Celtic Spirituality: An Ancient Traditioin for Our Times

Program Details

Celtic Spirituality is an ancient religious path that is as relevant to our time as it was to the Celts in 6h century. Grounded in natural world and open to the presence of God in all things, it offers a way to experience ourselves as known and cherished by a God that is close and personal yet still wild and untamed. In the year 2020, as the earth cries out for our care, Celtic Spirituality directs us to a relationship that is intimate and reciprocal, so that as we are healed by a closeness to nature and God, so too are we called to heal the water, air, land, and creatures of the earth from the harm we humans have caused.

In our Day Apart we will offer a simple description on what is Celtic Spirituality, including a hand-out and reading list for those who want to learn more. We will take a walk together around the land of Rolling Ridge, stopping to pray, sing or tell stories at places that might be felt as “thin places” to use a Celtic term, places where little seems to separate the seen and unseen. We will also lift up two aspects of Celtic Spirituality: The friendship known as anam cara (one’s soul friend) and the habit of blessing. The Celts would bless the start of the day and the end of the day, and all that lay in between.

We know that you will be blessed as you journey with us on this Day Apart in Celtic Spirituality.

About the Leaders

Jenny Rankin

Jenny Rankin is a Unitarian Universalist minister. Born in Boston and raised as a Unitarian Universalist, she was ordained in 1988 and has served as a parish minister and college chaplain. Currently, she serves the First Parish in Lincoln as interim minister. During her years as Minister at First Parish in Concord, Jenny became a student of Transcendentalism, and has taught classes, lectured, and led walking tours and travel seminars on this strand of American spirituality. More recently, Jenny has been drawn to explore Celtic spirituality, reading widely, travelling and beginning to teach and lead groups on this topic. She led a pilgrimage to Iona, Scotland in 2018 and again in 2019 with long-time friend, Tricia Brennan, as co-leader. They hope to again lead pilgrimages in 2020 and 2021. Jenny has an undergraduate degree in history and literature from Princeton University and is a graduate of Harvard Divinity School.