indeed, many new believers report that the experience of the fellowship made it possible for them to believe and commit.
For many people, the faith is about three-fourths caught and one-fourth taught.
My cautious conclusions about how most people become Christians were reinforced by a more empirical study sponsored by the United Bible Societies in Great Britain, led and written by John Finney.
A research team received 360 completed questionnaires from converts, and they interviewed 151 converts. These 511 converts represented the range of denominations in England, from Anglican and Roman Catholic, to "Free Churches" and the "New Churches."
In Finding Faith Today: How Does It Happen? Finney reports that most people experience the faith through relationships, that they encounter the gospel through a community of faith, and that becoming a Christian involves a process that takes time.
In his later book Recovering the Past, Finney summarizes their chief finding in four words. For most people, "belonging comes before believing."
Finney believes that we are now rediscovering the approach to mission first pioneered by ancient Celtic Christianity. He contends that the Celtic way is more effective with postmodern Western populations than the Roman way (and its more recent version—the traditional evangelical way). His data show that more people come to faith gradually (the Celtic model) than suddenly (the Roman model).
Furthermore, the ongoing contagious common life of the congregation that permits people to discover faith for themselves, at their own pace, now appears to be much more influential than special-event-preaching evangelism.
Finney outlines the typical journey of faith that most people experience today:
• X is introduced into the church through a member of his or her family, through friendship with some Christians, or through a minister.
• He or she begins to ask questions.
• He or she is invited to explore further and come to a knowledge and practice of the faith (often this is through a nurture group or some form of catechumenate).
• The individual discovers that he or she has become a Christian and marks it publicly through baptism or confirmation or whatever is appropriate to his or her denomination.
If, as observed above, "belonging comes before believing," then evangelism is now about "helping people to belong so that they can believe." Finney believes that, as we adapt to a changing Western postmodern culture, we will observe a widespread shift from the entrenched Roman model to the rediscovered Celtic model.
THE CELTIC WAY OF EVANGELISM HOW CHRISTIANITY CAN REACH THE WEST . . . AGAIN
By George G Hunter
Abingdon Press, Nashville, 2010
What can now be known about how Celtic Christianity "won the West" for the second time?
The rest of this book unpacks the multiple known strategic causes for Celtic Christian expansion. This chapter focuses on how the Celtic way of being and doing church contributed to the re-evangelization of Europe in the centuries before the Roman way eclipsed the Celtic way.
Five themes suggest what we might learn from the ancient Celtic Christian movement about actually being the kind of missional church that many leaders now discuss.
First, in significant contrast to contemporary Christianity's well-known evangelism approaches of Lone Ranger one-to-one evangelism, confrontational evangelism, or the public preaching crusade (and in stark contrast to contemporary Christianity's more dominant "don't ask, don't tell" policy of not evangelizing at all!), we have already seen how the Celtic Christians usually evangelized as a team—by relating to the people of a settlement; identifying with the people; engaging in friendship, conversation, ministry, and witness—with the goal of raising up a church in measurable time.
John Finney observes that the Celts believed in "the importance of the team. A group of people can pray and think together. They inspire and encourage each other. The single entrepreneur is too easily prey to self doubt and loss of vision."
The second theme focuses on how the monastic community prepared people to live with depth, compassion, and power in mission.
Celtic Christianity seems to have prepared people through a fivefold structure of experiences:
• You experienced voluntary periods of solitary isolation, ordinarily in a primitive cell erected within a remote natural setting—like a grove of trees near a stream Drawing on the wisdom of the desert fathers and mothers of the Eastern church, Celtic leaders advised you to "go, sit in your cell, and your cell will teach you everything."
• You spent time with your anam cara, that is, your "soul friend"—not a superior like a spiritual director, but more like a peer with whom you were voluntarily vulnerable and accountable; to whom you made confession; from whom you received penance; who both supported and challenged you.
• If the monastic community was at all large, you spent time with a small group of ten or fewer people—led by someone chosen primarily for his or her devotion.
• You participated in the common life, meals, work, learning, biblical recitation, prayers, ministries, and worship of the whole monastic community.
• Through your small group and the community's life, and perhaps as a soul friend, you observed and gained experience in ministry and witness to pre-Christian people.
The community's purposes for you, through this fivefold structure, were to root your consciousness in the gospel and the Scriptures; to help you experience the presence of the triune God and an empowered life; to help you discover and fulfill your vocation; and to give you experience in ministry with seekers.
A third theme, weaving through the second, focuses on the role of frequent imaginative prayer in all the settings (in solitude, with the soul friend, in the small group, in the corporate life, and in ministry with believers and seekers) of life within the monastic community.
We will see, in chapter 5, that Celtic evangelization took people's "right brains" seriously; it made the gospel's meaning vivid, engaged people's emotions, and energized their response by engaging their imaginations.
The Celts' affirmation of human imagination also shaped the legendary Celtic life of private prayer. Esther de Waal is a contemporary champion of activating the religious imagination for meaningful prayer. She defines the Christian life as a journey, in the company of other pilgrims and the triune God, with dark forces about us and the saints pulling for us. The imaginative style of prayer that fuels this life typically focuses on space and images, attains a visual quality, and is characterized by cogency and poetic repetition.
De Waal explains: Above all the Celtic tradition has reminded me of the importance of images, those foundational images whose depths and universal character have always brought such riches to Christian understanding. . . . It now becomes vital, more than ever, to recover the fundamental images of fire, wind, bread, water, of light and dark, of the heart. These are the great impersonal symbols which are universal, understood by Christian and nonchristian alike.
The Psalms, of course, have these features, and the people in a monastic community typically sang and prayed thirty psalms a day. However, the Celtic Christians also wrote new prayers, and many have been passed on for centuries.
This part of a prayer serves as an example of cogency and poetic repetition:
O Father who sought me, O Son who bought me, O Holy Spirit who taught me.
The most famous Celtic prayer, "St. Patrick's Breastplate," stands as a magnificent example of the visual quality of many Celtic prayers:
I rise today in power's strength, invoking the Trinity, believing in threeness, confessing the oneness, of creation's Creator.
I rise today in the power of Christ's birth and baptism, in the power of his crucifixion and burial, in the power of his rising and ascending, in the power of his descending and judging.
I rise today in the power of the love of cherubim, in the obedience of angels, and service of archangels, in hope of rising to receive the reward, in the prayers of patriarchs, in the predictions of prophets, in the preaching of apostles, in the faith of confessors, in the innocence of holy virgins, in the deeds of the righteous.
I rise today in heaven's might, in sun's brightness, in moon's radiance, in fire's glory, in lightning's quickness, in wind's swiftness, in sea's depth, in earth's stability, in rock's fixity.
I rise today with the power of God to pilot me, God's strength to sustain me, God's wisdom to guide me, God's eye to look ahead for me, God's ear to hear me, God's word to speak for me, God's hand to protect me, God's way before me, God's shield to defend me, God's host to deliver me: from snares of devils, from evil temptations, from nature's failings, from all who wish to harm me, far or near, alone and in a crowd.
Around me I gather today all these powers against every cruel and merciless force to attack my body and soul, against the charms of false prophets, the black laws of paganism, the false laws of heretics the deceptions of idolatry, against spells cast by women, smiths and druids, and all unlawful knowledge that harms the body and soul.
May Christ protect me today against poison and burning, against drowning and wounding, so that I may have abundant reward;
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me; Christ within me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ to right of me, Christ to left of me; Christ in my lying, Christ in my sitting, Christ in my rising; Christ in the heart of all who think of me. Christ on the tongue of all who speak to me, Christ in the eye of all who see me, Christ in the ear of all who hear me.
I rise today in power's strength, invoking the Trinity, believing in threeness, confessing the oneness, of creation's Creator.
For to the Lord belongs salvation, and to the Lord belongs salvation and to Christ belongs salvation
May your salvation, Lord, be with us always.
The fourth theme is the role of the monastic community's hospitality in ministry with seekers, visitors, refugees, and other guests.
We have already seen that one Celtic approach to pre-Christian people involved a team from the monastic community penetrating the natural community of the target population.
We now feature a contrasting approach; the monastic communities invited seekers, refugees, and others, individuals and even families, to be their guests.
Put yourself in the place of a seeker, a refugee, or an abused teenager who has been invited to visit a monastic community, and you have found your way there. What would you likely experience? You would meet a "porter" stationed near the monastic community's entrance, whose chief role is to welcome guests and introduce them to the rest of the community.
The abbot, and everyone else, would welcome you with "all courtesy of love." The abbot (or abbess) would gently inquire about what had prompted your visit (and so begin the ministry of conversation), would read a scripture for you, offer a prayer for you, and extend the "kiss of peace." The abbot would wash your feet (from your journey by foot) and would show you to the guesthouse—which would be managed by a caring brother who would give you bedding.
You would be included at the abbot's table at meals; if the abbot was in a period of fasting, he would break the fast—for the abbot has no higher priority than ministry with guests. You would learn that the monastic community's highest commitment is hospitality to strangers, seekers, pilgrims, and refugees. The Benedictine Rule 53 mandates, "All guests who present themselves are to be welcomed as Christ, for he himself will say: 'I was a stranger and you welcomed me.'"
Soon you would be given a soul friend, a small group, and a place for periods of solitude.
You would learn some Scripture; you would worship with the community. One or more persons would share the ministry of conversation and pray with you daily.
After some days or weeks, you would find yourself believing what these Christians believe, and they would invite you to commit your life to Christ and his will for your life.
The fifth and final theme follows from the fourth and focuses more explicitly on the role of the seeker's experience of the Christian community in the process of conversion.
This theme represents the major contribution of John Finney's pioneering book Recovering the Past: Celtic and Roman Mission.
Finney's book does us the service of contrasting the Roman way of doing mission and evangelism vis-à-vis the Celtic way.
Bluntly stated, the Roman model for reaching people (who are already "civilized" enough) is this:
(1) present the Christian message;
(2) invite them to decide to believe in Christ and become Christians; and
(3) if they decide positively, welcome them into the church and its fellowship.
The Roman model seems very logical to us because most American Christians are scripted by it! We explain the gospel, they accept Christ, and we welcome them into the church. Presentation, decision, assimilation—what could be more logical than that?
But you already know enough to infer the (contrasting) Celtic model for reaching people:
(1) establish community with people or bring them into the fellowship of your community of faith;
(2) within fellowship, engage in conversation, ministry, prayer, and worship; and
(3) in time, as they discover that they now believe, invite them to commit.
We can contrast the two models on a chart: Roman Model Celtic Model Presentation Fellowship Decision Ministry and conversation Fellowship Belief, invitation to commitment
The Celtic model reflects the adage that, for most people, "Christianity is more caught than taught!"
Years ago, I began discovering the Celtic approach in my field research with converts out of secularity into faith. In interviews, I usually ask new believers: "When did you feel that you really belonged, that you were wanted and welcomed and included in the fellowship of this church?"
More and more converts, including a majority of boomer converts and a large majority of Generation X converts, comment that they felt like that before they believed and before they officially joined. Indeed, many new believers report that the experience of the fellowship made it possible for them to believe and commit.
For many people, the faith is about three-fourths caught and one-fourth taught.
My cautious conclusions about how most people become Christians were reinforced by a more empirical study sponsored by the United Bible Societies in Great Britain, led and written by John Finney.
A research team received 360 completed questionnaires from converts, and they interviewed 151 converts. These 511 converts represented the range of denominations in England, from Anglican and Roman Catholic, to "Free Churches" and the "New Churches."
In Finding Faith Today: How Does It Happen? Finney reports that most people experience the faith through relationships, that they encounter the gospel through a community of faith, and that becoming a Christian involves a process that takes time.
In his later book Recovering the Past, Finney summarizes their chief finding in four words. For most people, "belonging comes before believing."
Finney believes that we are now rediscovering the approach to mission first pioneered by ancient Celtic Christianity. He contends that the Celtic way is more effective with postmodern Western populations than the Roman way (and its more recent version—the traditional evangelical way). His data show that more people come to faith gradually (the Celtic model) than suddenly (the Roman model).
Furthermore, the ongoing contagious common life of the congregation that permits people to discover faith for themselves, at their own pace, now appears to be much more influential than special-event-preaching evangelism.
Finney outlines the typical journey of faith that most people experience today:
• X is introduced into the church through a member of his or her family, through friendship with some Christians, or through a minister.
• He or she begins to ask questions.
• He or she is invited to explore further and come to a knowledge and practice of the faith (often this is through a nurture group or some form of catechumenate).
• The individual discovers that he or she has become a Christian and marks it publicly through baptism or confirmation or whatever is appropriate to his or her denomination.
If, as observed above, "belonging comes before believing," then evangelism is now about "helping people to belong so that they can believe." Finney believes that, as we adapt to a changing Western postmodern culture, we will observe a widespread shift from the entrenched Roman model to the rediscovered Celtic model.
Heritage
As Christians we are the beneficiaries of a heritage that goes back to the beginning of time. However there is a more recent heritage that we are part of. Many younger Christians are not aware of this and so live an impoverished life.
In my lifetime I have seen a great change in the expression of the Christian faith, much of it excellent bringing people closer to God through the Holy Spirit and a rediscovery of His gifts. There has been a negative side, however, in the ignorance of church history and the heritage of past generations.
I am continually aware of how little younger Christians know about even the most crucial events of Christian history and practice. We are in danger of having a whole generation of believers who know very little about the great treasures of our heritage as citizens of the Kingdom of God.
We do not live in a time vacuum. Whether we realise it or not we live within a continuum of faith. The past contains the efforts of many people to find the truth of the gospel lived in their culture and time. Their mistakes are often magnified so that we miss the many valuable insights they gained in their time. So often these insights have to be learned anew if we are unaware of our history. Mistakes long rectified have to be made again. The current major discussion about evangelism and church planting is a good example.
It is only recently that we are seeing that the early Celtic church in England provides a pattern for evangelism and church planting which is close to the NT pattern.
There are many other matters, closer to our daily experience, where our heritage is important, such as music, engagement with our culture, the place of social work in Christian ministry, etc.
We need to be reminded that we stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before us. The faith did not begin with us. We are part of a historic faith. God has revealed himself in history. The Bible is an historical book, among other genres. Jesus lived and died within an historical context. The Church has grown within history. History records the high points and the low points of our walk with Jesus.
History is crucially important. Edmund Bourke, among others, said that those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it. This is as true in the Kingdom of God as in civil life.
In my lifetime I have seen a great change in the expression of the Christian faith, much of it excellent bringing people closer to God through the Holy Spirit and a rediscovery of His gifts. There has been a negative side, however, in the ignorance of church history and the heritage of past generations.
I am continually aware of how little younger Christians know about even the most crucial events of Christian history and practice. We are in danger of having a whole generation of believers who know very little about the great treasures of our heritage as citizens of the Kingdom of God.
We do not live in a time vacuum. Whether we realise it or not we live within a continuum of faith. The past contains the efforts of many people to find the truth of the gospel lived in their culture and time. Their mistakes are often magnified so that we miss the many valuable insights they gained in their time. So often these insights have to be learned anew if we are unaware of our history. Mistakes long rectified have to be made again. The current major discussion about evangelism and church planting is a good example.
It is only recently that we are seeing that the early Celtic church in England provides a pattern for evangelism and church planting which is close to the NT pattern.
There are many other matters, closer to our daily experience, where our heritage is important, such as music, engagement with our culture, the place of social work in Christian ministry, etc.
We need to be reminded that we stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before us. The faith did not begin with us. We are part of a historic faith. God has revealed himself in history. The Bible is an historical book, among other genres. Jesus lived and died within an historical context. The Church has grown within history. History records the high points and the low points of our walk with Jesus.
History is crucially important. Edmund Bourke, among others, said that those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it. This is as true in the Kingdom of God as in civil life.
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