Celtic Odyssey

The Gillespie name is ancient, its origins dating probably from 5th century Ireland.  It is widely thought to be made up of two Gaelic words, "Filid," a druidic bard, and "Asbuig," a bishop.

The matter of life come forth directly from the womb of God's being.  The glory of the sun rising in the east is the glory of God shining on us now and now and now.  The whiteness of the moon, the wildness of the wind, the moisture of the fecund earth is the glow and wildness and moistness of God now.  It is the very stuff of God's being of which we and creation are composed. Christ of the Celts , J Philip Newell, pg 36.

A dear friend of mine sent me some questions and I followed up with some answers.  I thought I would post the coversation here for the benefit of others with similar questions (you know who you are). ~~~ Do you believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, rose from the grave and is now at the right hand of God? Yes and no.  I believe that 'Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said.  He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said' (1Cor 15.3-4).  But what I am exploring is what we mean by 'for our sins'.  What was the meaning behind his death?  Was it a 'ransom'?  If so, to whom was the ransom paid?  If we say 'God', then my next question is, 'Does the love and forgiveness and mercy of God have to be bought?'  That is, we would NEVER have our children buy our love and forgiveness and yet, we think that God 'demands' such a thing.  To take Jesus out of context, '[If