Celtic Odyssey

1 Peter 4.12-14 [15-5.5] 5.6-11 (CEB; adapted): Dear friends, don’t be surprised about the fiery trials that have come among you to test you. These aren’t strange happenings. Instead, rejoice as you share Christ’s suffering. You share his suffering now so that you may also have overwhelming joy when his glory is revealed. If you’re mocked because of Christ’s name, you’re blessed, for the Spirit of glory—indeed, the Spirit of God—rests on you. [Now none of you should suffer as a murderer or thief or evildoer or rebel. But don’t be ashamed if you suffer as one who belongs to Christ. Rather, honor God as you bear Christ’s name. Give honor to God, because it’s time for judgment to begin with God’s own household. But if judgment starts with us, what will happen to those who refuse to believe God’s good news? If the righteous are barely rescued, what will happen to the godless and sinful? So then, those who suffer because they follow God’s will should commit their lives to a trustwort...

On Monday evening, my classmates and I were commissioned to the service of Spiritual Directors, or, as they’re known in the Celtic Christian world, soul friends. We graduated from the HeartPaths Spiritual Center in Oklahoma City, an ecumentical center that recognizes the diversity of religious expressions that God has called into being. It was a three year process based in the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises: Year 1: Spiritual Formation —There were about a dozen or so of us when we started out. We met once a week and practiced various prayer styles. We also start meeting with our own spiritual director (some of us had different directors throughout the 3 years). We read and discussed key books in the field of spiritual formation, spiritual disciplines, and prayer. We wrote reflective papers, and prepared and presented a closing project to demonstrate proficiency in organizing and leading a prayer workshop. Mine was on, you guessed it, Celtic Christian Spirituality. Year 2: Spi...